To open the first set this past Sunday, we played the title cut from a team effort LP by pianist John Lewis and French guitarist Sacha Distel, "Afternoon In Paris" on Atlantic Records. The twenty-two year-old Distel plays alongside his compatriots, tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen, himself only nineteen at the time and soon to join Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers on their European tour, and bassist Pierre Michelot, who played for years with the likes of Bud Powell, Dexter Gordon and countless others. On drums is the great Connie Kay, Lewis' partner in The Modern Jazz Quartet. The title cut, clocking in at just over nine minutes, is a beauty, with plenty room for the players to stretch out and stroll along the River Seine. You can listen to it here.
