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Navdeep Jhaj wrote on August 03, 2011 report

I think you capture the differences between Lewis and Bags well. As some who already owns many of the constituent CDs, I presume that the 24 bit remastering hopefully greatly enhances the sound. I think "elegance" captures and encapsulated the MJQ's music well--not a million notes per hour, but music that breathes, uses space and silence, and gently percolates . I think Kay is one of the most understated and delicately nuanced groove merchants around. Only quibble would be the characterization of Bob Weinstock's Prestige label as "prestigious"--during the time, it was known as the "Junkie's Label", often recording many blowing sessions by rounding up whoever was around, paying them in cash, not enough to make a living, but small enough to perpetuate certain drug habits. Very much unlike Atlantic and Blue Note. anyway, that's more historical hindsight. We are thankful that all these recordings exist!
John Kelman wrote on August 03, 2011 report

Thanks, as always, for writing Navdeep. I guess I meant prestigious in terms of the artists who were on it, from an historical perspective, despite you being absolutely keerect about it at the time.

Thanks for the kind words re: trying to differentiate between Lewis and Bags, and on the review as a whole. For me, it's the tension between their approaches that made MJQ what it was, along with Kay's understated work and Heath's unshakable support and contrapuntal foil.