Live Beauty

This live meeting of two West-Coast powerhouses succeeds precisely because it's not the kind of combustible collision that many all-star collaborations can become. You can probably thank guitarist John Stowell for that: he's got chops for days, but actively avoids setting fires. Instead, he sits back and plays only the right things. The answer also lies in the instrumentation. With no piano (and particularly with Stowell in the guitar chair), the music feels wide open. Chords are implied, but never thrown in your face. And then there's saxophonist Mike Zilber, who seems to channel Charles Lloyd at times when interpreting the melodies of the original tunes performed here.

But Zilber's not always game to play along with the cool vibes at play. Take the opener, a tune by drummer Jason Lewis called "In the Park." After a chilled-out solo from Stowell, Zilber decides to turn up the juice. And while Stowell doesn't match the volume of Zilber's Michael Brecker-esque high notes or Lewis's thunderous tom-toms, his accompaniment is almost furiously active.

Most of the tracks here are originals, oscillating between free improvisation and gentle ECM-style groove tunes. Toward the end of the set, though, Stowell and Zilber engage in an ethereal duet that slides abruptly into a playful take on "My Funny Valentine" (or is it "Everything Happens to Me"? both melodies are heard). Switching from tenor to soprano for this number, Zilber keeps his version of the melody understated, though he does pop the occasional high note out from nowhere. Stowell limits his accompaniment to single notes, sliding around the fretboard and filling up the space that Zilber leaves him. Like many other riveting moments on this disc, it must have been particularly rewarding to sit in that room and watch the song unfold out of nowhere.