John Lewis - Delaunay's Dilemma/The Garden of Delight (EmArcy, 1988)

This post is by Dan

John Lewis (p); Marc Johnson (b); Howard Collins (g)

Recorded October 2, 1987

Delaunay's Dilemma/The Garden of Delight may be easily overlooked in John Lewis' extensive discography. Recorded in Japan and only available either on LP or as a German CD, it probably flew under the radar of many American jazz lovers. Even now, it does not appear to be available from streaming services. That's a shame because musically it is superb, and the digital sonics are stunning. 

The album has an intimate, chamber-jazz feel to it. Bassist Marc Johnson had recorded with Lewis going back to 1981 and appeared on Lewis' Kansas City Breaks album (Finesse, 1982), which Scott reviewed earlier. His work on bass perfectly complements Lewis' keyboards. Guitarist Howard Collins completes the trio, contributing a clean, discrete accompaniment. 

The tunes are mostly familiar repertoire for the Modern Jazz Quartet, several composed by Lewis himself. I'm especially fond of "A Cold Wind is Blowing," first recorded on the MJQ's Odds Against Tomorrow album in 1959. "Django" is also here along with "Concorde." Lewis returns to his roots with the first and last tracks, titled "...And in the Beginning" and "There Was the Blues," respectively.

With John Lewis, you can always expect elegance, perhaps signified by his wardrobe on the album cover. Delaunay's Dilemma/The Garden of Delight delivers the type of bluesy elegance that made Lewis and the MJQ jazz legends.