This 2018 recording of Benny Golson's "Stablemates" from Chad Lefkowitz-Brown's Standard Sessions presents one of the more harmonically demanding compositions in the hard bop repertoire. Written by Golson and first recorded on the 1955 Prestige album Introducing Clifford Brown, the tune follows a 36-bar ABA form in D-flat at a blazing 243 BPM. Lefkowitz-Brown navigates four choruses of the tune's challenging chord changes with impressive fluency on tenor saxophone, demonstrating the kind of harmonic awareness and technical facility required by Golson's intricate writing. Pianist Steven Feifke matches the intensity with his own four-chorus solo, bringing a contemporary harmonic vocabulary to the material. Bassist Yasushi Nakamura contributes two choruses of acoustic bass improvisation at nearly the same breakneck tempo. The tune's angular melody and sophisticated harmony have made it a favorite test piece for improvisers since the 1950s, and this recording shows why it continues to challenge and inspire musicians. The trio's collective energy and precision at tempo make this one of the more virtuosic entries in the Standard Sessions catalog.
