Harry Warren's "September in the Rain" receives a polished, mid-tempo swing treatment on Roy Hargrove's 1990 debut album Public Eye. The AABA standard in E-flat moves at a comfortable tempo that allows each of the four soloists ample room for melodic development. Antonio Hart leads the solo section with one chorus of alto saxophone, his warm tone and fluid phrasing establishing an inviting mood. Hargrove follows with one chorus of trumpet, his improvisation displaying the singing quality and rhythmic sophistication that Wynton Marsalis had recognized when he first heard the teenage Hargrove at a Dallas high school. Stephen Scott contributes one chorus of piano, his solo blending bebop vocabulary with a more harmonically modern sensibility. Christian McBride rounds out the solo section with one chorus of acoustic bass, his rich, full sound and melodic approach making a compelling case for the instrument as a solo voice. The track exemplifies the Young Lions aesthetic of the period, in which mastery of the standard repertoire was considered essential to establishing one's credentials as a jazz musician. The presence of the great Billy Higgins on drums gives the rhythm section a special buoyancy and swing, his experience and taste providing an ideal framework for the younger players to stretch out.
