At the midpoint of the seven-tune program, the quartet slows to a tender 56 BPM ballad, providing the emotional counterweight to the fast bebop surrounding it. Only two soloists are featured — Lefkowitz-Brown takes a single chorus on tenor saxophone, while Feifke's piano solo covers just three-quarters of a chorus, the shortest solo in the entire session. The restraint is deliberate, allowing the Matt Dennis melody and the rich 32-bar AABA harmony to breathe. Parker was closely associated with ballad performance despite his reputation for virtuosic speed, and his recordings of standards like this one revealed a romantic, lyrical side that influenced generations of saxophonists. Originally composed by Dennis with lyrics by Tom Adair in 1940 and popularized by Frank Sinatra, the tune became a jazz standard through performances by Parker and others. The brief, intimate reading creates a moment of quiet between the blazing Segment before it and the uptempo Just Friends that follows.
