Richie Powell
Piano Solo on
Valse Hot

About

Richie Powell's piano solo is the third of four improvisations on this recording, following solos by Rollins and Brown. Taking five choruses of the 16-bar form in A-flat at 132 BPM in 3/4 time, Powell navigates the waltz framework with a lighter touch than the two horn soloists who precede him. His piano work draws on the Powell family's deep bebop heritage, his brother Bud being one of the style's founding pianists, and Richie's own playing demonstrates a confident command of the idiom within the unusual meter.

Richie Powell was 24 to 25 years old at the time.