Most interesting. My first impression is that it's too fast to let the tune really breathe. For me at least, one of the many brilliances of "Take Five" as originally recorded is that it is just at the edge of as-fast-as-possible, but distinctly under it. Whenever I sit down with the piece myself, I tend to like it slower and slower, regardless of my ability to play it. There are so many little ridiculously tasty nuances that Desmond puts into both the melody and the blowing...and they necessarily race past, here.
Now, that said: I quite love this. You can get a much greater appreciation for Morello by watching him, and he is on fine display here. Desmond does a great job at handling the higher tempo, although to my ear he sounds like he feels rushed, even when blowing. It's great to watch Brubeck play, even though this tune is not a vehicle for him. I don't know much about Gene Wright; from long listening I would pay him the compliment that I never really notice the bass in Brubeck's recordings. (I tend to think of bass players in three simple categories: the ones who grate on me, the ones I never "notice", and the ones that may not in fact be human. That middle category may be the working definition of excellence in craft.) As a group: pretty solid, to be sure!
Anyway, I wanted the YT to be available here.
