Alan Barnes has been one of the stars of the British jazz scene for many years, finding recognition both here and on the other side of the Atlantic, recording most recently for the legendary Concord Jazz label. His latest project forms the music on this record, which is the second release on Specific Jazz, and consists of compositions by the great Horace Silver, performed by Alan and his world class quintet. It's an energetic and virtuoso lesson in how to play bebop, the musicians ripping into the famous set of tunes with aplomb and pulling off some of the best soloing you're going to hear on record this year. Alan Barnes' history as a musician is well known, taking in everything from the sax chair on Michael Parkinson's TV show to membership of Tommy Chase's quintet, through to the co-leadership of the Modern Jazz Sextet in the early 90's. A prolific sideman and leader, he has gone on record to say that this album is without doubt the best he has made in his career. Collectively the band have played in the past with Sonny Rollins, Ben Webster, Freddie Hubbard and many others. This is a world class album by a world class set of British jazz musicians and a landmark for this scene that is currently in the rudest of health.