Wynton Marsalis Quintet, Albany Empire, Deptford, London (GB) - Oct 24, 1982

A tremendous gig by a young modern jazz/bop quintet: Wynton Marsalis trumpet, Branford Marsalis tenor sax, Kenny Kirkland piano, prob Phil Bowler double bass, Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts drums. Great soloing, good togetherness, plenty of verve, and in a small venue where you are close to the musicians. You could say that the band ignored the post-bop developments in jazz, and certainly Wynton Marsalis tended in subsequent years to perform an archival, rather conservative, role in music, but they were performing in a tradition which was still alive, not digging up something long deceased. An exciting night.