Recorded at the 1995 Brecon Jazz Festival in Wales, So Many Lovely Things: Live in Brecon captures pianist Kenny Barron, bassist Ray Drummond and drummer Ben Riley in a performance shaped by nearly a decade of trio chemistry. Previously unreleased for more than 30 years, the recording presents three seasoned musicians stretching familiar material through intuitive interplay and seasoned skill. Barron’s graceful touch and flowing improvisations remain at the center, but Drummond’s melodic bass lines and Riley’s supple rhythmic responses make this an unusually balanced three-way conversation, moving comfortably from understated balladry to brisk, hard-swinging passages. The set combines Barron’s own compositions with works by Joe Bushkin, John DeVries, Freddie Hubbard, Thelonious Monk, Gabriel Luna, Miguel Prado, Bob Russell, Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, Ray Noble, Eddie Heywood and Norman Gimbel, giving the trio ample room to explore standards, bebop and modern jazz without losing the character of the original writing.
