by Rick AndersonThis is a truly strange (but, ultimately, pretty great) conglomeration of material: tracks one through six comprise a tenor saxophone summit meeting of sorts between bebop master Sonny Rollins and pre-bop elder statesman Coleman Hawkins, with Paul Bley on piano, drummer Roy McCurdy and the bass chair alternating between Henry Grimes and Bob Cranshaw. Tracks seven through nine find Rollins paired with trumpeter Don Cherry, with Grimes on bass and Billy Higgins on drums. Though it's the Rollins-Hawkins material that gets top billing here -- and make no mistake, there are some great moments on those tracks, especially on their version of "Yesterdays" -- it's hard not to feel that the more quirky and adventurous spirit brought by Don Cherry to his performances creates a more exciting mood. The lack of a piano on the Cherry/Rollins numbers leaves tons of open space, and Cherry and Rollins take turns roaming it freely on "You Are My Lucky Star," "I Could Write a Book" and "There Will Never Be Another You." The sound quality is better on those tracks, too. But there's also lots to enjoy in the juxtaposition of Rollins' hard, edgy bop tone and Hawkins' famously mellow, vibrato-laden sound.