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It’s nice to see this landmark record get the deluxe reissue treatment from Speakers Corner. Kenny Burrell has always named this at or near the top of the recordings he’s most proud of, and it’s easy to see why. It gave him the chance to show what he could do in a variety of settings, and prove that he wasn’t “just” one of the finest guitarists of the hard-bop era. Here he mixes in one down-home fingerpicking blues with several pieces played on a classical guitar, rounding out the picture with straight- ahead blowing in the small group context that put him on the map. Probably the most impressive numbers are those that feature his classical guitar as framed by Gil Evans’ arrangements. Burrell uses the nylon-strung instrument very intelligently, borrowing from flamenco, classical, and Brazilian traditions without getting in over his head. Evans’ arrangements are just as important to the success of Guitar Forms as Burrell’s versatility. They date from the same period as his great Individualism record, and the best writing here comes up to that level. Recommended to fans of both the guitarist and the arranger.
By Duck Baker
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