Great Jazz Albums (IMO) #12

Kenny Dorham, Quiet Kenny (1959).  Dorham was a famously underrated trumpet player.  He has been described as "an eloquent, soulful player with a beautifully understated tone," and Quiet Kenny is Dorham at his best.  The album, with Tommy Flanagan on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums, is a great set of standards and original compositions.  It starts off with Dorham's great bop composition Lotus Blossom and ends with a swinging version of Mack the Knife, with some great ballads and blues in between.  For a less quiet, more swinging set, try his 1961 album, Whistle Stop, with the great Hank Mobley on saxophone.

[Related posts:  Really Great Jazz Albums,  #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11]