The Sermon On The Mount – 1971
Gerry Mulligan
A lyrical statement by the baritonist
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When Dave Brubeck broke up his quartet with Paul Desmond in 1967, both he and baritonist Gerry Mulligan were temporarily between bands.
They were teamed together for a jazz festival in 1968 and, with bassist Jack Six and drummer Alan Dawson, they often worked as a new Brubeck Quartet during the next few years.
Brubeck used that period of time to write some extended religious works including “The Sermon On The Mount.”
The ballad has a haunting melody that is played by Mulligan over a repetitious pattern stated by Six, inspiring an atmospheric solo by the great baritonist.
-Scott Yanow