Gil Evans-Out Of The Cool (1961)

Gil Evans was one of the great jazz arrangers and composers. Although not very prolific as a pianist in terms of solo releases, he was one of the most influential figures for subsequent generations of jazz musicians. While his career began in the 1940s, it wasn't until the mid-1950s that his stature grew significantly when he began collaborating regularly on Miles Davis's recordings, such as "Birth of the Cool", "Miles Ahead", "Porgy and Bess", "Sketches of Spain", "Quiet Nights", and "Decoy". He also worked as an arranger on other notable albums by Kenny Burrell, Astrud Gilberto, Johnny Mathis, and Lucy Reed, among many others. A four-time Grammy winner and a dozen other nominees, in 1961 he released one of his finest works, "Out of the Cool", showcasing his precise style and immense genius as a composer, arranger, and, to a lesser extent, as a skilled pianist.