It’s impossible to say when it will come out, but the fruits of the recording session at famed London studio Abbey Road Kenny Wheeler made with his quintet in November are surely worth waiting for. There are few details so far but the label has indicated that producer Manfred Eicher travelled over to London to be present at the recording session where Wheeler, who performed during the recent London Jazz Festival, was joined by longstanding colleagues saxophonist Stan Sulzmann, pianist John Taylor, bassist Chris Laurence, and drummer Martin France.

Wheeler’s association with ECM and Manfred Eicher began in the summer of 1975 in New York with the recording of quartet album Gnu High (with Keith Jarrett, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette), and then continued two years later with the groundbreaking trio record Azimuth (with John Taylor and Norma Winstone), and then his own record as leader, Deer Wan, where he was joined by Jan Garbarek, John Abercrombie, Holland and DeJohnette once more, and Ralph Towner. Since then there have been six albums under Wheeler’s own name including the highly acclaimed Angel Song in 1997 as well as four further albums of Azimuth’s (plus a compilation of theirs). Wheeler’s association with the label then stopped after the big band record A Long Time Ago recorded at the end of 1997/beginning of 1998. And since then the trumpet/flugel horn great has recorded for Psi, Camjazz, and Edition among other labels. Wheeler's most recent album Six for Six was released in September 2013.
Stephen Graham 

Kenny Wheeler, above photo: Wikipedia