In his mostly sane and admirable book Black Nationalism and the Revolution In Music (Pathfinder Press, 1970), Frank Kofsky describes Kenny Dorham as "house trained." The calculated insult attempts to conflate Dorham's respect for form and structure with an Uncle Tom outlook on the world. Some might say Dorham would have been justified in following (or, rather, anticipating) the example of the writer Stanley Crouch, who on spotting in a Manhattan restaurant a critic who had recently dissed one of his books, walked over to his table and punched him in the face. This is not necessarily to hold a torch for Crouch, nor to condone physical violence, it is just saying.

An alternative kind of response to a critic was given by Igor Stravinsky. He was asked, "What would you say to people who say your work in Hollywood is sensationalist and cheap, a betrayal of your country's socialist values and something for which you should be ashamed?" Replied Stravinsky, "I would say, 'No, it is not.'" But we digress.

'Round About Midnight At The Caf�� Bohemia To Matador Revisited brings together, in sumptuously enhanced audio, two of Dorham's best-loved albums: 'Round About Midnight At The Caf�� Bohemia (Blue Note, 1956) and Matador (United Artists, 1963).

The earlier album has Dorham fronting an imaginatively assembled sextet comprising tenor saxophonist