BENNY WATERS LIVE AT THE PAWNSHOP Benny Waters Opus 3, CD 19901 Full Price JAZZ AT THE PAWNSHOP 2 Arne Domnérus Quartet Proprius, PRCD 9044 Full Price

Here are two Swedish albums, remastered in the early 1990s, of live recordings made in 1976 at the Stampen Jazz Club in Stockholm, otherwise known as the Pawnshop. Both are analogue recordings, and each perfectly captures the gloriously relaxed, yet enthusiastic ambience of the Old Town club.

The first is a complete and unedited evening's playing by American multi-reed player Benny Waters. It is hard to come to terms with the inexhaustible energy of this septuagenarian, who plays with the same zest and humour as he surely did in the original Louis Armstrong/Fletcher Henderson band when making their monumentous New York debut. Indeed, here is a jazzman who was possibly the oldest active horn player at the time of his death, in 1996, aged 96.

Here, Waters is accompanied by a rhythm section of entirely Swedish talent, notably pianist Bjorn Milder, considered by Waters to be one of the best of Europe's Tatum-inspired swing-pianists. The recordings of this fine musician are sadly few and far between. Waters and his trio offer a refreshing set of standards, which includes Cherokee, Summertime, and Sophisticated Lady, plus a hilarious Waters original, A-Ziggin and A-Zaggin, sung by the man himself.

The evening concludes with a rousing rendition of Indiana, featuring a fabulously earthy bass solo from Goran Lind and, of course, incredibly tender tenor sax lines from the master. The encore is another Benny Waters original, Blues Amore - his heartfelt dedication to Stockholm.

The second album reviewed here is that of the alto sax-led Arne Domnérus Quartet. The approving audience murmurs are captured from the very beginning - a wonderfully unique straight-quaver rendition of Arlen's Over the Rainbow. The group also offers a set of favourite standards, with an insert of a set of favourite Swedish traditional melodies, arranged by bassist Georg Riedel. What the Domnérus group have to offer is a high standard of team playing - their subtle arrangements remain integrated, whilst at the same time provide a perfect showcase for tasteful soloing.

Dinuk Wijeratne