Jazz Goes to College‽ As a card-carrying pseudo-intellectual, this title has me salivating: I can't credibly claim to have jazz in my soul, but perhaps Brubeck and his quartet have distilled jazz's inscrutable mystique into pure mathematical equations; at last, unquestionable hipness might be within reach for any square willing and able to bring their intellect to bear upon the subject.

…but alas, the title is rather more literal than that: this album is a compilation of live sessions recorded at several universities across the Midwest. Time Out, also by Dave Brubeck Quartet, is one of my absolute favourite albums from the first half of our experiment, so I came into this week with high hopes. I leave the week… disappointed, but only very slightly so.

You see, what most captured my imagination in Time Out was the album's signature rhythmic experimentations, most notably in "Blue Rondo à la Turk," which tumbles along with the frenetic insistence of a toddler who has just learned to walk—every step has their entire momentum behind it; looking on, one is amazed that either avoids faceplanting. Jazz Goes to College (recorded five years before Time Out) doesn't feature similar innovations. What it does offer, however, is a fine selection of very cool jazz. I've previously written that I'm more partial to the up-tempo, fiery stuff; while I still think that's true in general, this album Bru-bucks that trend. The tracks here are generally relaxed and minimal, with Brubeck and Desmond frequently trading the spotlight, but without ever growing boring or bland. Much of that feat is owed to their musicianship: perhaps I'm deluding myself, but my immediate reaction to first hearing Desmond on this album was recognition. I'd surely fail any comprehensive blind saxophonist identification quiz, but those first phrases immediately called to mind both Time Out as well as Two of a Mind; similarly, Brubeck is quite distinct amongst the many pianists we've heard so far.

As for the tracks themselves: we start off strong with almost 12 minutes of "plain old blues"¹ in "Balcony Rock." Desmond's smooth, signature style never disappoints, and it's only heightened by the contrasting tension Brubeck introduces; there's a series of chords that build, swell, and resolve around the 6:45 mark that perfectly encapsulate how a jazz pianist can thrill without invoking the sheer virtuosity of, say, Art Tatum. "Le Souk" is my favourite track—it would be another several years before the quartet served as ambassadors abroad and brought back Turkish rhythms for "Blue Rondo," but the early Middle-Eastern melodic influences evident in "Le Souk" already presage those later explorations. Just like last week, I'm somewhat flat on another cover of "Take the 'A' Train": its iconic, rollicking piano riff has always been at the heart of the song for me; here, that element is downplayed so that Brubeck and the gang can try on some fresh ideas—none of which exceed the original to my ear. In fairness, "Take the 'A' Train" was 15 years old at the time of this recording; I suppose that it would've been decidedly unhip for a cool jazz group to play an ancient standard "straight."

All told, while Jazz Goes to College wasn't the revelation I was hoping for, it's still a laudable lecture from a pre-eminent professor of cool jazz—well worth trekking across campus for, hangovers be damned.

Favourite track: Le Souk