“Before Bill Evans became a Jazz artist with a national and ultimately an international following, he caused quite a stir in the New York Jazz community of the mid- 1950s.
“This was largely thanks to the composer, arranger and bandleader George Russell who was also just then making a name for himself in similar circles.
The confluence of events centered around two extended compositions by George that featured Bill. The first occurred in 1956 on Russell’s Concerto for Billy the Kid [which according to George, “attempts to supply a framework to match the vigor and vitality in the playing of pianist Bill Evans’]; the second in 1957 occurred on his All About Rosie.” – Steven A. Cerra
“All About Rosie” by George Russell, is based — to quote the composer —”on a motif taken from an Alabama Negro children’s song-game entitled ‘Rosie, Little Rosie.'”
The work is in three movements. In the first, a fast pace is set by the trumpet. Alternating between sections in 2/2 and 3/2 meter, the composer builds a gradually mounting tension through excellent manipulation of sequences and repetitions, culminating in a sudden climactic ending.
The second movement changes the mood; it is slow and has a distinct blues feeling. Notice how the composer at first effectively avoids establishing a specific tonality. Only gradually do the several lines in the flute, bassoon, tenor, etc., coalesce into a definite tonal picture, a process quite indigenous to George Russell’s own particular modal concept, which effectively encompasses everything from pure diatonic writing to extreme chromaticism. Especially striking in this movement is the guitar writing, superbly played by Barry Galbraith. Again a climax is built with the two trumpets in unison over a rich ensemble. There is a sudden relaxation, and on a short questioning note the movement ends much as it began.
In the third section, the fast relentless pace of the opening is resumed, with the element of improvisation added. Outstanding in this respect is Bill Evans’ remarkable piano solo. The ideas are imaginative and well related, but — more than that — Bill’s strong, muscular, blues-based playing here fits dramatically into the composition as a whole. Other solos (La Porta, Farmer, Charles, McKusick), and a recapitulation of the opening statement, lead to a brilliant ending.” – Gunther Schuller