(Vocal Jazz) Etta Jones & Houston Person - Don't Misunderstand - 2007, WAVPack (image+.cue), lossless

Collaborations are ubiquitous in jazz. Legendary ones are rarer, but still existent. When one of the two talents involved passes away and is survived by the other, many listeners refuse to let go of the memory and hold every succeeding project to the standards set by the collaboration. Saxophonist Houston Person escapes this predicament, but barely, not because of his talent - which is abundant - but because of how darn good he and Etta Jones were together. Don't Misunderstand is a beautiful album that perfectly encapsulates the relationship that transformed two great, but distinct, talents into a duo with a place in jazz history.
Etta Jones and Houston Person began collaborating in 1968 until Jones passed away in 2001. Their partnership never seemed strained or divergent; it was organic and explosive and Don't Misunderstand, recorded in New York in the '80s, demonstrates the relationship perfectly. The richness and robustness of Jones' voice does not overpower the precision of Person's saxophone, but the converse also holds true; Jones' voice and Person's saxophone are complementary instruments, united to convey the yearning and subdued sensuality of the songs. On tracks like "Exactly Like You", however, they seem to compete, her voice earth-shattering and ethereal and his notes tender and passionate. It's a near perfect track, the highlight of the disc and a musical synopsis of their musical relationship. The arrangement in said relationship is obvious: Jones sang, Person played.