“All true art is praise”, said the English polymath John Ruskin a long time ago. And the action begins here with a great fusillade of approval, with Nexus praising Dolphy praising Monk. Hat And Beard – that’s Eric Dolphy’s kinetic lightning sketch of the great Thelonious. Like a multi-perspective portrait of a man dancing off the stage and down the road, following his own wayward compass. The Nexus version introduces a linked suite of pieces that brims over with spirit – as does just about everything in the collected discography of Tononi and Cavallanti. There is a big hearted quality to their work, always giving credit to their pantheon of heroes but also giving a lot back to the creative music tradition with the originality of their approach and the sheer verve of the playing. In earlier projects, under the Nexus umbrella and otherwise, they have celebrated the work of Ayler, Coltrane, Coleman, Mingus, Carter, Gilmore and many others. And now Dolphy