The Belmondo brothers have been luminaries of French jazz for several decades now, busy in any number of musical situations. Their quintet came into being in the late 1980s and this is just the latest of their many albums, albeit with variations in the line-ups. Lionel, born 1963, is the senior partner, some four years older than his brother; both were tutored by their late multi-instrumentalist father Yvan, to whom they dedicate their final pair of pieces. Fittingly, these have an elegiac quality, the prosaically titled ‘Song for Dad’ like a sublime lament.

Their chosen pathway is hard bop but there's nothing derivative here. Stephane is the self¬confessed follow-on to Chet Baker and Freddy Hubbard, and ‘Wayne's Mood’, a modal piece showcases his perfect Baker-esque flugel sound. ‘Yusef's Tree’ is similarly solemn, its central motif repeated over stop-time chords again revealing Stephane's lustrous flugel sound, with Belgian pianist Legnini almost splashy in Tyner fashion. ‘Pretexete’, also modal, has a Blue Note feel with some nice sinuous tenor over strong bass lines and a good ensemble shape.

All nine compositions are by the brothers, with ‘Woody ‘n’ Us’ [for Woody Shaw] including some defiantly Coltrane-like soprano wailing from Lionel and an enticing level of intricacy in the writing. Similarly, ‘Letter to Evans’ is a lament for Bill Evans with Legnini playing quite beautifully. As a latecomer to the Belmondos and their music, I can only regret not having encountered them before.