Instigated and produced by Austrian trombonist and bandleader Paul Zauner, the aesthetic heart of this terrific album lies in Harlem's (now sadly closed) St Nick's Pub, which is where Zauner first heard all three featured vocalists and where the seed for Great Voices of Harlem was sown. Suggested by Mansur Scott, who provides the gentle, kalimba-led introduction, ‘Peace’ is a highlight, bringing together all three vocalists in an emotive take on the Horace Silver classic (Donald Smith having previously recorded the song on Expansions with his brother, Lonnie Liston Smith, back in the 1970s). Scott's autobiographical spoken word, ‘Doing Hard Time’, powerfully documents a period of digging ditches on a chain gang, with the singer adroitly juxtaposing the taste of delicious home cooked food with the backbreaking work. There are some slightly odd song choices – Gregory Porter gives a typically big-hearted performances of ‘Moanin’ and ‘Mona Lisa’, but I'm not sure he's heard to best effect on the done-to-death ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’. But no matter, this a hugely enjoyable and important album.