Warne Marsh was perhaps the only Lennie Tristano disciple that was both a highly acclaimed straight ahead player and a guiding light to the avant-garde movement. Having performed co-leader dates with Lee Konitz, Joe Albany, and Art Pepper, and later as one of the voices in Supersax, his reputation in the mainstream and West Coast movements is well established. However, he has also been acclaimed by Anthony Braxton and others for his innovative approach. This classic Mode recording with Ronnie Ball, Red Mitchell and Stan Levy was made in September, 1957 at Radio Recorders, with Thorne Nogar engineering the date is an excellent example of why he his so higly regarded.