Jackie McLean�s 1962 album�Let Freedom Ring�reflected the change in the air of the early �60s: both the musical freedoms being explored by the emergent avant-garde movement and the social freedoms sought by the ascendent civil rights movement. This four-song set featuring the alto saxophonist with�Walter Davis Jr.�on piano,�Herbie Lewis�on bass, and�Billy Higgins�on drums melds the bluesy language of hard bop with the bristling energy of The New Thing. McLean�s emotive horn wails, shrieks, and soothes as the quartet moves through three striking McLean originals: �Melody For Melonae� (dedicated to his daughter), �Rene� (dedicated to his son), and �Omega� (dedicated to his mother). A plaintive rendition of the Bud Powell ballad �I�ll Keep Loving You� rounds out the date.