McCoy Tyner's first album as a leader, Inception (1962), hasn't lost any of its freshness in its almost fifty years of existence. It displays all of the qualities that he has become famous for: the astonishing range of his touch (from a snowflake landing to thunder), his unique harmonic approach (based on the sound of fourths, which has since become an integral part of modern jazz), and his brilliant compositional skills (the album features four wonderful originals, each thoughtfully arranged). The two standards, "There Is No Greater Love" and "Speak Low", are among the most frequently covered in jazz, but for me, the versions here are definitive. The rhythm section of Art Davis on bass and Elvin Jones on drums is as good as they come. In fact, to fully appreciate the group, I would recommend listening to this track ("Effendi": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLulnx8QT24) three times - with the attention on each musician once. Players like these deserve it.