Pianist, composer, and arranger Martial Solal has long deserved to be better known and more widely appreciated by American audiences. When in 2008 the Dreyfus label reissued two superb Solal albums on one disc, Westerners were given yet another chance to sit up and take notice of this man's amazing artistry. In & Out was recorded in July 2000 with expatriate Chicago-born tenor saxophonist Johnny Griffin. The interplay between the two musical minds is extraordinarily inspired and creative. When Martial Solal Dodecaband Plays Ellington was recorded in late December 1997, Duke's most familiar melodies were beautifully transformed by the leader's unusual and inventive arrangements. Born in Algiers and based in Paris, Solal made his first big impression upon non-mainstream audiences in the U.S. back in 1960 when his music was used in the soundtrack of Jean-Luc Godard's A Bout de Souffle (known to North Americans as Breathless). That soundtrack has finally been released on CD, and is recommended as the perfect counterpart to this tandem reissue of Solal's grand achievements as leader of an exceptionally fine 12-piece European big band and in collaboration with one of the most commanding and expressive tenor saxophonists of all time.