A forum for jazz reviews, discussion of new jazz, blues music, the musicians, reviews of recent and historical releases, reviews of live performances, concerts, interviews and almost anything I find of interest.
by Ralph A. Miriello
Richie Goods and The Goods Project A Tribute to Mulgrew Miller "My Left Hand"
Being associated with a generous and talented mentor can be a powerful impetus to your own creative development and musical maturity. Bassist Richie Goods' latest album My left hand man, is a tributetoGoods' mentor, the late great pianist Mulgrew Miller, who Goods recorded and toured with for nine years.
Miller, an astute educator, was the Director of Jazz Studies at William Patterson College in New Jersey from 2005 until his untimely death in 2013, from a stroke. Miller, a gifted composer, often encouraged younger musicians under his influence while quietly creating his own musical legacy. I recall seeing Miller as a surprise guest on a Kenny Garrett gig at the Iridium in NYC (most likely in 2012). I marveled at the reverence and respect that the pianist's simple presence incited among the musicians who were present. Saxophonist Garrett's then pianist, Venezuelan born Benito Gonzalez, relinquished his piano seat and happily stood behind Miller mesmerized, marveling and absorbing Miller's developed pianistic approach and refined touch. Mulgrew Miller's influence on and stature amongst the jazz community was self-evident.
Mulgrew Miller (photo credit unknown)
Goods openly acknowledges the important exposure that he received working with Miller, but the bassist was also active in his own development. After graduating from Berklee in Boston, the Pittsburgh native moved to New York where he studied with two of the most respected bass players in jazz, Ray Brown and Ron Carter. Goods increased his exposure to the music's legacy by working with artists as diverse as Lenny White, The Headhunters, Vincent Herring and Milt Jackson. His talent as a jazz/funk master opened up opportunities to work with renowned popular artists like Sting, Chris Botti, Whitney Houston, and Alicia Keys.
My left hand man is a compilation of ten songs, nine of which Goods selected from the Mulgrew Miller repertoire. The songs were chosen for their suitability to the way Goods and his group likes to play. They like lots of energy infused with elements of R and B; Soul, Fusion, Funk and Jazz, all integrated to attract a wider audience. The Goods Project personnel certainly deliver on that promise. This outing includes the Atlanta based drummer Lil John Roberts, two pianists- Shedrick Mitchell and Mike King, two guitarists-Tariqh Akoni and David Rosenthal, percussionists Danny Sadownick and Rafael Pereira, violinist/violist Amy Schroeder, cellist Felix Umansky and include guest appearances by chromatic harmonica ace Gregoire Maret, singer Jean Baylor and vibraphonist Chien Chein Lu.
The music is vibrant and energized as the potent rhythm section Goods and Roberts keep the pace always explosive and surging. The drums-driven "Eastern Joy Dance" starts off the set with some serpentine guitar lines by Akoni and some creative piano work by King. The always probing and vibrant bass lines of Goods lead the action.
Goods composition "The Left Hand Man," derives from a name that the bassist received from Miller and features a warm, soulful acoustic bass solo. Goods creates fluid and punctuated lines that establish an unaccompanied rhythm in just over a minute before he transitions into Miller's "Know Wonder," which is arranged in a more fusion style. Keyboard artist Mitchell offers cascading pianistic lines that spill over the rhythm-driven pulse, and Rosenthal's inventive electric guitar solo keeps this one quick and interesting.
"Second Thoughts," has an atmospheric, almost Lonnie Liston Smith style feeling, featuring Jean Baylor's wordless vocals. Mitchell's Rhodes and organ work are definitely astral-traveling as Akoni's guitar comps along into the ozone and Baylor's angelic vocalizations set the tone.
""Farewell To Dogma" spans the musical influences of soul, R and B, rock, and jazz. Maret's aching chromatic harmonica sets the high expressive mark and adds to the other instrumental voices that improvise over Goods pulsing basslines and Roberts' throbbing drums.
"The Sage," is played at a languishing pace, its genetics derived more from the blues than from jazz. Akoni's guitar spells out the repeating melody line, joined in unison with King's piano for emphasis. Goods delivers a full-throated bass solo that features his quick flexible pizzicato technique and an engaging tone, as Robert's tom-work creates a rhythmic blanket.
"Dreaming" opens with Roberts' rhythmic drumming accompanied by Sadownick's tribal percussive accompaniment. The music has a distinct Afro-Cuban feel and Goods finds bass lines that are vibrant but anchored. Mitchell's piano and Lu's vibraphone effectively mesh lines within the song, the two tonally distinct instruments adding interest. Mitchell's swift piano and Akoni's guitar lines dart in and out adding accents.
"Song of Darnell" and "Saud's Run" were orchestrated to include the strings of Umansky's cello and Schroeder's violin featuring Geoff Keezer's lush string arrangements. On the cinematic "Song of Darnell" the contrast to Rosenthal's melodic guitar work is expansive, gorgeous and nicely featured against the swelling and ebbing accompaniment of the strings. King's flowing pianistic improvisations are another highlight and Roberts ends with some explosive drum work at the coda.
"Saud's Run," a song more driven by a funky feel, utilizes the strings more to accent the rhythm and create an ostinato drive. Roberts' drum pulse has a distinctive cardiac afib pace.
The album ends with "The Sequel," a nice hard bop groove, and features Goods' burnished acoustic upright bass. King is an impressive player that utilizes a reservoir of intriguing pianistic improvisational ideas while never losing the swing. Akoni's guitar is soulful and Goods keeps the whole groove anchored and directional.
Richie Goods and his Goods Project band have taken Mulgrew Miller's music, absorbed it and re-imagined it into the bassist's own vision. The vibe may be less traditional than you might expect, but the music is played with respect and love and is modernized and energized with an unfailing groove.
The soprano Saxophone has been the stepchild to its large
brothers, the Alto and Tenor saxophones in jazz music. Despite a lineage that
dates to the early twenties, the soprano was not widely used as a solo
instrument in many early jazz recordings, with most soloists preferring the
clarinet for its warmer, richer sound. The soprano is typically found as a
straight barreled instrument although small curved horns that look like baby
alto saxophones with a straighter crook are also in use. The saxophone was
invented by Adolphe Sax in 1846. Modern soprano instruments have a range of between Ab3
to E6 pitched one octave higher than the tenor, but some skilled players can
play in the altissimo register allowing them to play even higher.
Sidney Bechet photo credit unknown
It has been said that the great Sidney Bechet, a New Orleans
born classically trained musician, discovered a quality soprano saxophone while
on tour in England with Marion Cook’s Southern Syncopated Orchestra, sometime
around 1920. Bechet, who was a world class clarinetist, wanted a solo
instrument that could better stand up to the louder brass cornets and trombones
of the era. In the soprano, he found that the bright, piercing sound of the
instrument had the strong, clear voice he was looking for and people started to
notice. Bechet is considered by many to
be the father of the soprano saxophone in jazz. While certainly the most
celebrated player of his era, he was not the only practitioner of this quirky
horn back in the twenties. The first record that I found featuring Bechet on a
serpentine soprano solo was from Clarence Williams Blue Five recording of “Wild
Cat Blues” recorded on July 23, 1923 in NYC. Boyd Atkins was famously heard several
years later playing a momentous soprano saxophone solo while with Louis
Armstrong and his Stompers on “Chicago Breakdown” from 1927. Duke Ellington would sometimes use multi- reed
players Johnny Hodges and Otto Hardwick to play soprano as a section instrument
in his orchestra, but on occasion the soprano was featured as a solo instrument
as with Johnny Hodges beautiful work on “Harmony in Harlem” from 1937.
Lucky Thompson photo credit unknown
By the nineteen forties the premier
practitioner of the soprano was the inimitable multi-reedist Lucky Thompson.
You can hear some of his brilliant work while he was in Paris back in October
1960 on a session where he recorded the sensuous “Lover Man.” Thompson became
disenchanted with the music business in the United States and moved to Paris
from 1957-1962. It was after all Paris that had so thoroughly embraced Sidney
Bechet in the early twenties both because of his musicianship and because
Bechet’s Creole heritage had ties to the French language and to French
colonialism in hometown of New Orleans. It was here that Thompson, though
predominantly known as a tenor player, became more interested in the soprano and
would continue to pioneer its use in more modern jazz. You can hear the man’s
brilliant command of this difficult instrument on such tunes as Ellington’s “In
a Sentimental Way” from his 1964 album Lucky
Strikes.
By the late fifties and into the sixties another young
saxophonist was starting to go his own way on the instrument, abandoning his Dixieland
roots and focusing exclusively on the high register horn with a more modern
approach. Saxophonist Steven Norman
Lackritz aka Steve Lacy is perhaps best known as the soprano’s modern-day
Sidney Bechet. His debut album was aptly titled Soprano Sax and was recorded in 1957. After playing with Thelonious Monk he became
enamored with the quirky pianist’s compositions and rarely performed or
recorded without including at least one Monk tune in his repertoire. Lacy also
adventured into the avant-garde and the experimental music scene. His work and
the work of saxophonist John Coltrane on the soprano would influence legions of
players that followed.
Steve Lacy photo credit unknown
Reportedly Miles Davis purchased a soprano for his saxophonist at the time John Coltrane, while the group was on tour in Europe in March of 1960. Coltrane started progressively using the
straight horn and he soon after broke from Davis to form his own group with McCoy Tyner
on piano, Steve Davis on bass and Elvin Jones on drums. At that time only Steve
Lacy was actively utilizing the instrument in jazz.
The instrument had little reach outside its limited use in the world of jazz until saxophonist John Coltrane made his ground-breaking album My Favorite Things using his soprano. The adventurous Coltrane made the soprano
soar on this modal exploration of a Rogers & Hammerstein song from the
Broadway show The Sound of Music. The
song was transformed into a hypnotically driven, raga inspired chant whose
melody was immediately familiar despite its wildly exploratory improvisational
forays over a repeated vamp. It became
an instant hit and a vital bridge to an expanding non-jazz audience. It also
opened the doors for many future players to explore the transcendental, eastern
inspired sound of this unique instrument. The multi-instrumentalist ( not yet Rahsaan)
Roland Kirk played a
manzello quite proficiently. The manzello is a King saxello soprano saxophone with an extended bell. Kirk made his statement on
the instrument in the late sixties with his “A Handful of Fives.”
Since Coltrane, world and jazz music has seen a
proliferation of players who have taken the instrument down new and unexpected
paths. When fusion came on the scene in the early seventies, mixing the bombast
of rock with the improvisational bravado of jazz, the soprano found its way into
the music. Saxophonist’s like Pharaoh Sanders, a Coltrane disciple, took the
music into a spiritual mode allowing us all to “Astral Travel” with or without
the aid of hallucinogens from his 1971 album Thembi.
Multi-reed players who mostly played tenor would
occasionally feature their soprano skills throughout their careers. Notable
players like Zoot Sims, who came to the soprano relatively late in his career,
did a beautiful version of “Moonlight in Vermont” from his 1976 album Soprano Sax. The masterful Jerome
Richardson was no stranger to the soprano and his work can be heard from the
early fifties into the late nineties on such big bands as the Mingus Big Band
and Oliver Nelson’s Big Band. His work is represented here as a featured solist in the Thad
Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra on the song “The Waltz You Swang for Me” from the 1968 live at
the Village Vanguard recording. At the
same time Bechet devotees like Bob Wiber and Kenny Davern would keep the
Dixieland spirit of the old master alive, although admittedly modernized, with songs like “Song of Songs” a
dueling soprano performance from 1977.
No list of soprano masters would be complete without the
extraordinary work of the great Wayne Shorter. His legionnaire work with his band Weather Report and on his own solo efforts are trailblazingly beautiful. Perhaps
one of his most memorable performances for me was “Beauty and the Beast” from
his seminal album Native Son from
1974.
Other notable soprano players included Dave Liebman, Joe
Farrell, Gerry Niewood, Joshua Redman, John Lurie, Jane Ira Bloom, Jane
Bunnett, Jan Gabarek, John Surman, Klaus Doldinger, Kenny Garrett, Steve
Wilson, Sonny Fortune, Dick Oatts, Billy Drewes, Bill Kirchner, Bob Sheppard, Chris Cheek,
Chris Potter, James Carter, Jeff Coffin and Paul Mc Candless. The saxophonist
Branford Marsalis has become a superb player on the soprano and has
distinguished himself from a fine field of newer players. The avant-garde
modernist Evan Parker has carved himself his own place with a sound like no
other. The inimitable Sam Newsome is in a class by himself having taken the
instrument into new areas of sonic experimentation and texture.
In the field of
popular crossover, soprano saxophonists that come to mind are Grover Washington
Jr, Bob Mintzer of the Yellowjackets, and Jay Bechinstein of Spyro Gyra, and in
the smooth jazz arena there is
Dave Koz, Najee and of course Kenny G to name a few. Amazingly it is Kenny G's soprano saxophone on "Going Home" that has probably been the most played song on the instrument in its history! It is often used in China, even twenty-five years after it was recorded, to signal to shoppers that it is closing time and indeed time to go home.
I could not have assembled such a well studied list without the generous help of saxophonist, arranger and educator Bill Kirchner, multi-reedist Scott Robinson, and saxophonists Michael Blake and Dave Anderson. To them I offer my sincerest thanks. With the above brief history, and acknowledging in advance to having
undoubtedly left off some important players whom I may not be aware of, here
are my picks for twenty-five great jazz soprano saxophone performances in
roughly chronological order:
Sidney Bechet “Wild Cat Blues” from
Clarence Williams Blue Five; Sidney Bechet, sop sax; Clarence Williams, piano;
Thomas Morris, cornet; John Mayfield, trombone; Buddy Christian, banjo. Recorded in NYC 1923
Boyd
Atkins: “Chicago Breakdown” from Louis Armstrong and His Stompers with
Louis Armstrong, trumpet; Boyd Atkins, sop sax; Frank Walker, baritone sax; Rip
Bassett, banjo/guitar; Earl Hines, piano; Albert Washington, tenor sax; Honore Dutry, trombone; Bill Wilson,
cornet; Tubby Hall drums. Recorded in Chicago, Illinois 1927
Johnny
Hodges: “Harlem in Harmony” with the Duke Ellington Orchestra recorded in
September 20, 1937 in NYC with Johnny Hodges , sop sax; Duke Ellington, piano; Rex Stewart, cornet;
Cootie Williams, Arthur Whetsel, Freddie Jenkins, trumpets; Joe Nanton,
Lawrence Brown, trombones; Juan Tizol valve trombone; Barney Bigard, clarinet;
Otto Hardwick, alto and clarinet; Harry Carney, baritone sax; Freddy Guy,
guitar; Billy Taylor, bass, Sonny Greer,
drums.
Steve
Lacy : “Day Dream”from the album Soprano Sax
recorded November 1, 1957 at Van Gelder
studios in Hackensack , NJ with Wynton Kelly, piano; Buell Neidinger, bass;
Dennis Charles, drums.
Lucky Thompson: “In A Sentimental Mood” from his album Lucky Strikes recorded September
15, 1964 at Van Gelder Studios in Hackensack, NJ with Lucky Thompson, sop sax; Hank Jones,
piano; Richard Davis, piano; Connie Kay , drums.
John Coltrane: “My
Favorite Things” for his album My
Favorite Things recorded October 21,24 and 26th 1960 with John
Coltrane, sop sax; McCoy Tyner, piano; Steve Davis, bass; Elvin Jones, drums.
Rahsaan Roland Kirk: “Handful of Fives” from his album The Inflated Tear recorded November
27-31, 1967 with Roland Kirk, manzello; Ron Burton, piano; Steve Novosel, bass;
Jimmy Hopps, drums; Dick Griffin, trombone.
Jerome Richardson: “The Waltz You Swang for Me”fromhis work on the album Monday
Night Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra live at the Village Vanguard album
from October 1968 recorded at the Village Vanguard in NYC with Jerome
Richardson, sop sax; Richard Davis , bass; Thad Jones, flugelhorn; Mel Lewis,
drums, Roland Hanna, piano; Jerry Dodgian, alto sax; Seldon Powell, tenor sax;
Eddie Daniels, tenor sax; Pepper Adams, baritone sax; Richard Williams,
SnookyYoung, Danny Moore, Jimmy Nottingham, trumpets; Jimmy Knepper, Garnet
Brown, Jimmy Cleveland, Cliff Heather, trombones.
Pharaoh Sanders: “Astral Traveling”from his album Thembi recorded November 1970 and January 1971 in California with
Pharoah Sanders sop sax; Lonnie Liston Smith, Fender Rhodes; Michael White,
violin; Cecil McBee, bass; Clifford Jarvis, drums.
Dave Liebman, Joe Farrell and Steve Grossman: “Brite Piece” from Elvin Jones Merry Go Round recorded Feb 12, and
December 16, 1971 at Van Gelder Studios, Engelwood Cliffs, NJ with
Dave Liebman, Joe Farrell and Steve Grossman, sop saxes;
Elvin Jones, drums, Gene Perla, bass; Jan Hammer, electric piano; Don Alias,
oriental bells.
Here is a live performance of the group in France in 1972
unfortunately without the great Joe Farrell or Don Alias, and with Steve
Grossman on tenor.
Joe Farrell: “La Fiesta”
from Chick Corea’s Return to Forever recorded
February 2nd & 3rd, 1972 in London with Joe Farrell, sop sax;
Chick Corea, electric piano; Stanley Clarke, bass; Airto Moreira, drums and percussion; Flora
Purim , vocals and percussion; “La
Fiesta” starting at 38:00 minute mark
Grover Washington Jr.: “Invitation” from a
live broadcast on WBCN in Boston, Mass in Spring of 1973 with Grover Washington
Jr., sop sax; Bill Meek, Fender Rhodes; Charles Fambrough, bass; Daryl Brown,
drums.
Wayne Shorter: ”Beauty and
the Beast” from his album Native Dancer recorded in 1974 with Wayne Shorter, sop
sax; Milton Nascimento, vocals; David Amaro, guitar; Jay Graydon, bass; Herbie
Hancock, piano and keyboards; Wagner Tiso, organ; Dave McDaniel, bass; Roberto
Silva, drums; Airto Moreira, percussion.
Zoot Sims:“Moonlight in Vermont” from
his album Zoot Sims- Soprano Sax recorded
January 8th and 9th 1976 at RCA Studios NYC with Ray
Bryant, piano; George Mraz, bass; Grady Tate, drums.
Bob Wilber and Kenny Davern: “Song
of Songs” from a live performance in October 1977 with Bob Wilber curved bell
sop sax; Kenny Davern, straight sop sax; Bucky Pizzarelli, guitar; Geroge
Duvivier, bass; Bobby Rosengarten, drums.
Gerry Niewood: “Joy” from
his album Gerry Niewood and Timepiece
from 1976 with Gerry Niewood, sop sax; Dave Samuels, electric vibes; Rick
Laird, bass; Ron Davis, drums.
Klaus Doldinger: “Ataraxia Part 1 & 2” from the
album by his group Passport Ataraxia recorded
in Germany 1978 with Klaus Doldinger sop sax and keyboards; Dieter Petereit,
bass; Willie Ketzer, drums; Roy Louis,
guitars; Hendrik Schaper, keyboards; Elmer Louis, percussion.
Dick Oatts: “Ding Dong Ding”
from the Mel Lewis and the Jazz Orchestra
with Bob Brookmeyer recorded live at the Village Vanguard 1980 with Dick
Oatts sop sax; Jim McNeely, piano; Rufus Reid, Bass; Mel Lewis, drums; Bob
Mintzer, Steve Coleman, Gary Pribeck, Richard Perry, reeds; Bob Brookmeyer,
trombone and arranger; Earl McIntyre, John Mosca, Lee Robertson, Lolly Bienenfeld,
trombones; Earl Gardner, Larry MosesRon Tooley, trumpets; Stepahnie Fauber, French
horn.
Jane Ira Bloom: “The Man
with the Glasses” from her album Mighty
Lights recorded at Vanguard Studios in NYC
November 17 and 18, 1982 with Jane Ira Bloom, sop sax; Charlie Haden,
bass; Fred Hersch, piano; Ed Blackwell, drums.
Chris Cheek: “Ice Fall”
from his album Vine recorded 1999 with Chris Cheek , sop sax; Brad Mehldau, electric
piano, Kurt Rosenwinkel, guitar; Matt Penman, bass; Jorge Rossy, drums.
Sam Newsome: “Toy Tune”
from the Orrin Evans Album Grown Folk
Bizness released in Oct 1999 with
Sam Newsome, sop sax; Orrin Evans, piano; Rodney Witaker, bass; Ralph Peterson,
drums.
Branford Marsalis: “The
Ruby and the Pearl” from his album Eternal
recorded October 7-10th,
2003 with Branford Marsalis, sop sax; Joey Calderazzo, piano, Eric Revis Bass, Jeff
“Tain” Watts, drums.
Paul McCandless: “May
or Mai” live in concert with Antonio Calogero in Messina, Italy on November 28,
2007 with Paul McCandless, sop sax; Antonio Calogero, classical guitar.
Kenny Garrett: “Detroit”
from Seeds from the Underground released April 2012 with Kenny Garrett, sop
sax; Benito Gonzales, piano; Nat Reeves,
bass, Rudy Bird Percussion; Ronald Bruner drums; Nedelka Prescod, vocal.
Jan Gabarek: live at Mai
Jazz Festival in Stvanger Cocnert in Norway, 2013 with Jan Gabarek, sop sax; Rainer Brǘninghaus,
keyboards; Trilok Gurtu, drums; Youri Daniel , bass.
You may also like to check out my Twenty-Five Great Jazz Baritone Performances
by clicking here. Or if your into jazz flute my Twenty-Five Great Jazz Flute Perfromances by clicking here.
The saxophonist Kenny Garrett has been a prominent voice on
the alto saxophone for several years. At age fifty-four, Garrett, is in the
sweet spot of his musical career. He has honed his skills the old fashioned
way, he’s earned it with a career spanning close to four decades and
associations with some of jazz’s most celebrated creators. Garrett started in
the Duke Ellington Band with Cootie Williams, was a member of The Mel Lewis
Orchestra, and played in Charles Mingus alum Dannie Richmond’s band. He was a
member of the Art Blakey School of music and gigged with iconic all stars Woody
Shaw, Freddie Hubbard and Joe Henderson. Perhaps his most dogged association is
with Miles Davis. Garrett played for the legendary band leader for the last
five years of Davis’ life.
Today Garrett is the consummate professional and certainly
his own man. His most recent two albums, Seeds from the Underground and Pushing
the World Awayare proof in
point. Both albums were nominated for Grammy awards under the category of “Best
Instrumental Jazz Album”. Both feature Garrett compositions that pay
homage to some of his influences. “J Mac” from Seeds from the Underground is
dedicated to alto great Jackie McLean. The song was nominated for a Grammy in
the “Best Instrumental Solo “
category. “Wiggins,” also from Seeds, is a bow to Garrett’s former high
school band and private teacher Bill Wiggins. “Do Wo Mo” is a three way tribute
to Duke Ellington, Woody Shaw and Thelonious Monk, all important influences. On his most recent
album Pushing the World Away, Garrett
continues in the same vein with compositions dedicated to longtime friend Chick Corea, “Hey Chick;” mentor the
late Mulgrew Miller, “ A Side of Hijiki;” Sonny Rollins, “J’ouvert;” and his
producer Donald Brown on “Brother Brown.”
Garrett, no stranger to recognition, has garnered no less
than eight wins in the ”Best Alto Saxophonist”category of the annual Downbeat polls. Despite an
innate desire to be creative with his music he is always aware of his audience.
We talked to the saxophonist by telephone on April 16, 2015.
NOJ: I am a big fan of your music. Your last two albums were
pretty moving and I think you sort of bridged the gap, for people who are not
quite willing to go far mainstream as people like Robert Glasper, but yet still
produce solid improvisational music that has a wider appeal. I am not sure if
you have been trying to consciously do that, but I think it is working.
KG: Well no actually I just play the music as I hear it.
Some of my heroes in the music that I have heard, people like McCoy, and Trane
and Sonny Rollins and people like that, that is the music that I hear, so I try
to write what I am hearing and that ( my music) is really a reflection of that.
NOJ: In interviews you have said that your musical path
emerged by working with the elders and that now musicians are taking a more
academic approach to learning jazz. Is this more academic approach affecting,
what I would call the social connectivity that jazz used to have with its
audience and is the music becoming too esoteric for its own good?
KG: See, I think every generation has to define the music. …
I always like to tell the story, I was recording this CD and the tune was called “Ain't Nothing But the
Blues” and when I wrote the song I was
thinking about Miles Davis, BB King and Bone Thugs- N- Harmony, it’s a hip hop
group. So Bobby Hutcherson was recording with me and he says to me, “
You’re kidding me, is that the
blues?” I said to myself it’s the blues
all day long, but with that being said, I guess because( he was from a
different generation) he heard it
totally different. To me it had trickled down a little bit differently he said
“Wow is that the blues?” Sometime when I hear music I say “Is that jazz?” So
every generation kind of has to come to terms or get a grip on to how the music
is moving differently than you might want it to move and I am the same way.
(The music) Its moving,
it’s a different way of learning it. I come through the university so I
don’t really look at it that way. Actually
the blessing is that I got to play with the greats. I played with people like
Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Woody Shaw, Cootie Williams, Donald Byrd, Art Blakey,
and Dizzy Gillespie when you think of that, you kind of hold onto that as
something dear. I think it is a little different approach to the music. That’s
neither good nor bad, it is what it is. Others are trying to find it their way. The
way I learned it, I learned from more of an almost an African tradition, it was
passed down. It is not really passed on now as I did it. There are people,
musicians who are teaching it ( in universities), they have actually been in
the forefront, but it is just another approach.
NOJ: I want to get back to a point. To paraphrase a famous
line attributed to Duke Ellington that there are only two kinds of music , good
music and everything else. Do jazz musicians today get stuck on playing music
for themselves and not making it entertaining enough for a broader audience?
KG: I think that depends on the generation. I think if you
are in a laboratory and you come from a university and you are in a laboratory
and that’s the way you’re assimilating it then that’s the way it might be. I
think everybody is different. Our jazz has always been the same. People have
always been saying, jazz musicians are playing for themselves. Some of that is true, I think even for
myself, some of it is true I am playing
for myself, but also I am cognizant that the audience is there. What I would like for the audience to experience is this
journey that I would like to take them on. It is not that I don’t acknowledge
them, I definitely acknowledge them, I am hoping that this music will touch
them in some way, even if they have never heard me before, I am hoping it will
touch them. …I hear a lot of young people come up to me and say I never heard
music like this before. I say to them it’s a little different because these are
my experiences that I am presenting to you. You can’t expect a younger musician
who hasn’t had that many experiences to really come up with something like that
at this point. You’re going to have to wait, and I m sure that is what some
people say about me. Ha ha.
NOJ: I read several interviews where you said that Pharaoh
Sanders, who is a well know contemporary of John Coltrane, said he sees a lot
of John in your playing. Do feel that connection and do you consciously try to
achieve that connection or is it something that comes out of you because of his
influence?
KG: I think for me it simply comes out of me. I look at a
lot of times, when Pharaoh and I play together it’s so uncanny. A lot of times,
because he played alto before he played tenor, we’ll go and play the same
notes. Sometimes I am in his register or he is in mine and one of us will have
to go higher.
Of course, John Coltrane is one of my heroes, there is no
denying that, but I think I can still kind of find a way to get to that feeling
( that John had) in my music. So I am always looking for that feeling, I guess (it’s)
that spiritual quality, really just a feeling that brought me to the music. I
remember when I was a kid, I used to basically take all my forty-fives, I would
hide them, and then during Christmas time I would pull them out and I would
play all of them. They would fill me up. It was a very emotional feeling that I
got. When I listen to music I would love to hear that. So when I am playing music
I am trying to get back to that emotional experience that I had when I was a
kid.
NOJ: What kind of forty fives were you listening to?
KG: I would listen to anything, any of my favorite records,
some R & B and some jazz. Coming from my home, my father was listening to
jazz and my mother was listening to Motown so I had both. Any of my favorite
records , it could have been Kool and the Gang, Maceo Parker , it could have
been James Brown that feeling was what I
was looking for every time. When I start thinking about music, I say to myself,
I wonder if I can bring that feeling back, for people to experience what I was
experiencing at the time.
NOJ: Which was joy, it was real joy, right?
KG: It’s really joy. That is what I am hoping for. Everybody
gets something different from it. The core of what I am trying to get people to
understand, I think it gets there. When you travel people always come up to me after a show and ask “What is it that I was experiencing? It’s
something but we can’t really put our finger on it.” To me that’s good because
at least it’s something that they feel. They don’t have to be able to explain
it, as long as I know you can feel something from it, then I think mission is
accomplished.
NOJ: Well you obviously are doing something right. You
received Grammy nominations for your last two albums Seeds from the Underground and Pushing
the World Away . These alums paid
homage to some of the people who made an impression on your life and both had critical
and general appeal. What’s next for you
after having looked back from where you came?
KG: I think that a lot of people were saying I looked back,
but if you check out my cds I’ll always look back. I always acknowledge. Seeds was
acknowledging a lot of people. Most of the cds it might be just one person, maybe
two people, maybe I might play some songs that remind me of someone. But I am
always doing that , I always do that because I
always feel blessed that I had the opportunity to play with Miles,
Freddie and Woody . I mean these guys…if I had come up at a different time I
think it would have been something different, but to acknowledge that and to
acknowledge people. There was a tenor saxophonist from Detroit, his name was
Bobby Barnes, and he gave me a couple of lessons and I tracked him down just to
thank him. He said, I really did (something for you), and I said the lesson
that you gave me was an important lesson, because I still use it today.
Sometimes it’s not the person that you think it is it’s another person who gave
you something new. So I am always grateful for that. I wouldn't be here if
there wasn’t a little struggle, I was working hard, but definitely their input
was very important, it’s always important.
NOJ: I love that song “Wiggins” from Seeds, that was such a hot number
and I guess it was dedicated to one of your onetime school band leader?
KG: Bill Wiggins was
my high school band director but I also took private lessons with Bill. Bill studied
with Larry Teal, who is a classical saxophonist. Joe Henderson studied with
Larry Teal, Vinnie Martin studied with Larry Teal. Brother Yusef ( Lateef)
studied with Larry Teal. So the thing was I wanted to play with Larry Teal and
Bill said you don’t have to study with Larry Teal I studied with Larry Teal. I
wanted to go to Cass Tech which was the best school to be in, he said you don’t
have to go to Cass Tech I went to Cass Tech and I will teach you. He was one of
the cats along with Marcus Belgrave who really helped me. Wiggins was the one who
actually sent me to Marcus to try to learn more.
NOJ: To go back to Coltrane for one second. What was the
first recording of John Coltrane that you heard that really moved you?
KG: Actually it was a recording; I think it was called the
Blowing Session with Johnny Griffin, Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan, Art Blakey, I’m
not sure who was playing piano on there, but I remember playing on “All the Things You Are” and
Johnny Griffin was killing, he was playing all this stuff, you know how Johnny
plays, and Trane he was playing one note and ah man it’s all over. For me it
was over he just played one note, you
got to be kidding me.
NOJ: Yeah, economy can sometimes be a very powerful thing
and lost on some people. You once
related that Miles said to you “You sound like you are wearing Sonny Stitt’s
dirty drawers.”
KG: (Laughing)
Sonny Stitt
NOJ: (Laughing) You know Kenny what you say on line can come
back to haunt you.
KG: (Still Laughing) You know that’s the truth.
NOJ: Was that a fair
comparison at the time and were you trying to emulate Stitt?
KG: Well no I don’t actually
think I sounded anything like Stitt, but I think for him, I think that is what
he heard. Of course I did listen to Sonny Stitt, but I don’t think… I was
listening to Bird and Cannonball and
Sonny Criss, but I think for Miles , you know he heard that.
NOJ: Stitt was famously lost in Charlie Parker’s sound which
was hard for him to get away from. He was a great player but it was hard for
him to be under that shadow.
KG: Well of course. I
think a lot of musicians were able to discern Stitt rather than Bird, which is
what I’ve heard. A lot of musicians were able to get that. But I think for me
growing up in Detroit if you play alto you have know about Charlie Parker.
NOJ: As a musician who is now at the top of their game, it
must be liberating to know you can proceed in any musical direction and be able
to accomplish whatever you are trying to achieve. What musical challenges do
you still want to conquer?
KG: So many things I
would really like to attempt to do, it’s just really the timing, but what would
I like to do? Something I would like to do is to record a cd with strings.
Something I would like to do is record with some Japanese Kabuki musicians. I
mean there are a lot of things, but it depends if I have a lot of time to
really prepare for it. Everything is moving so quickly, If I had the time to
really go in and research and do it like I kind of research I did with Beyond
the Wall for example. So it depends on where I am at the time.
NOJ: You have played with the Five Peace Band and the live
album actually won you a Grammy in 2010. With the exception of Christian (
McBride) and Vinnie ( Colauita,) you ,
John () and Chick () had all played with Miles. Did you guys feel like you took
what Miles started and brought it to a new level?
Five Peace Band
KG: I m not sure what
their goal was, but to me it was a learning experience. Playing with John, he
has a lot of information. He has studied a lot of Raga, Indian music. Chick and
I we have a relationship so that was great, but I can’t say what direction they
were trying to go in. That would have to be something you would have to ask
them. I took initially that we would all contribute to the music, but it ended
up (being) more Chick and John doing
most of the writing, which in the long
run actually helped me. We had one song
and it was fifteen ( time) and I
really wasn’t playing a lot of odd
meters at the time. It was a learning experience playing with John. Chick and I have been friends a long time, but
musically I couldn't really say if they were trying to take it to the next
level or not.
NOJ: You are primarily an alto player, but you are also a
formidable soprano player. I read that you once played John Coltrane’s
soprano. Did that experience lead you to
embrace the instrument?
KG: No actually, when
I played with Miles there were a lot of saxophone players asking me why I
wasn’t playing soprano. I really just didn't hear it, at that time I was
focusing on my alto playing and trying to find my voice, but then eventually …
I don’t think with Miles I ever played any soprano, but then later I got a
soprano and started to practice with it and that’s what happened. I’m surprised you heard about my playing
Coltrane’s soprano.
NOJ: What do you like
about the soprano’s voice as opposed to the alto?
Kenny Garrett on Soprano
KG: I think my
treatment of ( the soprano) it’s a
lighter sound. The alto is kind of like a tenor for me, so when I play the
soprano it kind of lightens it up a little bit , I don't have to have the same
voice. It kind of breaks it up a little bit.
NOJ: There have been
many schools of alto playing over the years, the so called West Coast cool
school of Lee Konitz, Art Pepper, Paul Desmond and then there is the East Coast
school coming out of the Parker lineage,
Sonny Stitt, Phil Woods, Jackie McLean and of course Dolphy, Cannonball
and the Coltrane influence. Where do you think you fit in or is it relevant at
all as to where you fit in?
KG: That’s a hard one,. I’m not sure, because there are so
many different schools that I have been influenced by, so many of those people.
When you’re studying music, you really don’t know where you’re coming from.
(Laughing) They start to draw you in and
you start to try to emulate them, but of course one of main influences is still Trane, but not only
Trane there is Sonny Rollins, there is Joe Henderson, there is Maceo Parker
so many people.
NOJ: But those are all tenor players right?
KG: Well yeah but so many , there is Bird , there is Hodges,
there’s Sonny Criss there are so many people in the beginning. But in thinking
about the voices that I really hear that influenced me the most it would probably be like Sonny and
Trane and Joe and Wayne ( Shorter) those
are the few guys that stick out. There was a point when I checked out Wayne, by
playing with Miles it sent me back
checking out those records to listen to Wayne’s voice and this view that
he is coming from. But of course when you talk about Wayne he’s coming from
Trane and Trane’ss coming from Bird so
all those tongs lead back at some point.
NOJ: What do you think about the West Coast school and the
cool sound?
KG: I don't really think about that. I have listened to Lee
Konitz so I can’t really say… I don't really think about West Coast vs. East
Coast, whoever I like I just take it all in.
NOJ: Are there any young players that you are particularly
impressed with?
KG: Actually I like an alto player from Baltimore this guy’s
name is Tim Green. I like his voice and I like what he is trying to do/ There
are of course is many players Jaleel Shaw and
Bruce Williams come to mind. Actually Antoine Roney, Wallace Roney’s brother, I like Antoine’s playing
a lot. There are of course quite a few players that I haven’t yet heard.
NOJ: You've become more melodic in your more recent
compositions. Is this conscious effort to try to connect with your audience and
perhaps widen the music’s appeal?
KG: I have always been very melodic. I ve always loved
melodies since day one so that is just really a natural thing for me.
NOJ: You played piano on your last two albums. I
particularly point out “Brother Brown” from Pushing
the World Away, where you are being
uncharacteristically backed by strings (. I guess that is a window into what
you want to do with strings in the future? ) ( Laughing) How does the piano expand your voice in ways
that the saxophone does not?
KG: Playing the piano
allows me to orchestrate a little bit more, harmonically to be able to play
something for gigs. A lot
of the ideas they come quicker on the
piano, because it’s right there and of course I hear it because I play it all the time. I hear it
on the saxophone, but it’s a little bit quicker, for me it’s a visual
thing you can see it right there ( on the piano) and it just kind of happens.
Sometimes if you play the notes on a saxophone, like a C Major and its fine,
but the same notes might be something a little different when you play the
piano. I play piano on a lot of my records, but I don’t always play a solo like
on “Brother Brown”.
NOJ: I remember the last time I saw you perform at the
Iridium and Mulgrew Miller was there before he passed and he sat in with you
guys. It was so interesting to see Benito Gonzalez and some other piano players
hover around him watching him carefully as he played. It was a great show and a
great experience.
KG: There was so much
respect from musicians because they realized that Mulgrew was trying to be the
best he could be. I definitely remember that, with all the cats going wow.
Mulgrew and I we have been friend for thirty five years so I knew what he was
really striving to do. He was trying to
accomplish and be one of the greats!
When we first came to
New York we would go to see Tommy Flanagan, Barry Harris, Hank Jones and people
like that, so I think for him that was what he aspired to be. I came up through the Duke Ellington
Orchestra, but he also had a chance to play with Woody Shaw and
Betty Carter and all these different experiences, big band and small groups. A
group with Woody Shaw that harmonically was just crazy. So all these
experiences led him to be the great player he was.
NOJ: You have favored pianists with a very percussive
technique, distinctively a very McCoy Tyner influenced sound. Your pianist Benito Gonzalez is a good example of this style. McCoy’s
style with Coltrane was once described
to me by the pianist Steve Kuhn ( who briefly played with Trane just before
Tyner) as laying down a carpet of sound that John could then explore from. Is
this what you look for in a pianist, to give you this kind of platform to work
off of?
KG: Well that’s definitely
how I hear it. Of course by listening to those records of Coltrane playing with
Mc Coy, at some point when I play the piano , when I am writing I hear that and
that is what I am trying to get them to explore. I think for me Mulgrew ,
because I played with him the most, was able to…he was like a glove, when I would play, he knew how to open up
those chords. It was almost like when Miles Davis with Herbie ( Hancock). Miles would play a
note and Herbie and those guys would know what to do. What I try to do, it is
the same thing with the pianist that play with me, try to get them to learn how to orchestrate and how to follow
that and sometime not to (follow). They start to understand what is needed and
what is not needed.
NOJ: You have incorporated more voice and chanting into your
music. It was particularly effective in the haunting composition “Detroit” from
Seeds. What is the sentiment that you
are trying to portray in that moving
song.
KG: At twelve o'clock every day in Detroit there was
a radio announcer, her name was Martha Jean the Queen. Every day, every day she
played the same song, I think it was a
James Cleveland song. I think it was called “Without a Song” it wasn't the
standard that we know, but I think that was the name of it. But everyday at
twelve o'clock she would play this sad song. I would say “Wow , Really! “ But I
remembered it , that’s the craziest thing, I remembered that haunting sense of that tune. So when I was writing I wanted to find a song to capture that feeling like “oh no not again”. I tried to capture
the spirit of what that song meant to me.
NOJ: The song was beautiful but had a haunting, melancholy
feel to it, I thought it was a statement about how far Detroit had fallen?
KG: Not so much that,
of course that was part of me wanting to write a song for Detroit. They were
going through some rough times but it
will come back. Like every city it has
to come back, hopefully sooner rather than later.
NOJ: The Iridium is presently your choice venue in New York.
while it has a history of providing top talent jazz in recent years it has been
more of a guitar-centric venue. What makes you feel right at home as a performer there?
KG: I first used to play a lot at Sweet Basil that was my
home. And then they did something, they had a change or something so eventually
I had to find another place and Ron ( Sturm, the Owner of Iridium) was able to
allow me to come there when I wanted to
play and so that became my new home. So when I come to New York that is where I
go. I call him and say I am looking for some place to come and play and
he has always been accommodating.
NOJ: So you will be playing at the iridium on May 22 through
May 24th and who will be in the band?
KG: Vernell Brown playing piano, Rudy Bird, playing
percussion, Mc Lenty Hunter playing drums and Corchran Holt playing bass. It is like the working
band.
NOJ: Will you be introducing anything new?
KG: Every once in a while we try to throw in something new, I'am
not sure if we will do that but mainly it will be a repertoire from the last
two records.
NOJ: You have just been on tour in Europe recently?
KG: We just came back
from Japan two days ago. We are in Europe a lot, traveling a great deal. It has
been great, to go to Japan too. I was there last year doing the International
Jazz with Herbie and the crew. We go to Europe a lot seems like we are there
every other week ( laughing)
Every year it is a right of passage that reviewers compile their "best of" picks from the previous year's crop of offerings Some reviewers amazingly are able to review hundreds of cds in a year! The pool from which they pick their best of lists are admittedly more extensive than mine, but nonetheless I have heard some fantastic performances both "live" and on cd this year and the ones I have found exceptional certainly deserve recognition, even if its only from me. So in no particular order here is my top picks from 2012
with some links to listen to selections from each album where available. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Jack DeJohnette's: Sound Travels
Check out "Dirty ground"
Wes Montgomery : Echoes of Indiana Avenue
Promo video "here"
Denise Donatelli : Soul Shadows
Her live version of "Another Day"
Maybe I am, in the Christmas spirit already but I just listened to two newly received releases that I really enjoyed so let's add these two to the mix:
Amhad Jamal : Blue Moon
