Myron Walden: Like A Flower Seeking The Sun

I don’t hate Celine Dion. I’ve never met her, but I hate her music. Her voice, all sanitized and safe, has been processed like so much cheese. I prefer my musical nutrition to be fresh, real. No genetically mutated sounds thank you. Enter saxophonist Myron Walden. The real deal. This, his second date as a leader like the ambitious the Hypnosis (NYC), contains all original Walden compositions. This time he works without a piano safety net, in a quartet where he shares the spotlight, almost equally, with guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel. Rosenwinkel, a soon to be crowned superstar (trust me) has recently released The Enemies Of Energy (Verve) and has worked with drummer Paul Motian in his Electric Bebop Band and Human Feel. Together, Walden and Rosenwinkel skate that edge where beauty comes from authentic music, where the instruments are not sweet or clean. It’s 3am, and the band is hard at work, not really interested to know if there is anyone left in the joint. Walden knows this truth of jazz, like Jackie McLean knows it. That’s where this recording succeeds, in the trenches. Although recorded in a studio, it has all the feel of a live date. Walden, a prolific composer, has studied with Benny Golson, Charles Davis and Donald Byrd. His influences are the aforementioned McLean, Phil Woods, and most definitely Charlie Parker. Backed by a truly powerhouse timekeeper, Eric McPherson, the band plays attention throughout. The disc includes 3 versions of the title track, all interpreted differently, varying tempo and approach. Let the mall shopper keep their safe Titanic music, I like mine shipped without a life raft.

Track List:Like A Flower Seeking The Sun; As Night Falls; From This Moment On; Tears Of The Fallen One; E Minor Untitled; Like A Flower Seeking The Sun; Momentum; A Long Road Ahead; Path Of The Sun; Pulse; Like A Flower Seeking The Sun.