Jazz Articles about Fred Hess

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The Fred Hess Band: In the Grotto

by Dan McClenaghan
June 1, 2007

The opening cut on The Fred Hess Band's In the Grotto, “Simple Steps," is a curious mix of whimsy and menace, stunning technical virtuosity and free form good times, a malleable weave of the eloquent and the intricate in his solos as he blows between the tight ensemble sections, all within the saxophonist's loose-jointed compositions. It's a sound that has a beautiful, slightly cerebral and, at times, slightly daft--with a method to the madness--feeling to it.Tenor saxophonist Hess's ...

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The Fred Hess Band: In The Grotto

by Troy Collins
May 14, 2007

In The Grotto is Denver-based composer and tenor saxophonist Fred Hess' twelfth album as a leader and the fourth to feature members of his long-running quartet. The Long and Short of It (Tapestry, 2004) and Crossed Paths (Tapestry, 2005) featured trumpeter Ron Miles, bassist Ken Filiano and drummer Matt Wilson. How 'Bout Now (Tapestry, 2006) expanded the quartet to a quintet with Mark Harris on alto saxophone. Continuing in this format, multi-instrumentalist John Gunther replaces Harris, making his debut with ...

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Fred Hess Band: How 'Bout Now

by Jerry D'Souza
April 26, 2006

Fred Hess says that after four recordings with a quartet, he wanted to change the makeup of his group, so he added a horn: cornet player Ron Miles. The music grooves, even as Hess chooses the groove in different ways. He takes his compositions along divergent paths. There is no gainsaying which way a tune will go, which recesses it will duck into, what plateau it will rise from, or which music it will dwell on. All make valid and ...

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Fred Hess Band: How 'Bout Now

by Dan McClenaghan
March 19, 2006

If you go down the list of categories eligible for Grammy Awards, you'll find Field 10 (Jazz), category 47, which is “Best Instrumental Solo." So the Grammy folks are telling us that out of all the jazz CDs released in a given year--thousands of discs that must contain almost uncountable solos--they've been able to isolate just one interlude, one inspired rant that is the best.If they can do that, they're better than I am. But I can narrow ...

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Fred Hess Quartet: Crossed Paths

by James Taylor
April 9, 2005

Saxophonist Fred Hess' latest release on the independent Colorado-based Tapestry label is his quartet's best. With trumpeter Ron Miles, bassist Ken Filiano, and drummer Matt Wilson, Crossed Paths features a more tight-knit unit and a composer more comfortable writing for this particular ensemble. Like eclectic trumpeter Dave Douglas, the unheralded Hess is versed in the tradition as much as the avant-garde style, and the excitement of not knowing when he is going to draw on one or ...

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Fred Hess Quartet: Crossed Paths

by AAJ Staff
March 16, 2005

Crossed Paths is state-of-the-art modern jazz. The members of Colorado tenor saxophonist Fred Hess' quartet explore his themes from every conceivable angle, ranging from skipping swing to brittle abstraction. And there's a blues, too.

Hess appears to enjoy a growing reputation, and he deserves it. He's a monster musician, a saxophonist with a full, distinctive tone, ample chops, and a conception that embraces the tradition, the present, and the future. His solo on the fast “On Perry St." ...

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Fred Hess Quartet: Crossed Paths

by John Kelman
March 2, 2005

It's wonderful for an artist to find a group so emotionally linked to his or her conception that the music takes on a greater significance than what's on the written page. Denver-based tenor saxophonist Fred Hess found such a group for his previous release, The Long and Short of It , a record that took his smoky tone and unmistakable roots in Lester Young and brought them forward into a new century. Thankfully the rest of the group--trumpeter Ron Miles, ...