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Eric Alexander: Chicago To New York
by Jack Bowers
Eric Alexander, widely praised for years as one of the jazz world's foremost tenor saxophonists, greets listeners with an unforeseen yet tantalizing curve ball on his latest album, Chicago to New York, employing his luminous soprano sax to enhance the first two numbers, John Coltrane's “Afro Blue" and “Wise One," before unleashing his trustworthy and perceptive tenor to usher him securely through the last five. While the soprano adds spice to Alexander's musical menu, the tenor remains ...
Continue ReadingEric Alexander: Chicago To New York
by Pierre Giroux
Tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander's release, Chicago To New York, is a masterclass in modern hard bop that pays homage to the vibrant musical exchange between two of jazz's most storied cities. This is not just a geographical nod but a conversation across time and space, framed by a quartet whose cohesion and shared sensibilities transcend geographical lines. Alexander, one of the most consistent voices of his generation, joins forces with pianist Mike LeDonne, both standard-bearers of ...
Continue ReadingThe Heavy Hitters: That's What's Up!
by Pierre Giroux
Mike LeDonne and Eric Alexander head up a band called Heavy Hitters, which features a stellar cast of New York's jazz elite, including trumpeter Jeremy Pelt, alto saxophonist Vincent Herring, bassist Alexander Claffy and drummer Kenny Washington. They have released That's What's Up!, a live recording from Frankie's Jazz Club in Vancouver, British Columbia in December 2023 that captures the authenticity, spontaneity, and emotive power of a band firing on all cylinders. The set list is an artful blend of ...
Continue ReadingHeavy Hitters: That's What's Up!
by Jack Bowers
Heavy Hitters is a superb New York-based sextet co-led by pianist Mike LeDonne and tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander. Individually and as a team, the Hitters keep their eyes squarely on the ball, swing for the fences and, more often than not, slam the spheroid solidly out of the park. And on this typically upbeat session they do it in front of an appreciative audience at Frankie's Club in Victoria, British Columbia. A freewheeling groove permeates the concert, ...
Continue ReadingEric Alexander & Mike LeDonne: Together
by Jack Bowers
Eric Alexander and Mike LeDonne have been together many times--on recordings, in clubs, at concerts and elsewhere-- but never quite as intimately so as on this splendid album, even though they are heard Together on only four of the album's nine tracks- -LeDonne maps a solo course on three others, Alexander on two (moving to soprano sax on “Autumn in New York"). Either way, they are delightful to hear and appreciate, and the need for a full ...
Continue ReadingEric Alexander & Mike LeDonne: Together
by Pierre Giroux
Eric Alexander and Mike LeDonne's album Together is an acknowledgment of the magic that can emerge when two masterful musicians collaborate in a duo setting. This release, featuring nine tracks, captures the essence of their longstanding musical relationship, offering a rich tapestry of spontaneous interplay, deep grooves and expressive storytelling through sound. And that sound was captured as the session was recorded at the iconic Van Gelder Studio at Englewood Cliffs, NJ, with LeDonne performing on Rudy Van Gelder's nine-foot ...
Continue ReadingMike LeDonne: Wonderful!
by Jack Bowers
Organist Mike LeDonne's latest recording, Wonderful!, is a labor of love on several levels. Of course, there is love of the music and love of accomplishing something that had not been done before--teaming a gospel choir with jazz quartet. Above all else, there is love for LeDonne's wife, Margaret, and daughter Mary who is disabled but, as LeDonne says, is nonetheless “truly wonderful." LeDonne wrote the album's title song for Mary, wherein he compares her to “a ...
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