Jazz Articles about Wayne Shorter

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Wayne Shorter: Alegria

by Farrell Lowe
May 2, 2003

It is an utter joy to witness the profound evolution of a genius. With the release of Alegria, Wayne Shorter continues to widen and refine his unique musical vision—and share it with the world. From the first few notes of the opening song, “Sacajawea," it becomes immediately evident that we're being invited into a lyrical sonic world that is beyond common jazz metaphor. This music is stripped of all superfluity and becomes a singular document—a meeting of heavy spirits.

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Wayne Shorter: Alegria

by Jeff Stockton
April 16, 2003

"Sacajawea," the first track on Wayne Shorter's new CD, Alegría, is a monster. Shorter makes a succinct statement on soprano saxophone, and the rhythm section is off to an instant boil. His first tenor solo has a familiar urgency, and Danilo Perez's piano is striving yet economical. When the full quartet returns, Shorter duets with himself on both horns with harrowing intensity. At the finish, the band's laughter must be half nervous energy, half knowing that they nailed it.

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Wayne Shorter: Alegria

by Mark F. Turner
March 5, 2003

Wayne Shorter raised high expectations after last year's critically acclaimed Footprints Live . His new release, Alegria, continues to reveal the creativity and vitality in one of today's true jazz icons. Footprints was the first time Shorter had recorded live with his own acoustic group. The group, featuring the younger jazz talents of drummer Brian Blade, pianist Danilo Perez, and bassist John Patitucci, reconstructed Shorter compositions recorded over thirty years ago. The recording was nominated for a Grammy award for ...

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Wayne Shorter: The Man and the Legacy

by Philip Gordon
January 16, 2003

During our conversation--shared just as he was preparing to put the finishing touches on his ideas for his upcoming show with the SFJAZZ Festival in October--Wayne revealed his sincere feelings towards his life, his music, his friendships and, his respect for the many world-class musicians with whom he has collaborated with throughout his impressive career; and we explored his evolution as an artist and these relationships, and his passionate commitment to spirit of the music, life, and his spontaneous, improvisational ...

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Wayne Shorter: The Classic Blue Note Recordings

by Keiran Smalley
January 15, 2003

An artist undergoes many stages in his personal and creative development. Typically this can range from a period of youthful experimentation, a mid-period where he hit his professional peak, followed by the mature reflection of an old master. With Wayne Shorter, who has towered over the tenor saxophone for 40-odd years, it is difficult to assess where one phase ends and another begins. For me, some of his greatest work was done for Blue Note in the 1960s.

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Wayne Shorter: The Soothsayer

by Robert Gilbert
January 8, 2003

The mid-1960's were a heady time for Wayne Shorter. Newly enshrined as the permanent heir to Coltrane in Miles Davis's working group, he was the final puzzle piece to the band that would spur Davis to some of the most fruitful years of his career. At the same time, Shorter was in the midst of recording a series of uniformly excellent albums for Blue Note Records that featured the best young jazzmen of the time. They also provided him with ...

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Wayne Shorter: Footprints Live!

by Celeste Sunderland
August 1, 2002

Could saxophonist Wayne Shorter have known that the songs he wrote and recorded back in the '60s would be fresher than ever over 30 years later? Of course not, but he cranks them out on his new disc Footprints Live! with confident, fresh, Scope-tinged breath. Perhaps the jazz icon didn't realize how timeless his tunes would be, but he knew he'd never lose his cool.

Last year Shorter put together a group of fine musicians - pianist Danilo Perez, bassist ...