Saxlife Plays Yes

Saxlife Plays Yes: Total Sax Retain

by Dennis Cook
January 7, 2005

Anyone who's ever collected crappy bootlegs of a favorite band will understand the illogical passion at the core of this tribute to Yes. SF Bay Area saxophonist with funkateers Ten Ton Chicken has transformed himself into a one-man sax quartet, charting out and playing all the parts of tenor, soprano, alto, and baritone (and on the gorgeous “We Have Heaven," a baritone floating on a chorus of altos).

Smeltz possesses the gutbucket throatiness of '50s jump blues but harnesses it ...