When Dexter Gordon moved to Europe alone in 1962, he hoped his then wife, Jodi, and his daughters would join him. But once there, he created a new life in Europe and the couple divorced mid-decade, writes Maxine Gordon, the tenor saxophonist's road manager and widow, in her moving and well researched memoir, Sophisticated Giant.
Gordon had a lot to forget, but those sad memories had nothing to do with his family and everything to do with California. The state had hounded him for years on drug charges, imprisoning him on and off in the 1950s, all but pulling him off a fast-developing jazz scene and nearly ruining his career. It wasn't until the spring of 1961, after his last detention, that Gordon was finally permitted to travel outside of Los Angeles.
Atop his to-do list was leaving the U.S., but first he had to earn a nest egg. He recorded a series of exceptional Blue Note recordings in New York from May 1961 to August 1962. In between that period, in February 1962, he satisfied the requirements of his California parole and probation. At age 39, Gordon looked forward to putting his career back on track—abroad.
In September, he left for Europe. In November 1962, he recorded at the Metropole Jazz Centre in Oslo, Norway. In February 1963, he appeared in concert and was recorded on Danish radio in Copenhagen, Denmark. These two dates were recently released, in April, on Soul Sister by SteepleChase Records. In Oslo, Gordon was backed by Einar Iversen (p), Erik Amundsen (b) and Jon Christensen (d). In Copenhagen, he performed with Bent Axen (p), Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (b) and William Schioppfe (d).
Three songs were recorded in Oslo: Second Balcony Jump and Gordon's Ernie's Tune and Stanley the Steamer. In Copenhagen, another three were recorded: Three O'clock in the Morning, Gordon's Soul Sister and A Night in Tunisia.
As these recordings show, Gordon's creative mind and his playing were in peak form. Given the huge gaps in Gordon's 1950s discography, it's astonishing he emerged from the personal hell of addiction, arrest and incarceration with his creativity intact and playing ability razor sharp. Once abroad, Gordon was liberated to do as he pleased, go where he wished and play what he wanted, with attentive and adoring audiences. On the newly issued Soul Sister, Gordon is upbeat and his playing is fluid and rich in ideas. And on Night in Tunisia, breaking new ground for himself by pulling out of his bop style for a lengthy, freer solo.
As for Gordon's then wife, Jodi, and his daughters, Robin and Deidre, I'm sure they felt confused and abandoned. Sadly, great art and artists aren't always emotionally neat or caring.
JazzWax clip: Here's A Night in Tunisia...
Gordon had a lot to forget, but those sad memories had nothing to do with his family and everything to do with California. The state had hounded him for years on drug charges, imprisoning him on and off in the 1950s, all but pulling him off a fast-developing jazz scene and nearly ruining his career. It wasn't until the spring of 1961, after his last detention, that Gordon was finally permitted to travel outside of Los Angeles.
Atop his to-do list was leaving the U.S., but first he had to earn a nest egg. He recorded a series of exceptional Blue Note recordings in New York from May 1961 to August 1962. In between that period, in February 1962, he satisfied the requirements of his California parole and probation. At age 39, Gordon looked forward to putting his career back on track—abroad.
In September, he left for Europe. In November 1962, he recorded at the Metropole Jazz Centre in Oslo, Norway. In February 1963, he appeared in concert and was recorded on Danish radio in Copenhagen, Denmark. These two dates were recently released, in April, on Soul Sister by SteepleChase Records. In Oslo, Gordon was backed by Einar Iversen (p), Erik Amundsen (b) and Jon Christensen (d). In Copenhagen, he performed with Bent Axen (p), Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (b) and William Schioppfe (d).
Three songs were recorded in Oslo: Second Balcony Jump and Gordon's Ernie's Tune and Stanley the Steamer. In Copenhagen, another three were recorded: Three O'clock in the Morning, Gordon's Soul Sister and A Night in Tunisia.
As these recordings show, Gordon's creative mind and his playing were in peak form. Given the huge gaps in Gordon's 1950s discography, it's astonishing he emerged from the personal hell of addiction, arrest and incarceration with his creativity intact and playing ability razor sharp. Once abroad, Gordon was liberated to do as he pleased, go where he wished and play what he wanted, with attentive and adoring audiences. On the newly issued Soul Sister, Gordon is upbeat and his playing is fluid and rich in ideas. And on Night in Tunisia, breaking new ground for himself by pulling out of his bop style for a lengthy, freer solo.
As for Gordon's then wife, Jodi, and his daughters, Robin and Deidre, I'm sure they felt confused and abandoned. Sadly, great art and artists aren't always emotionally neat or caring.
JazzWax clip: Here's A Night in Tunisia...
This story appears courtesy of JazzWax by Marc Myers.
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