Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Jon Gordon: The Things We Need

145

Jon Gordon: The Things We Need

By

View read count
Jon Gordon: The Things We Need
Although he placed in the Thelonious Monk saxophone competition a few years back, alto man Jon Gordon has yet to receive the dues he's owed as a rooted mainstream player. He's been active on the New York scene for close to a decade, recorded a number of times as a sideman for Criss Cross, led three of his own dates for the same, and is now making his debut on Double-Time. In a slightly unsettling way however, The Things We Need is not the earnest accomplishment that Gordon and company must of had in mind.

Three different groupings are presented here with varying degrees of success. Three cuts, including two charming Gordon originals, catch the altoist with the dream team of Peter Bernstein, Mike LeDonne, Dennis Irwin, and Kenny Washington. These performances are the most satisfying of the lot, closely followed by takes on "Monk's Dream" and "Ugly Beauty" with pianist Ronnie Mathews spelling LeDonne and a brief "SKJ" that substitutes Eddie Locke for Washington.

Things then take a wayward turn when a well-intentioned idea goes south. Two tracks find Gordon and rhythm section backing a choir of eight to eleven- year-olds that he heard about through Locke and piano great Barry Harris. The standard "Without a Song" is mawkish and down right silly, with Gordon's alto obligatos arriving off-mike and sounding for all the world like they were recorded in a warehouse next-door. Barry Harris' title track doesn't fare much better, and despite the hyperbole and sentiment expressed in Gordon's liners regarding the composition, its presentation is largely bland and undistinguished and the kids add nothing of significance. Another unfortunate slip, Gordon's poorly-recorded horn crops up again on "SKJ," marring an otherwise choice performance.

It's lamentable that Gordon decided to approach this project like a patchwork quilt. The moments that are of quality are uniquely sublime, but it's just as true to state that the awkward lapses distract from the whole. An entire album of Gordon originals done with the Bernstein et al. unit would have been a more sagacious way to go.

Track Listing

Minor Dues, Without a Song, These Are the Things We Need, Monk's Dream, Stapleton, Isn't it Romantic?, SKJ, Ugly Beauty (59:00)

Personnel

Jon Gordon
saxophone, alto

Jon Gordon- alto saxophone, Mike LeDonne- piano, Ronnie Mathews- piano (cuts 4 & 8 only), Peter Bernstein- guitar, Dennis Irwin- bass, Kenny Washington- drums, Eddie Locke- drums (cuts 2,3, and 7 only), Children's Choir (cuts 2 & 3 only)

Album information

Title: The Things We Need | Year Released: 1999 | Record Label: Double-Time Jazz

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Eternal Moments
Yoko Yates
From "The Hellhole"
Marshall Crenshaw
Tramonto
John Taylor

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.