SOTW community,
Who are some of the most underrated tenor players?
Who are some of the most underrated tenor players?
americanboy20
Cory Weeds, Vancouver, comes to my mind. He deserves his place among the big names currently active.
Among more historical names, I‘m a longtime fan of Plas Johnson, best known for the original version of the Pink Panther. He appears now and then on studio sessions with a very distinctive tone and vocabulary.
Pete Christlieb is another typical studio session tenor player, who also has a very distinctive tone and style. His laid back low register ballad playing is amazing.
There is a recent thread here about Benny Golson. He clearly belongs to the key players in the 50-60s post-bop era, has contributed with a couple of major compositions, but often remains less celebrated than his contemporaries Rollins or Coltrane. He is in his 90s, and still among us, with Mr. Rollins.
Among more historical names, I‘m a longtime fan of Plas Johnson, best known for the original version of the Pink Panther. He appears now and then on studio sessions with a very distinctive tone and vocabulary.
Pete Christlieb is another typical studio session tenor player, who also has a very distinctive tone and style. His laid back low register ballad playing is amazing.
There is a recent thread here about Benny Golson. He clearly belongs to the key players in the 50-60s post-bop era, has contributed with a couple of major compositions, but often remains less celebrated than his contemporaries Rollins or Coltrane. He is in his 90s, and still among us, with Mr. Rollins.
Lou Gare: in memory of LOU GARE tenor saxophone, by Lou Gare, Mike Westbrook, The Uncommon Orchestra
His solo album “No Strings Attached” is wonderful, comfortably moving from melody to abstraction and back:
His solo album “No Strings Attached” is wonderful, comfortably moving from melody to abstraction and back:
She won the Monk competition about a decade ago, but I still think Melissa Aldana doesn't get enough credit for her work. She's really incredible.
No No. It's Herschel Evans. He's never given credit for all he did. It's so terrible. He was thought in his time to have the best tone, and to me he still does, to me he's still the best player ever, but that's just me. Before him Hawk was famous, but the trumpet, even the clarinet were the stars of the big band music, after him the tenor sax was mysteriously the exciting star of the big bands, never mind jazz itself, where the tenor had suddenly been crowned king. When he was there it was like other bands may have been more famous, but the Count Basie band were the first rockstars. After him, Basie not so much. Lester coined his famous expression 'cool'. in saying Herschel was the hot one, he was the cool one, and without actually doing it they established the tradition of the battling tenors. I could go on, but the propaganda of all those years ago goes on still and I guess it doesn't matter anymore so eff him, eff me as Lester said about him just about on his death bed.
When I think of Blue Note & as well as late fifties early sixties tenor players I always think of all the heavies and then I finally get to Clifford Jordan! He had a great vocabulary and was adventurous during that era. His career hit Blue Note & Steeplechase records, all labels where some of my obvious tenor favorites passed through. I’m listening on YouTube to a live date with Lee Morgan right now!
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