My teacher (Tevet Sela) made an observation in my last lesson. I told him with all the tech work we've done I can play fast but so what? Where will that go. So he suggested I look through my library and look at players I like. List why and perhaps what I want to learn from them. Heres 25 I came up with in about an hour. so my challenge is to listen to them and steal steal steal. feel , inflections, tech, licks you name it. and the compilation of that will be ME?
1. Everette Harp Song Kisses down line. I like the grit, soul, tone , His inflections coming down to a chord tone.
2. Art Porter Texas Hump Background real funky. His tone is too processed for me. Everette is better. Porter has great time sense and inflections. Tone too bright no warmth He sounds like a fatter Eric Marienthal
3. Bob Mintzer Groovetown Great tone, his lines are right in the pocket clean. Uses the major and minor pent well , simple lines lays it right down
4. Steve Coleman Oracle Love his core tone, no harsh. moves in and out of key easily
5. Brandon Fields Gone but Not Forgotten Always like his volume swells and his vibrato . He opens his sound somehow
6. Bob Berg The Search Great tone, brighter than Mintzer great background. fades in and out with his lines good at answering his lines
7. Warren Hill Funky music white boy I like his song grooves, sound is thin and processed .
8. Dave Sanborn Hideaway Love his tone and lines. He is the best at building a long long solo. for a pop groove
9. Sonny Stitt Au Private I really like his tone but he puts in too much bop between phrases
10. David Fathead Newman it was a very good year Very controlled tone, like a classical trained musician Pretty
11. Justin Robinson The Challenge Good jazz tone lines
12. Eric Kloss African Cookbook Nice raw feel jazzy fluid Coltrane influenced
13. Gerald Albright Respect Yourself Really like this scoring , tunes, great tone, leaves space in lines
14 Charlie Mariano Adagio for Oboe Incredible tone , very soulful, great control of phrasing
15. Kenny Garrett After the Rain Distinctive tone pretty feel expressive phrasing
16. Pat Caroll Interesting Jazz tone, great lines
17 Kirk Whalum All I do Great tone and phrasing
18. Grover washington all the Kings Horses Dark and expressive sound
19. Charlie Parker All the things you are bad recording quality Great tone and lines for bop
20. Phil Woods all the things you are. In your face tone very expressive
21. Tom Scott Anytime anyplace Love his control of the the song nicest scored
22. Bob Berg Arja Great tone, phrasing , lines distinctive tone
23. Macao Parker Better get it in your soul Old school meyer tone. Good control of lines.
24. Candy Dulfer Bird cool contemporary tunes, harder sounding smooth jazz tone good lines, good songs
so from compiling this list (and I left out some of my heros Trane and Brecker to name two) I see that I am mostly at this point drawn to a soul time sound and phrasing and simplicity and logical development of pop type lines. My goal in this list isn;t to say one person is better than any other , just my impressions of what I might want to grab and put in my development. I'm glad my teacher had me do this K