Who is your favorite living tenor player?

[clifton]

This is Part II of the tenor sax poll. This will hopefully open the discussion up to talk about younger players as well as established giants. My favorite living player? It's very close between Freeman and Rollins, but I'll go with Vonski by the slimmest of margins.

[Pharaohrock]

Pharaoh Sanders.

I know it's easy to overlook people in making a poll but you're missing a couple of big ones not counting him.....George Coleman and Frank Foster.

- Just for everyone's information....

[clifton]

Von Freeman's most recent CD's, "The Improvisor" and "Live At The Dakota", are both superb. His album "Have No Fear", a masterpiece from 1976, has just been reissued on CD and is also highly recommended. Vonski plays in a bebop setting and he swings like crazy. He also likes to go outside during a solo, so he's likely to squeal or play semitones while he's soloing. About my choices: you know there are only ten slots in the poll. I wanted a generational cross-section of today's tenor players. It wasn't easy choosing these. I reluctantly left out Sanders and Coleman, and I also had to leave out Sam Rivers, Dewey Redman, Mark Turner, Fred Anderson, and Eric Alexander. Creating a poll is hard, especially when there are so many worthy choices.

[Joel]

Michael Brecker and Bob Mintzer

[GA Russell]

I assume Sonny Rollins and Wayne Shorter will get plenty of votes, so I voted for Michael Brecker because Mike Nock's In Out & Around (which features Brecker) is one of my five Desert Island Discs.

[ppjazz]

Here we go again. While the list is expanded you could have included Eric Alexander, Bill Evans, Bob Malach, Ernie Watts, Brandon Fields, Steve Tavaglionne, etc.

[jimcanoa]

Before voting I would like to ask a question... how should we evaluate are favourite living tenor player? I mean, should we evaluate what they have done throughout their lifes or the music they're doing in the present?

Cause Rollins and Shorter would get my vote (one of them two) as for the music they have done, and how influencial they have been... but as for the music they are doing nowadays, I would rather choose brecker, marsalis or mintzer...

[omar zamora]

Evan Parker

[Old Pa]

Chris Potter - the man is young and does marvelous improvisation!

[markvi]

voted for rollins, but it was great to see marcus strickland mentioned. he's a real up and comer. should have included him in my list in underrated musicians topic.

[blummy]

Artist Superstars (http://artistsuperstars.toptempo.com) has Plas Johnson on it who is my favorite Tenor player. Also there is Gato Barbieri and Odean Pope from the Max Roach ensemble on it too. You can hear their tracks there too.

Those 4 are monster players - don't forget em :)

[clifton]

Plas Johnson did a great CD last year, "Keep That Groove Goin'", with Red Holloway, another fine, overlooked tenor player.

[blummy]

Clifton - I'm in Conshy!

Plas sent me his Christmas CD which was quite good too. He's the guy who was the player for all of the Pink Panther Movie and TV tracks among many other Hollywood studio cuts.

[Pharaohrock]

Damn, who are the cheezballs voting for Michael Brecker?? Sorry, but that guy plays great lines, caveat= with no personality whatsoever. Listen to him on "Impressions" on McCoy Tyner's Infinity record for the best example for why Brecker AIN'T happening. He actually out-tranes Coltrane on that cut, but with none of the feel. There is no real tension supplied at any point in time....It sounds like an intellectual exercise, like a computer may as well have been spitting out the lines note by note. I think Brecker is a technician first and a musician second and the current backlash against his playing is long overdue. He has had a huge influence on jazz students who lack any perspective to be able to hear true depth in improvisation.

[clifton]

Pharoahrock: Did you ever hear Brecker with Horace Silver? "Prescription For The Blues" and "Hardbop Grandpop" might change your mind a bit. I'm not goona flame you, that's never my style. However, I do think that Brecker, while heavily influenced by Trane, has become his own man; darker sound, accents more on top of the beat than Coltrane. BTW I used to feel the same way as you, but the CD's with Horace and then Mike's own "Tales From The Hudson" turned me around. Besides, and I'm not making this up, Mike and Randy are literally family. They're fourth cousins, and you can't put down my family except for my inlaws, who deserve it.

[Pharaohrock]

Clif, I've heard Time is of The Essence and that improved his status in my ears somewhat, but with Brecker I still feel there's too much technical wizardry, and too little substance.......I did like his solo cadenza on "Naima" from the Hancock/Brecker/Hargrove record though.

[clifton]

Pharoahrock: "Time Is Of The Essence" and "Directions In Music" are excellent CD's overall. BTW I've been listening to David S. Ware's "Corridors and Parallels" a lot recently, which I really like. Warning: Matthew Shipp plays nothin' but synths on this. The music is pretty much outside but I think it presents profound possibilities for jazz and electronica merging together.

[markvi]

i think michael brecker probably suffered from overexposure. for a while, every other cd had mike on it in a wide variety of styles. he appeared at an astounding number of festivals and performances. now i think he's back on track doing his own thing a bit more and the quality has improved greatly. i never disliked his playing, but i think he became a little mechanical a while ago. hope he continues with the latest stuff because he has a lot to offer. clifton- you must have swinging family affairs! all of my relatives are hardly able to get thru happy birthday without an unintentional modulation.

[clifton]

I wanted to bring this thread up front partly to generate discussion about today's tenor players and partly because it's my thread. Also because I love Von Freeman and I'm wondering how many BNBB refugees dig Vonski.

[EKE BBB]

Rollins....4
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Brecker..4
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Potter....4

Guess you´re joking! There´s ONLY ONE SAXOPHONE COLOSSUS! ;)

[king ubu]

P-rock: I'm with you on the subject of Brecker.

Gave my vote to Chris Potter. Saw him live twice (with Paul Motian and with the great Steve Swallow "damaged in transit" trio with Adam Nussbaum) - and he definitively IS happening!

Concerning our beloved Saxophone Colossus (and actually Wayne Shorter as well) I'd say somehow they don't really fit into this poll - Rollins' towering achievements during the last 60 (!) years are beyond such polls as this. Also Wayne Shorter with his zen-like playing and attitude (I got a very short interview with him from a great broadcast of a german concert of with the Perez-Pattitucci-Blade band and I think he's a great human being) somehow is beyond the others in the list.

And how about Benny Golson? He's still going strong, too, and would have to be on the list along with several others already mentioned (like Frank Foster or George Coleman) if those of the "still around and going strong" category should be included with the "young and coming" ones (like Potter, Redman, Turner etc.)
By the way: what about Seamus Blake? Rick Margitza?
There are so many great tenors out there... let's marvel rather than vote...
Bennie Wallace, Bernt Rosengren, Jimmy Heath, Billy Harper, Illinois Jacquet, Johnny Griffin, Archie Shepp, Dewey Redman, Sam Rivers, Evan Parker...
ubu

[Pete Souders]

just voted for Sonny Rollins - don't really know whether to vote on current/recent stuff or on the whole gamut, so I chose the latter.

also - second mentions of Eric Alexander, Chris Potter
want to mention Tim Warfield
also - how about Teddy Edwards - talk about a long & productive career!

[clifton]

Polls ultimately don't mean much but I think they're also a lot of fun. I designed this poll and you only get 10 slots in an AAJ poll, so I inevitably had to leave some great ones off. BTW I voted for Vonski, and I know how great Rollins is. But Von Freeman is just playing so much horn, and I know how great Rollins is playing. Also Pete Souders: Has Eric Alexander played at Ortleib's? I'm a big fan of his playing; I saw him live about 5 years ago. He was great then and on his latest CD's he's even better. And we ought to mention Philly legends Bootsie Barnes and Larry McKenna, two major leaguers who ought to be better known. BTW about 15 years ago I saw Bootsie live, jamming with Odean Pope. Great night, both players sounded good, but I preferred Bootsie. Odean Pope still sounds harsh on ballads, IMHO.

[Pete Souders]

Clifton -

The last time Eric played at Ortlieb's was maybe about two years ago. He's been here maybe 4 or 5 times over the years, once with 'One for All' and the rest of the times on his own. He stopped in last Fri and Sat nite after his gig was over at another club. He'll probably be back soon - we talked about it.

Bootsie Barnes and Larry McKenna are certainly world class figures - I should have mentioned them (sort of got into a young guy mode - except for Teddy Edwards). Bootsie is here every Wednesday night with an organ trio and on the first Friday and Saturday of each month with a sextet, co-led by John Swana. Larry McKenna is usually here one night a month or every other month. He'll be here again on Saturday, April 19th. Also should mention the legendary Jimmy Oliver, who is still going strong, after almost 60 years on the scene.

[LeMo]

Paul Dunmall, if we are speaking here about music who is alive.

[D.D.]

I heard Joe McPhee and Dewey Redman play tenor a bit...

[clifton]

Among other things, I've been listening to The Vandemark Five lately, and I'm digging both Ken Vandemark and Dave Rempis. Vandemark Five is usually associated with the avant garde, but I've got to say they also swing as hard as anyone on the scene.

[bluenotes]

Even though Sonny Rollins has been my Number 1 favorite tenor saxophonist for most of my jazz life, a new man emerged some years ago to take his place--Billy Harper.

I have only a few of Billy Harper's recordings as a sideman: with Randy Weston on an album called "Carnival" and with Lee Morgan on "The Last Session". As a leader/coleader I have "Somalia", "The Awakening" and "Jon & Billy" (Jon Faddis & Billy Harper).

Does anybody know where or how I can find a copy of Billy Harper's album "Capra Black"?

[maygar]

Sam Rivers?
David S Ware?

better agree on the candidates befoe beginning the vote !

[jazzbluescat]

Josh's dad Dewey Redman is my fav.
Haven't heard any current Rollins; heard that he blows hot & cold, often has a "slack" group, so have stayed away.
Sho would like to hear Dewey do some more blowing w/Jarrett, sho would. That ole vinyl Shades of Jazz is one of my all time fav recordings.

[PFunkJazz]

Charles Lloyd!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Hardbop]

Nice to see people pointing out the omission of George Coleman and Eric Alexander. However, my vote went to Sonny Rollins. I think he's head and shoulders above everyone else out there. I've never seen anyone with the command of an instrument he has. Amazing.

[GA Russell]

In the year since I posted, I've become tired of Michael Brecker. Not as much as I became tired of Thelonious Monk over the years, but enough so that I wouldn't vote for him. Today I'd go with Wayne Shorter.

[bluenotes]

I've only heard Dewey Redman on one album, a vinyl by Old and New Dreams (one of Don Cherry's groups with Charlie Haden and Ed Blackwell). The album is "Playing" and the group played 3 Coleman tunes, 2 Cherry tunes, and one tune each by Charlie Haden--the title tune "Playing". Redman contributed a nice piece called 'Rushour'. Unfortunately, I cannot listen to this album because I no longer have a changer. It has never been reissued on CD to my knowledge.

[clifton]

My old poll thread has returned. When I set this up you could only have ten entries. Now you can have twenty. It might be fun to redo it to include Lovano, Rivers, Ware, etc.

[Noj]

I voted for Wayne Shorter because I have been discovering his Blue Note material for the last year or so. I also have FOOTPRINTS LIVE and enjoy that quite a bit. Sonny Rollins would have been my second choice.