For David Sanborn’s 73rd Birthday, An Unedited Blindfold Test From 2012

A day late for master alto saxophonist and iconic bandleader David Sanborn’s 73rd birthday, here’s an uncut Blindfold Test that we did over the amazing speakers in the listening room of his townhouse in 2012.

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Next Collective, “Twice” (from COVER ART, Concord, 2013) (Logan Richardson, alto saxophone, Walter Smith, tenor saxophone; Matthew Stevens, guitar; Gerald Clayton, piano; Ben Williams, bass; Jamire Williams, drums)

I like the way the tune unfolded. It started out…I thought it was going to go a whole different direction, and then it went into this really kind of nice, almost folk-like melody. I also liked the way the alto solo…it’s like they took their time to kind of just…in a very unhurried, unforced, very natural way, the way the saxophone solo unfolded. Nobody was showing off. It was just this really beautiful piece of music. It’s so hard to play over those odd meters that to do it in a way that sounds natural, where you just kind of flow over, you’re not being a slave to the meter, is really hard to do, and when somebody does it well, like whoever this was, it’s noticeable. I liked the way saxophone solo unfolded, very unforced; it felt natural, like singing. Whatever he was playing, it just felt like it was what it was supposed to be, integrated into the rhythm section, but still… He took it someplace else. And I love the melody. The melody was beautiful. Excellent track. I really enjoyed it. 4 stars. [AFTER] I’ve heard Logan Richardson’s name. As a matter of fact, I just saw his name associated with somebody. There’s a collective, right? I liked the way it went kind of effortlessly from the odd meter stuff to the more straight meter stuff. It felt very natural to me.

Miguel Zenón, “JOS Nigeria” (from Miguel Zenón AND THE RHYTHM COLLECTIVE, Miel Music, 2013 (Zenón, alto saxophone; Aldemar Valentin, electric bass; Tony Escapa, drums; Reynaldo De Jesús, percussion)

Like a little island thing. My little suede flip-flops! A really nice, hip little meter change in the bridge there. Beautiful sound. The saxophone player has a beautiful sound. I like the drummer a lot. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s an older player. I don’t mean Old-old, like my age, but a player who has some maturity and a lot of playing under his belt. The way that the solo felt so self-assured, especially playing mostly an eighth-note feel. Somebody who has a lot of confidence. And the great time. And once again, a beautiful sound. I liked the drummer a lot, too. The bass player, too. But just the interplay and the fact that it felt very natural. 5 stars. [AFTER] That makes a lot of sense. It’s his feel. I liked the way the time turned around on the bridge, just spun out. But it just flowed very naturally. Beautiful sound. Great intonation, too.

TARBABY and Oliver Lake, “Unity” (from THE END OF FEAR, Posi-Tone, 2010) (Lake, alto saxophone; Nicholas Payton, trumpet; Orrin Evans, piano; Eric Revis, bass; Nasheet Waits, drums)

That took me a minute to get into it. It’s a kind of angularity that doesn’t pull me in right away. Once I got into it, I started to dig it. What I liked about the way everybody was playing was they move very easily between playing kind of more inside and more out. I always like it when guys can blur the line between playing in and playing out. But it did have a bit of a relentless feel to it. That made it at times just a little overbearing to me. But I certainly can’t fault the playing, and I like the saxophone player a lot. Great sound. I like the way he used honks and high registered stuff, and the way he used accents and the way he rhythmically placed things I thought was really interesting. I have no idea who it was. 4 stars. [AFTER] Oliver Lake? Was it? That was a Sam Rivers tune? It’s not one of my favorites. But I think they handled it really well. I really like the way Oliver plays, and particularly played on this? That was Nick on trumpet? Everybody sounded great. Like I said, the way they went from in and out… I mean, that’s kind of Oliver’s thing. He has a unique sound. I’m surprised I didn’t recognize him. What I find really interesting about Oliver’s playing is that his sound can go to so many different places. He can play with so many different kinds of sounds, it’s like a character actor almost. It’s not like he assumes other identities. They’re all facets of his personality and his playing. But there’s a real variety of approaches, the way he plays, that I find interesting.

Greg Osby, “Whirlwind Soldier” (from ST. LOUIS SHOES, Blue Note, 2003) (Osby, alto saxophone; harold O’Neal, piano; Robert Hurst, bass; Rodney Green, drums)

It’s really nice the way the melody was all in that mid-low range of the alto. It’s such a beautiful range of the horn. To kind of stay down there as long as he did was really nice. Once again, it sounds like a more mature player. There were points when it reminded me of Kenny Garrett. That would be my guess. Once again, with that kind of assurance that comes with maturity. Beautiful. Very well-recorded, too. It’s always nice when you can hear the full range of piano and all the instruments. But it was nice, how the alto player stayed in the mid-low register for a lot of it. Once again, nobody was showing off, and it sounded really beautiful. I like the tune. I like the drama of it. It felt very touching. Emotional, too. 5 stars. [after] It’s funny. I have that album. But that tune doesn’t sound familiar to me. It makes sense that it’s Greg.

Kenny Garrett, “Du-Wo-Mo” (from SEEDS FROM THE UNDERGROUND, Mack Avenue, 2012) (Garrett, alto saxophone; Benito Gonzalez, piano; Nat Reeves, bass; Ronald Bruner, drums)

That really sounds like Kenny! Yeah. The SOUND. There wasn’t a single uninteresting moment in that whole tune. Kenny just kills me, man. Nothing was wasted in that solo. He played a long solo, and it was consistently engaging from the beginning to the end. He’s got such a unique way of phrasing. I love his tone. The way he spits notes out, it reminds me of the way Cannonball did it. He’s got that Woody Shaw harmonic concept that he’s taken and made it evolve into his own language. I find him the most interesting alto player around. He’s my favorite alto player, bar none. So if I can give it more than 5 stars, I would. That’s off the charts good to me.

I want to go back to the Oliver Lake track. The 4 stars was more for the tune. I’d give the playing 5 stars. The playing was great. Just the tune didn’t engage me that much. But this Kenny thing, man, that just made my day. Kenny always puts me away, man.

Tim Berne, “Scanners” (from SNAKEOIL, ECM, 2012) (Berne, alto saxophone; Oscar Noriega, clarinet; Matt Mitchell, piano; Ches Smith, percussion.

When it started out, I really didn’t like it. Then as it unfolded, I really got into it. I ended up really loving it. I think what turned me off initially is the recording felt very distant. Like, everything was really far away. I didn’t get much of a sense of presence on the recording. It sounded like it was recorded in a big hall with just a couple of mikes. I like recordings that have a little more presence. But man, the clarinet player was KILLIN’ me. Amazing control. Unbelievable control. Got to me somebody who has a lot of experience under their belt, because that was amazing. The clarinet playing was spectacular. I have to give that 5 stars. As I said, at the beginning, I didn’t particularly like the composition. It felt like it wasn’t going to go anywhere. Some of the dynamics seemed a little flat to me. But I think a lot of that had to do with the way it was recorded. But as it developed and I got pulled in more, I kind of heard past some of the sonic limitations that I was hearing, and got to what was there, and it felt great. I’d have to go back and listen to the top again to get a sense of where it was from the top, but as it went on, I kind of acclimated to the sound and ended up really loving it. [AFTER] I love Tim and I love his playing. The recording felt a little distant to me. I don’t think it did the music as much service as it should have. Once it got into it, I really liked it, and then at the end, I liked the composition. That’s why I said I’d like to go back to the top and hear it again. It’s very intricate, just the way things are structure, and it felt very assured, everything from beginning to end, and it felt like there were a lot of dynamics that weren’t immediately apparent to me. 5 stars. Tim’s stuff is always great. I wish I would have heard more of him. But man, Oscar Noriega played unbelievable. It sounded great. It felt very natural. It didn’t feel stiff. It’s just that I found myself straining at the beginning to hear what was going on.

Dr. Lonnie Smith, “Sweet Dreams” (from RISE UP!, Palmetto, 2008) (Donald Harrison, alto saxophone; Dr. Lonnie Smith, Hammond B-3; Peter Bernstein, guitar; Herlin Riley, drums)

It sounds like the organ player’s date. Sounds like the Eurrhythmics. Is that the cover of a pop tune. “Sweet dreams are made of this…” I have no idea who that is. It’s not Joey, right? Is it Lonnie Smith? Who’s playing alto? It sounded good, sounded like an older player, but I have no idea. I was going to say Lou Donaldson, but it’s not Lou. I liked what he played. The tune kind of stayed in one place, so it was kind of hard. I sympathize with trying to play over something that kind of keeps a very insistent thing. It’s kind of hard to really stretch on that. But within the parameters of what the saxophone player was given, he played very well. 4 stars. [AFTER} the nature of the song and the approach was such that it didn’t really allow him to go a lot of different places. Within the confines of what the song was, it was great, and Donald is a great player. I’d prefer hearing him on his own stuff. I love his tunes. They’re great.

Steve Coleman, “Hormone Trig” (from FUNCTIONAL ARRHTHMIAS, Pi, 2013) (Coleman, alto saxophone; Jonathan Finlayson, trumpet; Anthony Tidd, bass; Sean Rickman, drums)

Is this Steve Coleman? Steve is great, man. He has so much flexibility and control over time signatures, and he makes that shit swing. That’s what’s great about Steve. He has it all. Originality. Control. And he swings; swings his ass off. He can manage to make the most potentially uninviting kinds of circumstances…he can imbue them with an emotional content and a spirit of originality that is just amazing to me. He’s one of the true originals that’s come along in the last 20-30 years. He’s in a class by himself, really. I give this 5+ stars. It’s funny. There are times when he and Kenny Garrett remind me of each other. I think it’s the fact that they both have this innate sense of swing. Maybe it’s their connection to the tradition. I’m not sure. I don’t know what it is. But Steve is brilliant, and the music is amazing. Every time I listen to him, it’s completely engaging to me. On this one, it’s based on the rhythms of the body. Who’s playing trumpet? Jonathan Finlayson? Sorcerer’s apprentice. But the difference with Steve is that he has such a great sound, and he plays with such assurance. It’s so definitive.

Clayton Brothers, “Souvenir” (from AND FRIENDS, Artist Share, 2012) (Jeff Clayton, alto saxophone; John Clayton, bass; Gerald Clayton, piano; Obed Calvaire, drums)

Very Strayhornesque piece. Again, very well-recorded. A lot of presence. A lot of warmth in that track. It sounded a little bit like Wess Anderson, but it had that kind of warmth to it. Warm-sounding and a nice Johnny Hodges kind of bending of the notes. Just beautiful. Very simple, straightforward. 4 stars. Absolutely beautiful. It was extremely sensitive, and the alto player, Jeff, took his time. The reason I gave it 4 stars is I wanted to hear him play more. It would have been nice to hear him stretch out a little bit. But I understand he wanted to state the tune in a very straightforward way. But absolutely beautiful. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

John Zorn, “Hath-Arob” (from ELECTRIC MASADA AT THE MOUNTAIN OF MADNESS, Tzadik, 2005) (Zorn, alto saxophone; Marc Ribot, guitar; Jamie Saft, keyboards; Ikue Mori, electronics; Trevor Dunn, electric bass; Joey Baron, Kenny Wolleson, drums; Cyro Baptista, percussion)

That souinded like John Zorn. Had to be. Nobody plays with that kind of insanity and humor. Just the composition was so great. Just the way all the elements grew out of each other, and came out and went back in. There’s so much texture there. Was there another saxophone player? That was all him? It’s an amazing piece of music. 5 stars. I loved it. I love John. John always makes me laugh, makes me smile. [Can you recall for these purposes what it was like to have him on your show?] I enjoyed meeting him. Marcus Miller and Omar Hakim were on it. But I find his music really interesting. He put out a series of records during that time with that group Naked City. Who were the two drummers? Oh, Joey. When you hear something like that, you really hear what a sense of composition John has. There’s this shape to it that’s got…the interior feels very natural, and the way things unfold feels very natural. So much energy, and such a unique way of playing the saxophone. He reminds me a little of Marshall Allen, one of the few other people I know who plays, in a way, similar to John—and I know John was very familiar with Marshall’s playing. But he’s so unique, you have to judge him on his own terms. I enjoy his music, and I enjoy his playing. I enjoy his approach. It’s fresh. It’s an original voice to me. I just like it.

Tim Green, “Pinocchio” (from SONGS FROM THIS SEASON, True Melody, 2012) (Green, alto saxophone; Kris Funn, bass; Rodney Green, drums)

Almost sounds like a soprano. A very kind of pure sound from the saxophone player. Amazing articulation, and flexibility and facility, especially up in the upper register. He managed to get around that Wayne Shorter tune with a lot of dexterity and ease. The sound to me was a little bit not what I kind of… I don’t really respond as well to that kind of sound as one that’s a little more resonant, a fuller sound, but I appreciate it. It was very pure. The articulation was flawless. It certainly was swinging. The playing is 5 stars. Overall, I give it 4 stars.

Lou Donaldson, “Sweet And Lovely” (from LUSH LIFE, Blue Note, 1967/2007) (Donaldson, alto saxophone; McCoy Tyner, piano; Freddie Hubbard, trumpet; Wayne Shorter, tenor saxophone; Pepper Adams, baritone saxophone; Jerry Dodgion, alto saxophone; Ron Carter, bass; Al Harewood, drums; Duke Pearson, arranger)

You think that trumpet player was influenced by Freddie Hubbard? [LAUGHS} The alto player sounds like someobdy who is definitely using the language of bebop. Either they’re doing it as a tribute, or that’s who they are—like James Spaulding or someone like that. But I don’t think it’s James. I don’t know who it is. I liked it. It’s extremely well-recorded, and beautiful playing on the part of the saxophone player. A lot of quotes from Bird. 4 stars. It was nice. It didn’t push the limits that much, but within the confines of what it was, it was beautiful. Wayne Shorter was in the horn section? McCoy. Wow, that’s how old THAT was. That’s definitely New York.