Tuesday Morning Feeling

...classic big band sounds, an upbeat take on the format, full of adept arrangements and intricate soloing...
DownBeat

First transforming the iconic music of Cedar Walton into stellar big band arrangements, followed by a dive into the idiosyncratic rhythmic mastery of Ari Hoenig, pianist and composer Ben Markley's two big band albums displayed a formidable voice, always searching for challenges while reveling in surprise. With Tuesday Morning Feeling, Markley steps decisively into his own voice, delivering seven originals and several new arrangements of Thelonious Monk and Cedar Walton. He balances authority and openness, pairing strong melodic ideas with flexible frameworks that invite conversation, risk, and momentum. The band itself is a blend of long-standing Front Range collaborators and world-renowned guest artists, including Terell Stafford, Steve Nelson, Steve Davis, Bijon Watson, and David Wong, whose presence adds both fire and depth to the ensemble sound. Solos burn, the ensemble breathes as one, and the rhythmic engine never loses sight of swing. Tuesday Morning Feeling captures a big band in its stride: grounded, evolving, and driven by the joy of making music.

"...a depth of melodicism and harmonic sophistication at work amidst rhythmic brilliance..." DownBeat

Production Info:

Produced by Dana Landry
Recorded, mixed & mastered by Colin Bricker
at Mighty Fine Productions, Denver, CO
Recorded May 31 - June 1, 2025
Photographs by Marlon Rissatto
Cover design & layout by John Bishop

Reviews of Tuesday Morning Feeling

Paris-Move (Thierry de Clemensat)
Ben Markley's Latest Big Band Album: A Journey Through Tradition, Innovation, and Pure Musical Genius Few contemporary jazz pianists have so deftly bridged tradition and innovation as Ben Markley, whose latest big band album stands as a masterclass in orchestration and imagination. For those familiar with his work, Markley's passion for large en ...

Jazz Weekly (George Harris)
Pianist, composer and arranger Ben Markley leads an 18 member big band through a modern sounding mix of originals and jazz covers. He brings in a handful of ringers in Remy Le Beouf/as-fl, Terell Stafford/tp, Steve Davis/tb, Steve Nelson/t b and David Wong/b for extra "oomph", but little is needed for these strong charts. The team sounds comfort ...

Making A Scene (Dee Dee McNeil)
Ben Markley has taken two creative, original compositions by Cedar Walton and transformed them into stellar big band arrangements: "NPS" and "Groundwork." The Big Band has also taken on the Thelonious Monk composition, "Off Minor" and the popular Willard Robison/Dedette Lee Hill standard, "Old Folks." The rest of the music on this album is written ...

All About Jazz (Jack Bowers)
4 1/2 STARS When a bandleader says he plans to rely less on arranging the music of others to focus more on his own compositions and charts, the usual response is a prolonged sigh or indifferent shrug of the shoulders —which makes it all the more remarkable that when pianist and composer Ben Markley did exactly that on Tuesday Morning Blues, the ...

WDCB (Chicago) (Paul Abella)
Right up front, let me state for the record, that I want a big slab of whatever Ben Markley's Tuesday mornings are made of. Because his latest album, Tuesday Morning Feeling, comes charging out of the gates like a band possessed. His big band has a few ringers in the mix, including vibraphonist Steve Nelson and trombonist Steve Davis, and Chicagoan ...

DownBeat (Joshua Myers)
3 1/2 STARS A recent caller to my radio show expressed surprise that big band was music still being made in 2026. Not only is it still being made; there is both a reverence for the swing of yesteryear and thoughtful and inventive departures on display in a spate of recent large ensemble releases. Pianist Ben Markley's Tuesday Morning Feeling (O ...