...SOMEONE needs to remind all of us what an alto sax is supposed to sound like! Auditory riches like a balm in Gilead.
In 2001, alto saxophonist Brent Jensen released The Sound of a Dry Martini: Remembering Paul Desmond. Resonating immediately with radio stations and their audiences, the album has been a consistent presence on the airwaves and has been streamed thousands of times a week since that technology was first conceived. Some twenty years later, Jensen now offers the house another round. Joined by guitarist Jamie Findlay, his long time partner in interpreting Desmond's works, Jensen improvises new melodies as rich and satisfying as the tunes from which they are based, subtly coloring his lines with romance, melancholy and joy. He shares a stylistic affinity with both Desmond and Lee Konitz in a lyrical sense, weaving singing, free-flowing lines in his own singular voice through Desmond favorites such as "Take Ten," and "Desmond Blue," or standards like "These Foolish Things" and "Alone Together." Supported by an outstanding Seattle cast - drummers Stefan Schatz and John Bishop, bassist Chris Symer and pianist Bill Anschell - Jensen creates another irresistible tribute to an iconic musical voice.
"If this is the sound of a dry martini, then make mine a double. Highly recommended." - JAZZ REVIEW
Click here to listen to the album
Brent Jensen - alto saxophone
Jamie Findlay - guitar
Bill Anschell - piano (4,6)
Chris Symer - bass
Stefan Schatz - drums (1,2,5,6,7)
John Bishop - drums (3,9)
Produced by Brent Jensen
Recorded & mixed by Steve Lemke (digitalolive.net)
at Resonance at SOMA Towers (Bellevue, WA)
September 12, 2020 and October 20, 2020
Mixed at DigitalOlive.net (Bellevue, WA)
Mastered by Ross Nyberg at Nyberg Mastering (Issaquah, WA)
Cover design & layout by John Bishop