World's Greatest Tenors


1. Sony Stitt
2. Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
3. Illinois Jaquet

What do ya think?
czarivey

Showing 16 responses by frogman

Three great tenor players. But, the best? Wow! I don't know how its possible to list the three greatest and not include Trane and Sony Rollins. My top three.

Coleman Hawkins
Trane
Sonny
Charles, agree on Dexter, and "Prez" would have been on my list if it had been four instead of three. I listed three only because the OP listed three. Since he didn't say "favorite" but "greatest", "greatest" seems to imply "most influential" since anything else is subjective. I think who the most influential have been is pretty well established and agreed upon by knowledgable fans and critics. I also like Acman3's choice of Wayne Shorter, besides being a great player was one of the very best jazz composers. So, for stature and influence:

Hawkins, Prez, Trane, Sonny, and I am tempted to add Joe Henderson

For listening pleasure:

The above and I would add Dexter, Getz, Zoot Sims, Charles Lloyd, Johnny Griffin, Hank Mobley

And for sheer virtuosity (ability to do anything on the instrument from a technical standpoint), IMO the greatest ever virtuoso on the instrument has to be Michael Brecker.
Charles, all good points.

Michael Brecker had an ability to overcome the technical obstacles posed
by the instrument that put him in a league of his own. I know some will be
surprised by this comment, but not even Coltrane had such a flawless
facility and ability to play in any register, at any speed, with flawless
intonation and utter control; he was a freak of nature. His ability to play in
the the"altissimo" register of the instrument is a case in point.
This is an extremely difficult technique used more and more by modern
players, and involves playing above the natural range of the instrument by
manipulation of the harmonics created by the notes in the natural range.
This allows the player to play in the range of the alto and soprano (much
higher). He was able to do this in an effortless way and as if it were the
natural range of the horn and not just an "effect". Stylistic
considerations are a different matter and subjective. There is only so much
that I can take of his post-Coltane/with-a-little-funk-thrown-in style. Still
credit should be given where credit is due.

Brecker: v=m5l1OTkNGFk>http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m5l1OTkNGFk

Coltrane: v=03juO5oS2gg>http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=03juO5oS2gg

I find it interesting that after listening to Brecker's version, Coltrane's seems
almost polite; slower, less fire. Until one feels the slow simmer in
Coltrane's; the incredible building of tension. Brecker can fly down the
highway because he has driven it many times before and was given
directions by Coltrane. Coltrane is driving down the road for the first time,
looking for the address and exploring. That's what made him the genius he
was, and his version is, ultimately, better music; IMO. Still, as far as
playing the instrument Brecker was like no one else; but, a little bit like a
great ss amp that does every thing "perfectly": amazing clarity, incredible
bass, staging, etc. and still.....something missing.

v=fJt3qeuPdns>http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fJt3qeuPdns

Regards.
Charles, we are, as they say, in violent agreement; and I think my last post
shows that. My point is simply that there is more than one perspective and
consideration when appreciating and judging (if we must) what any given
player brings to the table. Understanding "both sides of the
coin" enhances our appreciation of each; and it certainly doesn't have
to detract from our appreciation. In a nutshell, the point is: a technical
virtuoso is not necessarily an artist, and an artist is not necessarily a
technical virtuoso. Regards.
Agreed! Oscar Peterson has never been a favorite. Ask piano players, however, and Peterson will be preferred in more cases. Interesting you should mention Jimmy Dorsey and Charlie Parker. It is well documented in the various Bird biographies that Dorsey was one of Bird's favorite alto players. Another fascinating account is that Bird died in his hospital bed while watching the Dorsey Brother's TV show.

It's a fascinating subject, that of personal preferences. My feeling, which obviously doesn't have to be everyone's recipe for musical enjoyment and appreciation, is that the growth and development of our musical acumen (wether one is a listener or a musician) is an important goal and only helps us to enjoy our preferred genres and artists even more. When I read that Bird loved Jimmy Dorsey I want to try and understand why that was. BTW, it was mutual admiration between Parker and Dorsey. Once, when Dorsey went to hear Parker play he gave Parker one of his saxophones as a gift. Bird proceeded to pawn it :-)
Charles, good calls on Cohn and Trane. First two are Mobley and then Sims. The first two are tough. I remember the first time I heard this being surprised at how Sims (second solo) sounded more muscular than Mobley, not what I expected.
Hard to find a bad Sonny Stitt recording. A couple of favorites are "Sonny Stitt Plays", "Sonny Stitt Blows The Blues", "So Doggone Good" and "Interaction" with Zoot Sims. If memory serves he plays both tenor and alto on all. Enjoy.
While it certainly could be argued that Miles didn't quite have the "chops" of some of the other great jazz trumpeters, he certainly had enough. I would agree with Tubegroover that he was not the technician that players like Clifford Brown or (later) Freddie Hubbard were, but he could definitely play the trumpet. His contribution was much more than being a conceptualist band leader; there are few jazz trumpet players whose playing is completely free of Milesisms. Anyone who could keep up with Bird in a bebop setting clearly had a lot of chops. I think that in keeping with his enigmatic persona, his playing, from a technical standpoint, reflected a certain "attitude" that is sometimes misconstrued as lack of chops. It is sometimes pointed out how often he "fracked" (missed notes) or played with a sloppy and less than perfectly focused sound. I think a lot of that was by choice and not because he couldn't play otherwise. It's an attitude of "the feeling is what matters and if the note doesn't come out, well, whatever..." This attitude is in keeping with another aspect of his concept that defined him: "the spaces between the notes (the silence) is more important than the notes themselves". This is why his playing was so sparse at times; it wasnt about playing a lot of notes, but letting a single note "tell the story". Wayne Shorter is the same way, his playing got less and less notey over the years; perhaps it was Miles' influence.
****How does a discussion of tenor players get so far off the point?****

Well, why don't you grab the bull by the horns (pun intended) and get it back on point; using your criteria? Then we'll see where it takes us. Who are your greatest tenors and why?
O-10, busted, guilty as charged! You are correct about where he was when
he passed. Brain fart likely due to recently having been talking to a friend
about another alto giant, Johnny Hodges, and his recording of "Blood
Count" by Billy Strayhorn; which Strayhorn wrote while dying in his
hospital bed. What Bird was doing, which was the part germane to the
discussion (his admiration of Dorsey), is well documented and part of jazz
lore. Man, I have to tighten up my game :-) Regards.
OK tenor saxophone fans, four of the greatest, including one who is rarely
mentioned (Al Cohn). Can you identify the order of the solos by each of the
four tenor players? Two hints: 1) the four tenor solos each begin at :47,
2:24, 4:00 and 5:31 respectively. 2) the stated order in the Youtube
"comments" is incorrect. Any takers?

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MKBsQkZaYx0[/URL]

And no cheating! :-)
If there ever was a cult figure in the post-Coltrane tenor saxophone world,
Steve Grossman was it. He first gained notoriety by being chosen by Miles
in 1969, at the age of 18 (!), to replace Wayne Shorter. Depending on the
setting, he demonstrates the obvious Coltrane influence, but also that of
Sonny Rollins with an incredibly raw intensity in his sound. IMO, he was
destined to be the greatest of the post-Coltrane modern tenor players, but
personal circumstances seemed to derail matters. Things appear to be on
track now.

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-RpPr08P5Dg[/URL]

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wLZoVnRXxuY[/URL]

Acman3, this one's for you. "Stone Alliance" the band he
formed with Gene Perla and Don Alias after his stint with Miles.

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0ztXkXJ7GZM[/URL]
Elvin Jones "Live At The Lighthouse" is one of those records
that sit alongside Coltrane's "Giant Steps" as milestones in the
evolution of modern tenor saxophone playing. Elvin Jones led an unusual
quartet consisting of two tenor players and no piano. Alongside the already
mentioned young Steve Grossman, the other tenor was Dave Liebman,
another fantastic player in the post-Coltrane style; a style which would
shape, to varying degrees, the way that just about all tenor players from
that point forward would play the instrument.

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BrIfp7F6wR8[/URL]
The "greatest tenors" world lost one of the greatest yesterday at the age of 91. Frank Wess, member of The Count Basie Orchestra, jazz-flute pioneer, and one of the greatest tenors who played in the more traditional swinging, velvet tone style. RIP.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jD1cvia0i1o
Speaking of velvet tone on the tenor, one of my very favorites, and one
who is seldom mentioned is Plas Johnson. He also has an uncanny ability
to play "in the pocket" as jazz players like to say. All the great
tenors mentioned so far clearly swing their behinds off, a few simply have
that "it" factor in their rhythmic concept; plas Johnson is one of
them:

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nU5gedgIUfs[/URL]

For those who aren't familiar with his work, but keep asking themselves
"where have I heard that sound before":

[URL]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jBupII3LH_Q[/URL]
Great! Love his tone and quirky approach. The tune is very reminiscent of something written by Monk; turned inside out (if that's possible). Thanks.