The BILLY TIPTON MEMORIAL SAXOPHONE QUARTET is named for Billy Tipton, a pianist and band leader of the swing era who lived her life as a man in order to gain acceptance as a musician.
Billy Tipton Memorial Saxophone Quartet: Maya Johnson (soprano & tenor saxophones, percussion); Jessica Lurie (alto & tenor saxophones, percussion); Amy Denio (alto saxophone, percussion); Barbara Marino (baritone saxophone, dumbek, djembe, percussion); Pam Barger (drums, percussion).
Additional personnel: Angelina Baldoz (trumpet).
Producers: Billy Tipton Memorial Saxophone Quartet.
Recorded at Crow Recording, Seattle, Washington in December 1995. Includes liner notes by Michael Bloom.
The second album by this quartet of women saxophone players is a nice continuation from the group's debut, SAXHOUSE. As on the first album, the saxophonists blend various kinds of European folk music and dance music with jazz and funk styles culled from 20th century America.
Whereas Amy Denio was responsible for the bulk of the writing on the first album, Jessica Lurie jumps to the fore with her impressive writing this time out. In particular, her "Soleil" shows a fine sense of subtle melodicism and playfulness. "All Manic" is a medley of Jimi Hendrix's "Manic Depression" and Miles Davis's "All Blues." The merging of the two proves more than merely clever, as the quartet finds a profound sonic link between these two important pieces of music. Crystalline audio quality makes this recording even more impressive.
Professional Reviews
JazzTimes (10/96, p.111) - "...They honk, funk, scream and slow dirge, and come laughingly back on a disc full of ambitious original material. On the way they visit Afro-Cuban, klezmer and New Orleans themes with lots of whimsy and close attention to maintaining the core pulse through creative horn arrangements..."
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