Back East
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''Back East'' is a 2007 studio album by American jazz saxophonist
Joshua Redman Joshua Redman (born February 1, 1969) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He is the son of jazz saxophonist Dewey Redman (1931–2006). Life and career Joshua Redman was born in Berkeley, California, to jazz saxophonist Dewey Redman a ...
. This is his twelfth full-size album recorded under his leadership.


Background

The album bears several similarities to Sonny Rollins' 1957 album '' Way Out West'', with two songs that also appear on Rollins' album: " I'm an Old Cowhand" and "Wagon Wheels". The album also mimics the instrumentation of ''Way Out West'' in featuring a pianoless trio headed by tenor sax.


Reception

Matt Collar of
Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
stated "Back East showcases saxophonist Joshua Redman as he leads a few different trios through a cerebral and muscular set of originals and standards. Redman has long evinced the influences of such similarly inclined legends as
Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American retired jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, Rollins recorded over sixt ...
,
Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians. Gordon's height was , so he was also known as "Long Tall Dexter" an ...
, and
John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the Jazz#Post-war jazz, history of jazz and 20th-century musi ...
, and Back East is no exception -- which isn't to say it's business as usual. Admittedly, while this is a straight-ahead acoustic jazz date, it is one ripe with creative energy that finds Redman's knack for deeply thoughtful improvisation and unexpected rhythmic interplay in full flower." Siddhartha Mitter of ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
'' wrote "Back East... represents a return to a certain post-bop orthodoxy as well as to New York, where the three rhythm sections it features are based. The title also references the 1957 Rollins album "Way Out West," which supplies two compositions, "I'm An Old Cowhand" and "Wagon Wheels." And on tracks like Coltrane's "India" and Redman's own "Indonesia" and "Mantra #5," the saxman signs an entry into jazz's long-running conversation with Asian rhythms, harmonies, and cultural themes. It's a lot of creative directions for one album to contain, let alone develop; pairings like the jaunty " The Surrey With the Fringe on Top" that opens the recording, with the spare and hypnotic soprano sax line that anchors "Zarafah," make this something of a tapas plate for jazz omnivores. The fluctuating personnel—between the three combos and guests, this is a trio album with 10 musicians—also hampers the record's cohesion. That said, each piece is a lovely miniature in its own right, and Redman, whose tone is both fleshy and bright, inhabits each setting with respect and ease. He's particularly affecting when he switches to soprano sax, and the soprano duet with Chris Cheek on "Mantra #5" is a standout. The last tracks feature Redman's father, saxman Dewey Redman , who died a few weeks after the session. "India," on which they duet, and the abstract finale "GJ," in which Joshua sits out, honor the father-son connection aptly." In
50th Annual Grammy Awards The 50th Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2008. It honored musical achievement of 2007 in which albums were released between October 1, 2006, through September 30, 2007. The primary ceremonie ...
, this album was nominated for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group.


Track listing


Personnel

Musicians *Joshua Redman – tenor and soprano saxophones (track: 1-10) *
Joe Lovano Joseph Salvatore Lovano (born December 29, 1952)"Joe Lovano." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 13. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 1994. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, May 5, 2017. is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist. T ...
– tenor saxophone (track: 4) * Chris Cheek – soprano saxophone (track: 8) *
Dewey Redman Walter Dewey Redman (May 17, 1931 – September 2, 2006) was an American saxophonist who performed free jazz as a bandleader with Ornette Coleman and Keith Jarrett. Redman mainly played tenor saxophone, though he occasionally also played alto s ...
– tenor and alto saxophones (track: 10-11) *
Larry Grenadier Larry Grenadier (born February 6, 1966, in San Francisco) is an American jazz double bassist. Early life Grenadier's father was a trumpet player in World War II army bands and later in Europe but stopped playing professionally before his chi ...
– double bass (tracks: 1–2, 8–11) *
Christian McBride Christian McBride (born May 31, 1972) is an American jazz bassist, composer and arranger. He has appeared on more than 400 recordings as a sideman, and is a nine-time Grammy Award winner. McBride has performed and recorded with a number of jaz ...
– double bass (tracks: 3–4) *
Reuben Rogers Reuben Renwick Rogers (born November 15, 1974) is a jazz bassist from the Virgin Islands. Biography Born November 15, 1974, and raised in the Virgin Islands, Rogers was exposed to varieties of music that included calypso, reggae, gospel an ...
– double bass (tracks: 5–7) * Ali Jackson – drums (tracks: 1–2, 8–11) *
Brian Blade Brian Blade (born July 25, 1970) is an American jazz drummer, composer, and session musician. Early life Born and raised in Shreveport, Louisiana, Blade was exposed to gospel and praise music while attending Zion Baptist Church at which his ...
– drums (tracks: 3–4) *
Eric Harland Eric Harland (born November 8, 1976, in Houston, Texas) is an American jazz drummer. In addition to leading his own group, Harland is a member of Charles Lloyd's Quartet, Dave Holland's Prism, James Farm with Joshua Redman, and Taylor Eigsti ...
– drums (tracks: 5–7) Production *Joshua Redman – producer *James A. Farber – engineer (recording, mixing) *Greg Calbi – engineer (mastering) *Anthony Ruotolo – assistant engineer *Eddie Jackson – assistant engineer *Brian Montgomery – assistant engineer *John Gall – design *Michael Wilson – photography


References


External links

* {{Authority control Joshua Redman albums 2007 albums Post-bop albums Nonesuch Records albums