Pick your favorite, and tell me why...


I am searching for artists/recordings to add to my library. I love the sound of the tenor sax. (I played in high-school) Presently, I only have CD as a source, so let's not explore vinyl options because I have no extra $$$ to spend on an analog front end right now. I am leaning towards blues/jazz .

mike7142
Tenor saxophone is a pretty broad category. Ben Webster, Illinois Jacquet, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Zoot Simms, Sonny Stitt, Gene Ammons, Johnny Griffin, Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, Charles Lloyd, John Coltrane, and about a hundred more excellent musicians. Kind of like asking for recommendations of piano players. Where do you start? I would recommend picking up a Jazz guide from a local bookstore and picking up a few of what they recommend. You can then expand your search based on whether you agree or disagree with their tastes.

My personal favorite saxophone player is Art Pepper. Of course, he was a master of the Alto Sax, but I don't think you want to limit yourself to the tenor. He also played a mean clarinet. Let me reiterate, Art Pepper was a musical genius and you should seek out any and all of his recordings.
Thanks for the suggestions so far, and Herman, I am in fact waiting for the book suggested by sdcampbell in the Jazz primer post. Looking forward to exploring it all, but am really a sax fan.
norah jones 'come away with me' blue note records

check out mosaic records website, they reissue classic jazz recordings in cd format, also vinyl but not as much it seems. just received miles davis 'complete plugged nickel' on 180g vinyl from analog masters and it is stunning. i think their cd reissues will be of equal caliber, albeit digital.
As already noted, there are a lot of fine tenor sax players, and I could supply a list of 100 or more. However, I have a recommendation for a player that is new to me, who was mentioned on a post several days ago. His name is Bob Kindred, and he is featured on an excellent new Mapleshade release with pianist Larry Willis. The album title is "Gentle Giant of the Tenor Sax" (09032). Kindred has a superb tone -- very reminiscent of Ben Webster and Coleman Hawkins, but with overtones of more modern players such as Coltrane, Joe Henderson, and Joe Lovano. The audio quality on the recording is also first-rate. If your buy 4 or more recordings online directly from Mapleshade, their CD's sell for $9.60 each. For more info, go to Mapleshade's Web site: www.mapleshaderecords.com