Great Players Who sparked your love of Sax music

[Jeanette]

I had been fancying learning an instrument for a couple of years but didn't know what and I heard a guy on Britain's Got Talent play soprano and fell in love with the sound. Needless to say I sound nothing like him🙂 yet!!

I like the sax sound on most popular music but have specifically bought and liked Kenny G and Jan Garbarek (on Tom's recommendation) and love both. My music tastes are quite wide.

Jx

 

[kevgermany]

My favourite on sop is Sydney Bechet. JG I can stand in small doses - some of his stuff.

 

[Kingsleyhk]

Love Bechet but also Bob Wilber - a former pupil of Bechet's. He sat in with the hosue band at one of the local jazz bars here a few years ago - great player and a very nice man to chat to. One example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ygSvCxyjLQ

 

[Colin the Bear]

I've enjoyed reading this thread very much. What a diverse bunch of players. I was getting a little nervous about posting my first influence , which was, Jr Walker, Walk in the night and particularly Cleos mood, which I wore it out on 45, till I saw many members listing him. I didn't even know it was a saxophone at that time but it made my ears prick up.

I used to jump about the living room to UB40 with my first sax. Good old Brian Travers. Simple solos in easy keys.


The more I played, the more I gravitated towards jazz. I think that goes for most sax players.

I used to want to be Charlie Parker but these days am trying to be Johnny Hodges.

I don't know how or why but I seem to be getting caught up in 1930's dance music.

I do like a good tune with a foot tapping tempo.

I have made a note of many players I've never heard of on this thread and will be looking for them and listening.

I used to hate youtube but it's turning out to be a fantastic archive.

Ted Weems being my latest find. Can't stop playing Heartache.

Thankyou to all who have contributed for opening up new and old avenues of listening

 

[kevgermany]

Love Bechet but also Bob Wilber - a former pupil of Bechet's. He sat in with the hosue band at one of the local jazz bars here a few years ago - great player and a very nice man to chat to. One example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ygSvCxyjLQ

Mate of yours? Trumpeter looked so worried at about 1;50, that I wondered if he was expecting a pass from the sax player... ;}

 

[TimC]

Joshua Redman's Freedom in the groove had some really good tracks that I listen too quite often, like this one:

.
I was more or less forced to play some instruments I didn't enjoy when I was young, which left a bad taste in my mouth to playing music. But hearing songs like this, eventually I just had to try and learn the sax.

 

[What]

I can't say what artist got me to fall in love with the sax, growing up in New Orleans it was just always there in the music that was around me. I always felt that, need to play when I heard it.

 

[AndyWhiteford]

The first sax player I really was aware of was 'somebody' on an old
"Monk" LP I bought from my local library clearance sale.
No cover, no personnel notes, no internet, so I never knew for 10 years who it was:

 

[aldevis]

The first sax player I really was aware of was 'somebody' on an old
"Monk" LP I bought from my local library clearance sale.
No cover, no personnel notes, no internet, so I never knew for 10 years who it was:

Sounds a bit like Sonny Rollins...

But is very likely to be Charlie Rouse

 

[Jazzaferri]

My oldest friends dad who was a great swing guitar player. I cant remember why but he was the one who got me into sax, maybe as a counterfoil to my friends trumpet.

we did have lots of fun playing duets From age 10 to 15 along with being in junior big band and school symphony orchestras together. The 50's was a very different time for music in schools.

 

[MellowD]

Andy Mackay - Roxy Music
Also the traditional Baker Street blare - no idea who though, with Gerry Rafferty

Inspired to actually learn to play by a local guy who is in a 12pc Soul Band called Big Stuff, who picked up the Sax for the first time on his 50th birthday and so made me feel like I could still take a chance to do it whilst still in my 40's.

 

[Colin the Bear]

Also the traditional Baker Street blare - no idea who though, with Gerry Rafferty

Bob Holness innit. Thought everybody knew that. ;}

 

[Greg Strange]

Andy Mackay - Roxy Music
Also the traditional Baker Street blare - no idea who though, with Gerry Rafferty

Inspired to actually learn to play by a local guy who is in a 12pc Soul Band called Big Stuff, who picked up the Sax for the first time on his 50th birthday and so made me feel like I could still take a chance to do it whilst still in my 40's.

This might help...some guy called Bob, Fred, Tarquin, Raf...somebody - plays out of tune alot...🙂))

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwO0Mgzlg3I

Cheers,

Greg S.

 

[J.J.]

Defnitely John Zorn, with his extreme approach and an incredible array of soundscapes that he is capable of creating. Coltrane, of course, too (especially later albums), Pharoah Sanders, Brotzmann...


I guess I am not that interested in conventional players, easy listening stuff, etc.

 

[Jules]

Defnitely John Zorn, with his extreme approach and an incredible array of soundscapes that he is capable of creating. Coltrane, of course, too (especially later albums), Pharoah Sanders, Brotzmann...


I guess I am not that interested in conventional players, easy listening stuff, etc.

The call of the weird....Respect! I'd guess you're an Eric Dolphy fan too?
By the way- beyond Big Gundown and Naked City- what Zorn would you recommend?

 

[J.J.]

Not that much into Eric Dolphy (yet), I'm afraid.

As for John Zorn, do try a double live album "At the Mountains of Madness". It's sort of a cross-section of Zorn's styles and flavours - electric Miles, Eastern overtones, occasional violent outbursts. Highly recommended.

 

[Jules]

Not that much into Eric Dolphy (yet), I'm afraid.

As for John Zorn, do try a double live album "At the Mountains of Madness". It's sort of a cross-section of Zorn's styles and flavours - electric Miles, Eastern overtones, occasional violent outbursts. Highly recommended.

Nice one. Named after an HP Lovecraft story, like it..... I'll see about picking that one up.
Recommend Out to Lunch by Dolphy- a perfect blend of groove and weirdness

 

[Sinne]

my first saxophone memory dates from when i was about 4 or 5, my dad would play Miles Davis' Kind of Blue all the time. I remember being able to sing every single solo on that album, even after not having heard it for 15 years, while my brain was trying to tell me i was hearing this music for the first time at 20 years old. one thing about this has always sparked my imagination though:

as a young kid, the Cannonball Adderley solos were infinately more appealing to me than what Trane (bless him) plays. there are a couple of Cannonball-phrases on Flamenco Sketches that just kept with me all that time, and still sort of define what I want with saxophones in my life. That said, I do think I'll be choosing soprano over alto 😀

but that's the Steve Lacy fever for you, which is a very recent thing for me.

 

[aldevis]

my first saxophone memory dates from when i was about 4 or 5, my dad would play Miles Davis' Kind of Blue all the time. I remember being able to sing every single solo on that album, even after not having heard it for 15 years, while my brain was trying to tell me i was hearing this music for the first time at 20 years old. one thing about this has always sparked my imagination though:

as a young kid, the Cannonball Adderley solos were infinately more appealing to me than what Trane (bless him) plays. there are a couple of Cannonball-phrases on Flamenco Sketches that just kept with me all that time, and still sort of define what I want with saxophones in my life. That said, I do think I'll be choosing soprano over alto 😀

but that's the Steve Lacy fever for you, which is a very recent thing for me.

Please allow me to recommend two Gil Evans CDs then: "Pacific Jazz Sessions" and "The Individualism Of".
They include some great Lacy and Adderley

 

[Sinne]

Please allow me to recommend two Gil Evans CDs then: "Pacific Jazz Sessions" and "The Individualism Of".
They include some great Lacy and Adderley

Thank you so much! I intended to check out Evans-Lacy collabs soonish, but I had no idea I would have a chance to hear Cannonball and Lacy play together!