At the end of this week, Outside In Music will release the first in a series of albums led by saxophonist Owen Broder in tribute to Johnny Hodges. The title of the series is Hodges: Front and Center. As of this writing, the first volume will be available only for digital download. Amazon.com has created a pre-order Web page with one of the tracks, “Take the ‘A’ Train” available for “early sampling.”
Hodges will probably always best be known as the lead alto saxophonist in Duke Ellington’s big band. He was definitely more of a performer than a composer; and the only tune on this new album that he composed on his own is the final track, “You Need to Rock." On the other hand the album also includes “Viscount,” which he composed in partnership with Mercer Ellington. Ironically, this was inspired by Clark Terry’s muted trumpet take on The Big Sound, a Hodges album released in 1957. What is particularly interesting, however, is how much diversity cuts across the nine tracks on this album, all of which allow Broder to evoke Hodges’ spirit for inspiration.
To prepare the album, Broder organized a quintet, rather than trying to muster big band resources. He is joined on the front line by trumpeter Riley Mulherkar; and rhythm is provided by Carmen Staaf on piano, Barry Stephenson on bass, and Bryan Carter on drums. As tribute albums go, this is definitely an honorable effort. Nevertheless, I have to confess that my preference still runs for “vintage” recordings. Thanks to sophisticated audio technology, Hodges’ spirit is very much with us, perhaps even more vividly than it was on any of his original recordings. Nevertheless, where repertoire is concerned, I have to confess that I am now curious to see where Broder will turn for sources for his second volume!
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