Steve Grossman

In this final recording with pianist Michel Petrucciani, saxophonist Grossman's usually more extroverted tendencies are willingly sublimated in order to play more romantically inclined mainstream jazz. Many of the tunes are ballads, embellished by Petrucciani's languid or forceful pianistics, while solid bassist Andy McKee and drummer Joe Farnsworth keep the flickering flame alive with their steadying rhythms.
Of course the fire has to be stoked on occasion, and Grossman really digs in on the Sonny Rollins evergreen "Why Don't I?" It's perfectly played, a flawless uptempo swinger with head nodding, bluesy elements. Contrasting easy swing with double timed tenor on "Don't Blame Me" shows Grossman as riled up as he gets on this date…

Phenomenal saxophonist Steve Grossman, who replaced Wayne Shorter in the Miles Davis band and had great albums throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, has been living in Italy for the past 20 years, and his last recording was made in 2000 in Italy with Johnny Griffin. This CD represents his first recording in over 10 years. Appropriately named Homecoming, this album was recorded in October 2010 in New York, when Grossman came back to the Big Apple for the first time in more than 15 years for a four-day engagement at Jazz Standard. Supporting Grossman on this date were pianist Larry Willis, drummer Joe Farnsworth and John Webber who played with him at Jazz Standard, plus several other musicians including trumpeter Tom Browne…

Steve Grossman - Live At Cafe Praga (1990) {2015 Japan Timeless Jazz Master Collection Complete Series CDSOL-6317}
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© 1990, 2015 Timeless Records / Solid Records Japan / Ultra-Vibe | CDSOL-6317
Jazz / Hard Bop / Post Bebop / Saxophone

Reissue with the latest remastering. Features original cover artwork. Comes with a descripton in Japanese. Recorded at the Cafe Praga, Bologna, Italy, Dec 4,5,6 1990. Although he started out playing in fusion-oriented settings, Steve Grossman developed into an excellent hard bop tenor in the tradition of Sonny Rollins (although he developed his own sound). Grossman originally started on alto when he was eight, added soprano at 15, and tenor at 16. He started at the top as Wayne Shorter's replacement with Miles Davis, playing in his fusion group from late 1969 up to September 1970. Grossman was with Lonnie Liston Smith in 1971, spent a valuable period (1971-1973) as part of Elvin Jones' group, and in the mid-'70s was with Gene Perla's Stone Alliance. Steve Grossman has mostly led his own bands ever since, recording as a leader for such labels as P.M., Owl, Red, and Dreyfus.

Miles Davis - The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions (1970) {5CD Box Set, Columbia C5K 86359 rel 2003)
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© 1970, 2003 Columbia / Sony Music | C5K 86359
Jazz / Fusion / Jazz Funk / Jazz Rock / Trumpet

Of all the Miles Davis recordings, the 16 weeks of sessions that created a single, two-selection LP produced by Teo Macero called A Tribute to Jack Johnson have been the most apocryphal. While the album itself was a confounding obscurity upon release – due to its closeness in proximity to the nearly simultaneous release of the vastly inferior yet infinitely more label-promoted Live at the Fillmore East – its reputation as the first complete fusion of jazz and rock is cemented. It also garnered a place in the history books for guitarist John McLaughlin, the axis around whose raw, slash-and-burn playing the entire album turns.