Publication: CT.com
Author: Michael Hamad
Date: February 4, 2013
In his 52 short years on this planet, what hasn’t saxophonist Branford Marsalis done? Composing Broadway scores and movie soundtracks; recording with Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Sonny Rollins, Art Blakey and his brother Wynton; running the Tonight Show band, when Jay Leno took over from Johnny Carson; jamming with the Grateful Dead (check out the exquisite “Eyes of the World” on Without a Net) and subsequently venturing out into the jam-band world with Buckshot LeFonque; teaching college; winning Grammys; starting a record label; bringing aid to his native New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina; leading his own quartet for more than a decade. (Whew.)
Sometime around 1996, Marsalis decided to make his quartet — longtime members Joey Calderazzo on piano and Eric Revis on bass, and relative newcomer, Justin Faulkner, on drums — his primary focus. Last year they released the aptly titled Four MFs Playin’ Tunes, which was named Best of 2012 Instrumental Jazz Album of the Year by Apple’s iTunes. He’ll bringing the powerful, musically telepathic group to UConn’s Jorgensen Center for a single night on Feb. 7.
Marsalis spoke to CT.com by phone about his new recording and the highlights of a long career in music.
Q: You’ve been with your quartet for more than a decade (drummer Justin Faulker came on board more recently). When rock groups are together for a long time, nobody bats an eyelash, but when it happens in the jazz world, it’s perceived as more of a rarity. What’s the secret behind keeping a band together?
A: Rock groups stay together for a variety of reasons, mostly that it’s a lot of money to walk away from if you become one of those groups. With a jazz group, all of the musicians have to see potential for growth. Read more »
Available now in the U.S. is a reissue of the historic Marsalis Music DVD which includes a full live performance of John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme suite by the Branford Marsalis Quartet at Amsterdam’s Bimhuis in 2003. The package also includes interview footage and an audio-only disc. 2015 marks the 50th anniversary of the release of Coltrane’s masterpiece. Pick up a copy of the Branford Marsalis Quartet’s live interpretation of the suite today at your favorite local music store, download the audio-only performance from your preferred digital retailer, or order a copy online.