OWED TO JOE - The Jazzland Allstars play the music of Joe Henderson

DJ Lubi's Jazzland Sessions are back at the Brudenell with a special tribute to U.S. tenor saxophone legend and Blue Note Records artist Joe Henderson. Tonight's show will feature an all-star 10 piece band of musicians from some of Leeds top jazz groups (Vipertime, The Fergus Quill Trio, The Mabgate Organ Trio, Another Workout, Awen Ensemble, Project Hilts) and a jazz elder who played alongside Courtney Pine back in the 80s in the legendary Jazz Warriors big band. Musical fireworks guaranteed for sure. First up, some info on Joe Henderson.

Joe was born in 1937 in Lima, Ohio and by the mid 1950s, aged 18, he was already active in the Detroit jazz scene. After 2 years in the U.S. army (1960-62), on his discharge, he moved to New York and quickly fell in with the modern jazz scene there working with bandleaders such as pianist Horace Silver and trumpeter Kenny Dorham on their Blue Note Records recordings. In 1963, Blue Note Records released his first album for the label as a leader, "Page One" and he would go on to record four more under his own name and appear on 30 others as a sideman to the end of the 60s. Those included the full spectrum of jazz styles produced by the label. From soul jazz hits like "Song For My Father" (Horace Silver, 1965) and "The Sidewinder" (Lee Morgan, 1964) to more avant garde jazz recordings with Herbie Hancock ("The Prisoner'' 1969), Andrew Hill (''Point Of Departure'' 1964) and Pete LaRocca ("Basra" 1965).

Joe's own five Blue Note Record releases between 1963 and 1966 are amongst the finest jazz recordings of their era. "Page One" (1963), "Our Thing" (1964), "In n' Out" (1965), "Inner Urge" and "Mode For Joe" (both 1966) contain a mix of bebop, hard bop, bossa nova jazz, blues, modal jazz and freedom jazz sounds, mainly written by Joe himself. As well as being a world class tenor saxophonist he was also a brilliant composer and arranger.

Tonight, Jazzland Sessions celebrates the legacy of Joe Henderson with a night we've nicknamed "Owed To Joe". We have ten of Leeds' finest jazz musicians, from young jazz rebels to jazz elders, playing/reinterpreting music from those five iconic Joe Henderson Blue Note solo albums and some tracks from the Milestone Records era. We've called the ensemble The Jazzland Allstars and they will feature FOUR of the city's finest tenor saxophonists backed by a firing rhythm section plus some guest musicians from London, Birmingham and Italy. The set will include different formats - quartet (rhythm section + tenor sax), quintet (rhythm section + tenor sax/trumpet), octet (rhythm section, tenor sax, trumpet, trombone, vibes).

Meet the Jazzland Allstars :

Rhythm section : Nico Widdowson (acoustic piano) - Fergus Quill (double bass) - Theo Goss (drums)
These 3 musicians play in so many of today's great Leeds contemporary jazz ensembles including The Mabgate Organ Trio, Ben Haskins Quartet, Skwid Ink, The Fergus Quill Trio, Nico Widdowson Quintet - quality guaranteed.

The tenor saxophonists : 
Jeff Gordon (The Jazz Warriors) - Ben Powling (Vipertime) - Saul Duff (Awen Ensemble/Grifton Forbes Amos Quintet) - Alex Fisher (Alex Fisher Band/Botoga Deli)

Four of the heaviest jazz tenor saxophonists the city of Leeds has right now from right across the jazz music spectrum all united by their love for the music and playing of Joe Henderson.

The guest musicians :
Felix Burling (trumpet - Project Hilts) - Samantha Binotti (vibes - Awen Ensemble) - trombonist to be confirmed

These three guest musicians will feature on various tracks - Felix on the quintet and octet tracks, Samantha and the trombonist on the octet tracks.

This will be a special night. We've picked 2 cracking sets from all those 5 iconic and legendary Joe Henderson LPs on Blue Note Records recorded/released between 1963 and 1966 which will showcase the music of Joe Henderson as played/reinterpreted by some of the finest jazz musicians from our city. Definitely a one-off show so make sure you book your tables fast. The last three Jazzland/Blue Note sessions sold out way in advance. This one will do for sure as it's the last Blue Note related Jazzland show for the time being. Do not miss it.

This is a seated show. Table bookings as usual from the Brudenell Seetickets account (direct ticket link here) - 4, 3, 2  person tables.