I love the simplicity of his phrasing...he doesn't come across as playing just to hear himself play; he's telling a story and I personally didn't get bored listening to him.
Dexter at the top of his form .. Total command of the instrument and the changes .. A rythmic and harmonic and melodic genius ... The kind of jazz player you could listen to all night and never get tired of ..
Yes he was at the top of his game. These were The Blue Note years. Those were his best recordings - EVER ! Plus, after a disasterous 1950s, Dex was getting his life back in order.
@@Lightningslick i find this comment interesting! I dont know if I’m in the minority here, but I freakin love his late 70s stuff!! I think his tone in the Swiss nights recordings is just so beautiful.
A lot of otherwise great musicians have problems with constructing solos that stretch out over multiple choruses without falling into some stretches of auto pilot for a few bars somewhere. Not Dexter! Not ever. I have never heard him lapse into noodling or cliches for even a minute no matter what the tune or how long he plays.He puts weight on every note and his solos are some of the consistently best constructed ones in the canon. They go on and on and build to multiple climaxes and tension - releases so that their very length becomes thrilling - he NEVER sounds like hes playing too long as some others sonetimes do. One of the great storytellers
YOU GIVEan excellent comment and this observation suits each great performer in the jazz field of bop hard bop era whatever the instrument they play : perfect time and high tension MELODIC lines across the most subtle construction . It's exactly the same way when I hear guitar player WES MONTGOMERY . Those cats are timeless references , wonderful and precious teachers .
True, but Dexter had a weakness for quotes: Swinging on a Star and La Marceillaise on the bridge of Rhythm changes, etc. One can almost distinguish Dexter from early Coltrane on the basis of quotes.
I can remember lying flat on my back in my college dorm room, around 1974, and reading an ad in ROLLING STONE for a new AMERICAN LP by Gordon (and remember this was over ten years before his Oscar-nominated performance in " 'Round Midnight"), which had, as it's blurb: "Between Charlie Parker and John Coltrane, there was Dexter Gordon: There still IS Dexter Gordon." This performance is a beautiful illustration of the truth of that blurb.
Wow ! I have been digging Jazz for a few decades now and I just heard one of the best solos in Jazz history. The beauty and surprises in his phrasing and the flow of his rhythms with his warm , impeccable tone are a gift to humanity. I had to hit rewind for this.
You have no idea how many times I've played this video ever since I dicovered it. Impeccable phrasing and just pure Dexter. I'm glad I memorized most of this solo, it shall forever be in my vocabulary!
Wooww .. with no doubt one of the best solos EVER . He is got so much energy , talent , a wonderful tenor tone like no one else has , his frases with so much sense and powerful , an unbelievable swing , and what not ! , a real MASTER , God bless Dexter wherever he is at .
@@magentuspriest Well said...kinda. There's being reckless in jazz like playing the complete wrong changes over songs or "vibing" at jam sessions. But I do understand what you're saying. Jazz is a very laid back art
@@magentuspriest I know this is a year old comment but really? Ever heard anybody wax poetic "it's about the notes they DON'T play!" Even if that's some cornball shit it's true. An undisciplined musician is an amateur one, and an amateur listener is one who can't hear restraint.
tenés que sonar como Isidro Santa Maria y nadie más, sino no tiene gracia que toques el saxo. Sonny Rollins sabía esto, por eso a pesar de que casi todos le decían lo bueno que era, él sabía que tenía que encontrarse a si mismo, por eso hizo varios retiros
Yeah, I used to have the problem of lifting my fingers way off the keys. Especially when I was playing a really fast solo (e.g. Time Check) My band teacher called me "happy fingers" Got rid of that habit in college.
One of the best licks I've ever found. I first came upon this in my high school jazz band's repertoire book and its stayed with me ever since just because of how unique and punchy it is.
The bridge at 4:20 evokes a kind of luminosity that is so epic and unique in jazz of this era. It's as if everything in the song prior was leading up to this major point. This aumented horror arpeggio: It's horribly terrible and terrific at the same time. It marks a kind of ascention and holds a sense of completeness. I can't describe it in any other way.
This is just one fabulous solo. I cannot believe how good he is on this tune. He goes from the very top of the horn, to the bottom, just so effortlessly. If you play the sax, you know how difficult this is, and to sound anywhere close to this.
Dexter's solo on this take is so chock-full of amazing melodic content, it's so much better than any other take (even of his) on Lady Bird. It's head and shoulders above the album version for example. Does anyone have any background info on this performance? Why is it so perfect? Was this rehearsed a lot, the end of a tour, or was it just an alignment of the stars ?
Isn't that "the European Rhythm Machine" that was Phil Wood's regularly working group for a number of years? If so, that would explain it. There's nothing like a regularly working rhythm section ( piano, bass, drums ) backing up a solid frontline player to make the music sound great.
Was watching "Collateral" and heard Tom Cruises character Vincent mention this man Dexter Morgan as a west coast jazz great who played a jazz club in Lamerk Park.
What a wonderful story Dexter spins here; the way he develops his improvisation with such rich thematic logic and unstoppable drive. He is much missed and will be for many more years to come.
My Saxophone teacher sent me here. I can learn so much from this video alone! I'm currently learning the low B flat and watching the way Dexter Gordon changes his embouchure to reach the low note, the camera man knew where to film.
@myfakegoldchain1404 Thanks for your reply, but I'm not "still here." I'm embarrassed to say this is new to me. I'm 69 now and never had a phone until a year ago. My main exposure to Gordon and jazz over the years was listening to the radio on Saturday nights (Tulsa University; 89.5). Now I'm hearing stuff like this for the first time. Forgive me for rambling, but if I've never heard some music before, then it's new to me. And that's what counts. I'm glad to be in your company.
I had the great pleasure of watching him perform many times here in George Jazzcafe in Arnhem. As mentioned here before there was no freewheeling with but he was probably always looking head for the next phrase. A giant!
In summer of 1975 I was lucky to catch Dexter, and Niels Pedersen playing double sets 1 night at Montmartre Jazzhaus in Copenhagen. The next day, I boarded a train to catch the last day at Montreux to catch 2 more greats, Bill Evans, and Mingus, but the highlight was when Gerry "Dream a Little Dream" Mulligan came on for the last hour to Jam with Mingus and his changes band! The summer of 1975 will be 1 of the highlights of my life!
I am (or was) a tenor player and there are lots of players, past and present that I find compelling. That said, to me this IS what jazz tenor was and is meant to be. This isn't something that can be taught nor can be "analyzed" without also fundamentally cheapening it. I don't hear him trying to DO anything. The tremendous chops of Dexter and his rhythm section are forgotten and you are left with something that simply IS. Something that defies description.
When Dexter came home from Europe I went to see him at the Village Gate in NY C I made the Blunder of taking a date I was so blown away by Dex I forgot about the young lady I came with. The horn kept callin me .
I listened that his homecoming show at the Vanguard, live, on WRVR. If my memory serves me, correctly, the opening tune was “Moment’s Notice”, but it’s not on the album. Of course, if my memory really does serve me correctly, there’s a legendary reason for that omission! The Grenwich Village Jazz scene of the 70’s was my moment, tho’ I never took a girl or young-woman to a Jazz club; even at 16 - 19 years-old, I knew better than to even consider that.
anybody just starting jazz ( especially coming from another genre ) this footage of Dexter's lips is the most useful thing you'll find to improve your sound. Try to imitate Dexter's lips than try experimenting with rolling your lower lips a bit in/out, listen to the effect on the sound and develop your own embouchure for your playing style!
It matters not the quantity of viewers, but the quality of the people who listen. If precious gems were easy to find, they would have no value. Be grateful that you are part of the few elitist enthusiasts whose ears have been graced with the notes of this divine music.
Amen brother! I rave about this solo to my wife and friends and they look at me like “what’s the big deal?” I don’t understand how anyone can’t see the other worldly beauty of this music?
Tops the list of my favorite musicians. I've been listening to his solos for 40+ years and never get tired of them. I always come away amazed at his inventiveness, his amazing runs, rhythmic and melodic inventions, every note and space has a purpose. He can go on chorus after chorus and never repeat himself. My only complaint with this amazing performance is that it is far too brief! There will never be another Dexter!
I keep coming back to listening to this record, I'm almost addicted to it. Dexter Gordon got his story to tell, there's no bullshitting going on here. Incredible musicians.
davvero bello ascoltare come suona Dexter. il modo in cui modifica la melodia lungo il solo.... magari non è temerario come alcuni suoi colleghi, specie a livello armonico, però figa se suona bene. in certi pezzi sembra divino, per via del suo gusto, e delle sue emozioni: il cd ballads mi riempie il cuore tutte le volte. ti racconta le storie... da notare le dita che nn si staccano mai dai tasti del sax per nn perdere velocità
You know what? While I believe it is sad that this type of video doesn't get the recognition it deserves, I am very happy that the tight-knit community that loves this stuff is so dedicated. We are truly an exclusive group - not everyone is into this. Dexter or any of the other great players never played FOR their audience, they played TO their audience for themselves. They weren't entertainers, they were artists. I am proud to be in a community with people like you who appreciate this art.
I have always loved Dexter Gordon's playing! The connective tissue between melodic ideas dancing on his inventive harmonic substitutions is fathomless. Truly a great artist for the ages!!!
He was so great ,the giant Creolean ! I had the privilege , to see him live ! A time ago , I found his older playing , in the " L. Young / C . Hawkins Style . Absolute amazing , in that early years ! I have loved him with Wardell Grey - from whom I learnt one Solo ! How sad , that he was a lonely man in the end !
Dexter was in great form and at his best in the '60s. It just doesn't get better than this. Also, it's strange that over 100 listeners gave this super performance thumbs down. I say that if you don't like this then you just plain don't like jazz. And that's okay but what are you doing listening to a perfect sample of jazz and then giving it a thumbs down?
A firework of musical ideas and everything comes so seemingly effortlessly. You think this man just took up the horn and started telling his stories by means of that saxophone - never having to bother with practicing scales and other strenuous preparations. Great great great !
I love this solo. It sounds so relaxed - it is only when I tried to play it myself that I realised how fast it is. So hard to play along at the original tempo. We really get to see his embouchure and fingering on this video. Does anyone know what he's doing when moving his jaw backwards, which happens often? I'd have guessed it's to play low or soft notes, but I don't see that correlation.
Et d'où sont sortis ces enregistrements qu'on ne les avaient jamais vus avant? Penser que Dexter était à Bruxelles avant moi, je veux dire que je n'y naisse... J'aurais tellement aimé être là. En tout cas merci beaucoup pour ce fabuleux cadeau.
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