Original image by There Stands the Glass.
The extended quarantine, along with the savage relentlessness of time, enhances my appreciation of past experiences. While it didn’t seem significant 20 years ago, I’m immensely gratified I had the foresight to catch a set led by the esteemed saxophonist Kidd Jordan at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2001. And joining an audience of a few dozen for a set by the Brian Blade Fellowship during the Kansas City Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2017 now seems like an impossibly glorious dream.
Jordan, 85, didn’t participate in the recording of The Bond, the new album led by his band Dopolarians. And following the passing of the eminent drummer Alvin Fielder, Jr. in 2019, Blade joined saxophonist Chad Fowler, trumpeter Marc Franklin, pianist Christopher Parker, bassist William Parker and vocalist Kelley Hurt for the deeply spiritual free jazz date.
Blade and Parker are renowned masters, but their lesser known band mates in the latest version of Dopolarians are worthy collaborators. Unlike similar recordings in which free-form vocalizing is a distracting hindrance, Hurt’s contributions enhance the sacrosanct tone. The six culturally cognizant musicians strive for- and repeatedly attain- spiritual epiphanies. There’s almost no chance Dopolarians will ever make an appearance in Kansas City, but I’m confident the stars will align to provide me with another unforgettable experience in a more hospitable environment.
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I catch up with three Mike Dillon albums at Plastic Sax.