Giant Steps

Today's program was a celebration of the birthdays of 4 modern jazz musicians:
Wayne Shorter (born 8/25/33), Branford Marsalis (8/26/60), Alice Coltrane (8/27/37), and Sonny Sharrock (8/27/40).

Shorter surfaced on tenor sax in the late 50's/early 60's with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers before becoming a leader in his own right, producing many fine albums for Blue Note in the 60's. During the 60's he was also an integral part of the great Miles Davis Quintet, composing many of the group's songs. In the 1970's he switched to soprano sax and formed the ground-breaking fusion group Weather Report. He continues to be active today.

Marsalis is part of the famous musical family from New Orleans. Like Shorter, he plays tenor and soprano sax, and acknowledges the influence of John Coltrane.

Alice Coltrane is John's widow. She played piano with various groups before joining John's group in 1966. She produced several beautiful and significant albums for the Impulse label after John's death in 1967, but has stopped recording in recent years.

Sharrock was a dynamic electric guitarist who died in 1994. He surfaced with Pharoah Sanders in the 60's, performed with various groups in the 70's and 80's, and had a breakthrough with Ask the Ages in 1991, a masterpiece with Sanders, Elvin Jones, and Charnett Moffett.

Artist-Song-Album-Label-Date

• Wayne Shorter-Ponta De Areia-Native Dancer-Columbia-9/12/74

• McCoy Tyner-Message From the Nile-Extensions-Blue Note-2/9/70
• Sonny Sharrock-Who Does She Hope To Be?-Ask the Ages-Axiom-1991
• Alice Coltrane-Gospel Trane-A Monastic Trio-Impulse-6/6/68

• Branford Marsalis-Just One of Those Things-Renaissance-Columbia-1/26/87
• Wayne Shorter-Speak No Evil-Speak No Evil-Blue Note-12/24/64
• Miles Davis-Footprints-Miles Smiles-Columbia-10/24/66

• Branford Marsalis-Solstice-Summer In the City-Columbia-1983
• Weather Report-Manolete-Sweetnighter-Columbia-2/3/73
• Sonny Sharrock-My Song-Seize the Rainbow-Enemy-5/87

• Alice Coltrane-Ptah the El Daoud-Ptah the El Daoud-Impulse-1/26/70
• Sonny Sharrock-As We Used to Sing-Ask the Ages-Axiom-1991

• Wayne Shorter-Chief Crazy Horse-Adam's Apple-Blue Note-2/24/66
• Branford Marsalis-Crescent City-Random Abstract-Columbia-8/12/87
• Alice Coltrane-Lord Help Me to Be-Cosmic Music-Impulse-1/29/68
• Sonny Sharrock-Many Mansions-Ask the Ages-Axiom-1991

• Wayne Shorter-Montezuma-Moto Grosso Feio-Blue Note-8/26/70
• McCoy Tyner-Survival Blues-Extensions-Blue Note-2/9/70

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