Mar 24

Mar 24 Eric Alexander

Today, tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander closed out his four-night engagement at Chicago’s famed Jazz Showcase. I stopped by for the Sunday matinee. Joining Alexander on the bandstand were Mike Ledonne (piano), George Fludas (drums), and Dennis Carroll (bass). Together, the four musicians played an enjoyable 90-minute set, each one exhibiting technical virtuosity.

No new ground was plowed, but on a grey day in March, there is nothing like some good old-fashioned home cooking. Apparently, many other jazz aficionados agreed with me. Although not sold out, the Showcase was filled to near capacity.

The group played five or six numbers, one being the Girl from Ipanema and another was an unidentified Charlie Parker number. I now use the Shazam app to help me identify song titles, but apparently Shazam doesn’t handle bebop or improvisation well. It may be surprising that I didn’t know the Parker number, but as blasphemous as it might be, I never was a fan (and not because he played too many notes).

After the set, one Jazz Showcase denizen turned to me, expressing his immense satisfaction with the performance. This was the music that had held him in a decades-long embrace: Bebop, plain and simple. Charlie Parker, Dexter Gordon, Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt, and a host of others. No nonsense.

Mid set, Alexander took a moment to acknowledge pianist Harold Mabern, who died in 2019. The two frequently worked together, including performing at the Jazz Showcase. While lauding Mabern, Alexander pointed out that Mabern would be pleased that his ‘replacement’ was Mike Ledonne. I can’t disagree.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]