The new album by saxophonist Don Braden and bassist Joris Teepe is called Conversations — as good a title as any to describe the results, both musical and colloquial, of their visit to Morning Jazz. They came with drummer Steve Johns, played a few tunes, and spoke with Gary Walker about the origins of the new record.
Conversations, which was released in May, features two drummers, Gene Jackson and Matt Wilson. For their album-release gig, Wednesday night at the Zinc Bar, Braden and Teepe will enlist drummer Jeremy Warren.
One of the tunes Braden and Teepe played in our studio, with Johns on drums, was "The Chicken," which Pee Wee Ellis wrote for James Brown. (It later had a robust second life in the hands of Jaco Pastorius.)
Here is a video of the performance, which skews more slinky than funky, but with no shortage of soul.
