Jazz Hot “en V.O.”

By Jean Szlamowicz

Born August 12th 1958 in Bryn Mawr (Penn), Jed Levy has been a very discreet but nonetheless interesting saxophonist. He has played in many different contexts and his playing draws as much on the music of Joe Henderson as that of Ben Webster or Warne Marsh. A very rich musical biography features collaborations with Jaki Byard, Jack McDuff, Don Patterson, Cedar Walton, Tom Harrell, Peter Leitch, Arturo O’Farrill, John Hicks, Ron McClure, Billy Hart, Rufus Reid... Tempted by abstract modernism as well as hard-core tradition, he displays a fluent sensitivity and comes out as a somewhat elusive but consistently attractive personality with a real musical purpose.

Jazz Hot : What was your family like?
Jed Levy : My father was in the air force so we moved around a lot and we lived in Austin, Texas, Washington D.C. and eventually Martinsville (NJ), so I’m basically a New-Yorker. Neither of my parents are in music but both my brother and I are professional musicians, Todd is the principal clarinettist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. My folks were very good at exposing us to a lot of different kinds of music. My mother was an artist and it kind of helped. I had some Jewish Saturday school but it didn’t last very long because my family were not religious at all. I didn’t even get as far as bar-mitsva! (laughs)

How did you discover jazz? Who were your first influences?
At the time I was coming up in New Jersey, it was not an easy thing to do although they had a kind of stage band that I started in 5th grade. But this was the mid-70’s and there wasn’t much jazz around, the root music I mean. Eventually I think I just discovered Miles Davis and I got to listen to everybody that played with him, Cannonball Adderley, Coltrane, Bill Evans... I had some private lessons, I played guitar because I was listening to rock and roll. Then I started to get serious, working gigs when I was 13. One person that was very influential was Paul Jeffrey. I met him at a clinic and started taking lessons with him. Then I went to New England Conservatory and my second big influence was Jaki Byard. I started playing with him every week in a club and I made my first records with him for Soul Note and a Japanese label. Jaki Byard is old and new at the same time. His music led me to Ellington’s music and to older styles. I discovered it was possible to play in the tradition, or in many traditions and still play with your own voice. He could play like anybody but he had his own vocabulary. It was great to be around such a complete genius.

What was it like at the New England Conservatory?
We were being exposed to many different things at the conservatory. There was the International Composers’ Meeting were all this new music was promoted. It wasn’t jazz, it was European concert music or whatever you want to call it but I got to hear a lot of that. George Russell was there, Jimmy Giuffre, Miroslav Vitous I got to play with. And there was Joe Allard, a very famous classical teacher-he was not a jazz musician but he influenced a lot of people as far as the mechanics of the saxophone is concerned. He taught Eric Dolphy, Mike Brecker, Eddie Daniels... even Coltrane came a couple of times to his studio with Dolphy.
The fundamentals of music are all the same. To play jazz, one has to look at things in a compositional way, in a theoretical way and also in a more soulful way, blues way. But you have to know your instrument-it’s like an artist’s palette so the more colors you can put on your palette the more detailed you can be in your painting. That’s what I learnt at the conservatory. It’s just a means to an end. And the end for me should be really to tell a story, that’s what I strive for. Saxophone is an instrument where great technical advances have been made but it shouldn’t be the paragon that one displays as a saxophone player. I think I’ve grown up enough to realize that concept.

Who are your reference points?
I think I’ve listened to everybody-I have hundreds of thousands of records. My favourites change from period to period. Right now I listen to a lot of Ben Webster, Lucky Thompson, Frank Strozier, Paul Gonsalvez, Coleman Hawkins... I don’t sit there and try to learn every note, I just let it wash into me and absorb the feeling of their music. I was lucky that I got to play contexts where those sounds were usable. In a lot of the music today, you don’t get to play that. But you should check out everything, from Ben Webster to Chostakovitch’s string quartets.

Have you always tried to develop as a leader?
I’ve always written music. Although business-wise, recognition-wise and even self-confidence wise, I wasn’t thinking «I need to be a leader». But writing music and seeing what the result was when played by good musicians led me to front bands. After Jaki Byard, I moved to New York and I worked with Jack McDuff, I was on the road with him for a while. That led to other organ gigs, I spent a year with Don Patterson who was one of the most wonderful musicians I’ve ever played with, he was a beautiful cat, John Swana was in the band. I played a lot with Lonnie Smith during that period. I played a lot with Jack Walrath, Mike Clark, Josh Roseman, Paul Jackson-I wrote some music for the new Headhunters records.

Tell us more about the spirit of the organ combos...
It was great. With Jack McDuff, it was all about playing the blues-understanding and feeling the blues. Don’s approach was wider and looser, it was more like a bebop band. We had a vibe right away, even before we played together. He made me feel so comfortable and welcome on the bandstand. He would do anything he could to make you sound your best. for anybody who’s seriously interested in jazz organ, he’s really at the top of the list. Lonnie Smith was really taking things elsewhere with multiple keyboards and it was gorgeous.

What’s your personal approach as a leader?
I’m trying to internalize everything that I’ve had the opportunity to play and be around and allow to ferment in me then what comes out comes out. On Round and Round, there’s certainly an Afro-Cuban influence, Brazilian because I’ve been playing with those guys. It’s certainly in the tradition but also with a feeling that it’s in real time and it’s about what’s happening right now.

How do you account for jazz being sidetracked from its own circuit?
It has to do with the people who run the festivals. They’re trying to keep people interested-these are large audiences who might relate to other styles than jazz. But pop acts in the 60’s that were so influenced by jazz no longer can sell the numbers that a pop act is supposed to require today and they don’t belong in a jazz festival. I like that things are eclectic. It’s always hard to say that this is jazz or not. For instance, I wouldn’t say that Dr. John is jazz although I like his music and it comes from the same cauldron as jazz. But also I think that many people who play in the mainstream style have not taken the time to build a personal music in a lot of cases. They are wonderful musicians, their craft is fantastic but maybe the audience already has Freddie Hubbard’s records. Try and understand what I’m saying-it’s a very complicated issue for musicians, promoters and for the audience. Everybody should dig deep in themselves and look for a personal presentation-whatever they’re coming up with an people will like it or not.

What’s good music like for you?
I like music that has a feeling, that makes my body feel good, that’s a personal statement, that I can tell is a sincere statement. When I hear someone like Arthur Blythe- I don’t aspire to playing like that but I love listening to him because it’s real art. It’s pure. It’s him. The same goes for Ben Webster-when he plays a melody, that’s all you need to hear. Nobody has said it more eloquently than he has. It comes from his heart. Forget it, it erases everything, it’s so profound!


Jed LEVY (Jazz Hot 619) By Jean Szlamowicz Born August 12th 1958 in Bryn Mawr (Penn), Jed Levy has been a very discreet but nonetheless interesting saxophonist. He has played in many different contexts and his playing draws as much on the music of Joe Henderson as that of Ben Webster or Warne Marsh. A very rich musical biography features collaborations with Jaki Byard, Jack McDuff, Don Patterson, Cedar Walton, Tom Harrell, Peter Leitch, Arturo O’Farrill, John Hicks, Ron McClure, Billy Hart, Rufus Reid... Tempted by abstract modernism as well as hard-core tradition, he displays a fluent sensitivity and comes out as a somewhat elusive but consistently attractive personality with a real musical purpose. Jazz Hot : What was your family like? Jed Levy : My father was in the air force so we moved around a lot and we lived in Austin, Texas, Washington D.C. and eventually Martinsville (NJ), so I’m basically a New-Yorker. Neither of my parents are in music but both my brother and I are professional musicians, Todd is the principal clarinettist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. My folks were very good at exposing us to a lot of different kinds of music. My mother was an artist and it kind of helped. I had some Jewish Saturday school but it didn’t last very long because my family were not religious at all. I didn’t even get as far as bar-mitsva! (laughs) How did you discover jazz? Who were your first influences? At the time I was coming up in New Jersey, it was not an easy thing to do although they had a kind of stage band that I started in 5th grade. But this was the mid-70’s and there wasn’t much jazz around, the root music I mean. Eventually I think I just discovered Miles Davis and I got to listen to everybody that played with him, Cannonball Adderley, Coltrane, Bill Evans... I had some private lessons, I played guitar because I was listening to rock and roll. Then I started to get serious, working gigs when I was 13. One person that was very influential was Paul Jeffrey. I met him at a clinic and started taking lessons with him. Then I went to New England Conservatory and my second big influence was Jaki Byard. I started playing with him every week in a club and I made my first records with him for Soul Note and a Japanese label. Jaki Byard is old and new at the same time. His music led me to Ellington’s music and to older styles. I discovered it was possible to play in the tradition, or in many traditions and still play with your own voice. He could play like anybody but he had his own vocabulary. It was great to be around such a complete genius. What was it like at the New England Conservatory? We were being exposed to many different things at the conservatory. There was the International Composers’ Meeting were all this new music was promoted. It wasn’t jazz, it was European concert music or whatever you want to call it but I got to hear a lot of that. George Russell was there, Jimmy Giuffre, Miroslav Vitous I got to play with. And there was Joe Allard, a very famous classical teacher-he was not a jazz musician but he influenced a lot of people as far as the mechanics of the saxophone is concerned. He taught Eric Dolphy, Mike Brecker, Eddie Daniels... even Coltrane came a couple of times to his studio with Dolphy. The fundamentals of music are all the same. To play jazz, one has to look at things in a compositional way, in a theoretical way and also in a more soulful way, blues way. But you have to know your instrument-it’s like an artist’s palette so the more colors you can put on your palette the more detailed you can be in your painting. That’s what I learnt at the conservatory. It’s just a means to an end. And the end for me should be really to tell a story, that’s what I strive for. Saxophone is an instrument where great technical advances have been made but it shouldn’t be the paragon that one displays as a saxophone player. I think I’ve grown up enough to realize that concept. Who are your reference points? I think I’ve listened to everybody-I have hundreds of thousands of records. My favourites change from period to period. Right now I listen to a lot of Ben Webster, Lucky Thompson, Frank Strozier, Paul Gonsalvez, Coleman Hawkins... I don’t sit there and try to learn every note, I just let it wash into me and absorb the feeling of their music. I was lucky that I got to play contexts where those sounds were usable. In a lot of the music today, you don’t get to play that. But you should check out everything, from Ben Webster to Chostakovitch’s string quartets. Have you always tried to develop as a leader? I’ve always written music. Although business-wise, recognition-wise and even self-confidence wise, I wasn’t thinking «I need to be a leader». But writing music and seeing what the result was when played by good musicians led me to front bands. After Jaki Byard, I moved to New York and I worked with Jack McDuff, I was on the road with him for a while. That led to other organ gigs, I spent a year with Don Patterson who was one of the most wonderful musicians I’ve ever played with, he was a beautiful cat, John Swana was in the band. I played a lot with Lonnie Smith during that period. I played a lot with Jack Walrath, Mike Clark, Josh Roseman, Paul Jackson-I wrote some music for the new Headhunters records. Tell us more about the spirit of the organ combos... It was great. With Jack McDuff, it was all about playing the blues-understanding and feeling the blues. Don’s approach was wider and looser, it was more like a bebop band. We had a vibe right away, even before we played together. He made me feel so comfortable and welcome on the bandstand. He would do anything he could to make you sound your best. for anybody who’s seriously interested in jazz organ, he’s really at the top of the list. Lonnie Smith was really taking things elsewhere with multiple keyboards and it was gorgeous. What’s your personal approach as a leader? I’m trying to internalize everything that I’ve had the opportunity to play and be around and allow to ferment in me then what comes out comes out. On Round and Round, there’s certainly an Afro-Cuban influence, Brazilian because I’ve been playing with those guys. It’s certainly in the tradition but also with a feeling that it’s in real time and it’s about what’s happening right now. How do you account for jazz being sidetracked from its own circuit? It has to do with the people who run the festivals. They’re trying to keep people interested-these are large audiences who might relate to other styles than jazz. But pop acts in the 60’s that were so influenced by jazz no longer can sell the numbers that a pop act is supposed to require today and they don’t belong in a jazz festival. I like that things are eclectic. It’s always hard to say that this is jazz or not. For instance, I wouldn’t say that Dr. John is jazz although I like his music and it comes from the same cauldron as jazz. But also I think that many people who play in the mainstream style have not taken the time to build a personal music in a lot of cases. They are wonderful musicians, their craft is fantastic but maybe the audience already has Freddie Hubbard’s records. Try and understand what I’m saying-it’s a very complicated issue for musicians, promoters and for the audience. Everybody should dig deep in themselves and look for a personal presentation-whatever they’re coming up with an people will like it or not. What’s good music like for you? I like music that has a feeling, that makes my body feel good, that’s a personal statement, that I can tell is a sincere statement. When I hear someone like Arthur Blythe- I don’t aspire to playing like that but I love listening to him because it’s real art. It’s pure. It’s him. The same goes for Ben Webster-when he plays a melody, that’s all you need to hear. Nobody has said it more eloquently than he has. It comes from his heart. Forget it, it erases everything, it’s so profound!