Joe Lovano ~ Saxophonist & Composer

My dad, Tony “Big T” Lovano, had just passed when I recorded this, so I included a couple of tributes to him, including T Was to Me, which I performed on saxophone and gong.

It was based on a poem my friend Ronald Hudson Smith wrote about my dad. I read the poem, like Trane did on A Love Supreme.

Dewey was written for both Miles Dewey Davis, and Dewey Redman. The first four bars are reminiscent of a phrase that reminded me of both of those cats.

Tom and I were in Mel’s band in the early 80s, and like my other dates, I wrote the compostions with the players in mind.

" By 1988, it was becoming increasingly obvious that tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano was on his way to becoming a major… read more" " By 1988, it was becoming increasingly obvious that tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano was on his way to becoming a major name in the jazz world. For this advanced hard bop set, he contributed all of the selections other than Charles Mingus’ “Duke Ellington’s Sound of Love,” including a tribute to his father, tenorman Tony “Big T” Lovano. Teamed with trumpeter Tom Harrell, pianist Kenny Werner, bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Paul Motian, Lovano is heard throughout in his early prime, playing inventive and generally concise improvisations that were beginning to become distinctive." Scott Yanow, All Music Guide