Jerome Sabbagh North CD

Reviews'The willfully lyrical tenor saxophonist Jerome Sabbagh is the rarest of rare birds: a young tenor saxophonist with a distinctive concept, dependent not so much on his elders for inspiration as his own imagination.

' (Chris Kelsey, JazzTimes)"Mr. Sabbagh played with untroubled self-assurance, and his songs had a sleek and sturdy appeal. Just as crucially, his colleagues strove for the unexpected, individually and as an ensemble. [...] Mr. Sabbagh avoided direct allusions to the saxophone totems. What he is working toward, simply and effectively, is a sincerely personal vocabulary." (Nate Chinen, New York Times)"One of the most skilled young tenor saxophonists around, Sabbagh's got a tune called "Sick Leo" that breaks away from the Wayne Shorter archetype so many horn players fall into. A slow saunter of a tune, it not only turns your head, but gives guitarist Ben Monder a chance to get his freak on." (Jim Macnie, Village Voice)"A startlingly good young jazz musician [...] Sabbagh chooses notes judiciously and swings firmly. And Sabbagh and "North" grow stronger and deeper with each listening." (Marc Meyers, All About Jazz)"Yet another in the long line of auspicious debuts from Fresh Sound New Talent artists, this one stands out even from what is becoming that label's 'usual' exceptional standard." (Phil DiPietro, All About Jazz)About the Jerome Sabbagh QuartetThe Jerome Sabbagh Quartet plays modern, organic music that can appeal to listeners beyond the traditional jazz audience as well as regular jazz fans. Based in New York City, it has been signed by Fresh Sound New Talent, the label that has introduced many new leading jazz artists, such as Brad Mehldau, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Chris Cheek, Ethan Iverson, Reid Anderson, Robert Glasper and Marcus Strickland. Jerome Sabbagh has recently released his first album for Fresh Sound, "North".

While he considers himself a jazz musician and is very much attached to improvising, Jerome has grown increasingly influenced by many types of music. This breadth of influences is evident in all original tracks assembled on "North". While the overall sound of the band remains distinct and cohesive, each track brings up a different mood.

In Ben Monder (guitar), Joe Martin (bass) and Ted Poor (drums), Jerome Sabbagh has found some of the most talented musicians of this generation and like-minded accomplices. Ben Monder plays 'nearly unsurpassable jazz guitar' (Ben Ratliff, New York Times) and has performed with a variety of artists, including Lee Konitz, Paul Motian, Tim Berne and Jack McDuff. He has appeared in over seventy CDs as a sideman and has three as a leader. Known for his warm sound, facile ear, and harmonic flexibility, bassist Joe Martin has performed with a wide variety of artists, which includes Kurt Rosenwinkel, Andy Bey, Mark Turner and Art Farmer. Ted Poor, while only 22 years old, has an uncanny ability to shape the music and a refreshingly unique, organic approach to playing the drums. He plays in the Ben Monder quartet, the Cuong Vu trio and with Chris Potter.

Personnel: Jerome Sabbagh (tenor saxophone); Ben Monder (guitar); Joe Martin (bass instrument); Ted Poor (drums).

Down Beat (p.72) - 3 stars out of 5 - "The guitarist's textures and serpentine lines are frequently bold compared to Sabbagh's thoughtful explications of his well hooked, but mostly polite themes."

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