Home » Jazz Articles » Play This! » James Brandon Lewis' Red Lily Quintet: Sparrow

James Brandon Lewis' Red Lily Quintet: Sparrow

By Chris May
February 9, 2024
View read count

Here is the opening track from James Brandon Lewis' Red Lily Quintet's For Mahalia, With Love (TAO Forms, 2023), a celebration of the music of

Mahalia Jackson

vocals
1911 - 1972

" data-original-title="" title="">Mahalia Jackson, remaining true to its original essence but framing it in a jazz context. Not since

Oded Tzur

saxophone, tenor

" data-original-title="" title="">Oded Tzur's Isabela (ECM, 2022) has such an exalted tenor saxophone-led album come along. Is that

" data-original-title="" title="">Albert Ayler on the tenor, and brother Donald on the cornet? No, but having been summoned, the Aylers stay close to hand, prompting further questions... Is this where

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane,

Pharoah Sanders

saxophone, tenor
1940 - 2022

" data-original-title="" title="">Pharoah Sanders and Ayler started? Or where they left off? Lewis offers some answers with the help of

Kirk Knuffke

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Kirk Knuffke (cornet),

Chris Hoffman

cello

" data-original-title="" title="">Chris Hoffman (cello),

William Parker

bass
b.1952

" data-original-title="" title="">William Parker (bass) and

Chad Taylor

drums
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Chad Taylor (drums).

Contact Chris May on All About Jazz.
Chris May is a senior editor of All About Jazz. He was previously the editor of the pioneering magazine Black Music & Jazz Review, and more recently editor of the style / culture / history magazine Jocks & Nerds.

Contribute to Play This! Recommend a favorite song, album, or performance and we'll share it with your fellow All About Jazz readers. Submit it here.

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Unconditional
< Previous

Soul?-?Jazz Reflections
Next >

James Brandon Lewis Concerts

Sep 27 Sat

Ingardens Festival

First Street Green Cultural Park
New York, NY

Sep 28 Sun

Ingardens Festival

First Street Green Cultural Park
New York, NY

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.