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Roberto Magris: Sam Reed Meets Roberto Magris: Ready for Reed

By C. Michael Bailey
August 31, 2013
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Roberto Magris: Sam Reed Meets Roberto Magris: Ready for Reed

Italian pianist Roberto Magris has become the hard bop keeper-of-the- flame with recent J-Mood releases including Mating Call (2010), Morgan Rewind: A Tribute to Lee Morgan Vol. 1 (2012) and One Night in With Hope and More...Vol. 1 (2012), volume designations making clear there is more to come. On Sam Reed Meets Roberto Magris: Ready For Reed, Magris reintroduces Philadelphia saxophonist

Sam Reed

saxophone
1935 - 2021

" data-original-title="" title="">Sam Reed, who, after a lifetime in music, took some time off but was ultimately rediscovered.

What Reed gets in the bargain is late-life exposure like that enjoyed by alto saxophonists

Art Pepper

saxophone, alto
1925 - 1982

" data-original-title="" title="">Art Pepper (1925- 1982) and

Frank Morgan

saxophone, alto
1933 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Frank Morgan (1933-2007). Magris, for his part, extends his foray into hard bop with a bona fide veteran of the period. The union of the pair on Ready for Reed is not the standard "blowing session" of the 1950s, but instead a cogent and integrated paradigm of musical ideas expressed as such. This music does not have the hot New York City sound of period Jazz Messengers; it is more like the Philadelphia sound of

Bobby Timmons

piano
1935 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Bobby Timmons and the Heath brothers, with whom Reed performed.

Out of the chute, Magris plays Hammond B3 on two songs,

Gene Ammons

saxophone, tenor
1925 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Gene Ammons "Jungle Strut" and the original blues, "Ready for Reed." Neither are

Jimmy Smith

organ, Hammond B3
1925 - 2005

" data-original-title="" title="">Jimmy Smith greasefests, but they are funky to the toes. On "Jungle Strut," Reed shares saxophone duty with tenor saxophonist

Steve Lambert

trumpet
b.1979

" data-original-title="" title="">Steve Lambert. It is a nominal blues, propelled by a Caribbean cross-beat. Magris' title piece smells more of unfiltered Lucky Strikes and beer, but is still a pretty healthy affair, where Reed really show off his blues chops. On the remainder of the recording, Magris presents his contemporary and informed pianism, which acts as a spark for Reed to push beyond any limitations of health and age into that rarefied plane of creativity where all things are new.

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Track Listing

Jungle Strut; The Swagger; Love You Madly; Paris Blues Revisited; Quasimodo; I Married An Angel; Ready For Reed; Sweet Jenny Lou; Be My Love; Stopstart.

Personnel

Roberto Magris

piano

Sam Reed

saxophone

Kendall Moore

trombone

Steven Lambert

saxophone

Brian Steever

drums

Pablo Sanhueza

congas

Album information

Title: Sam Reed Meets Roberto Magris: Ready for Reed | Year Released: 2013 | Record Label: J-Mood Records

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