Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Charged Particles: Live at the Baked Potato!

Charged Particles: Live at the Baked Potato!

By Mark Sullivan
April 17, 2022
View read count

Charged Particles: Live at the Baked Potato!

The late tenor saxophonist

Michael Brecker

saxophone, tenor
1949 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Michael Brecker was held in the highest regard by fellow saxophonists, while at the same time being seen as far too eclectic to be part of the jazz pantheon (due in no small part to his sideman work in rock and pop). This album focuses on Brecker as composer, spanning three decades of his work, and honoring his performance practice as well. There was no attempt to recreate his legendary chops, but the group was careful to retain the spirit of the original recordings.

Charged Particles

band / ensemble / orchestra

" data-original-title="" title="">Charged Particles have worked together as a trio in the Bay Area since 2011, tackling challenging material by composers such as

Chick Corea

piano
1941 - 2021

" data-original-title="" title="">Chick Corea and

Herbie Hancock

piano
b.1940

" data-original-title="" title="">Herbie Hancock. Doing a Michael Brecker tribute required a saxophonist, and

Tod Dickow

saxophone

" data-original-title="" title="">Tod Dickow was the obvious choice. Dickow's intimate knowledge of the material guided the band through the project.

"Peep" from Now You See It...(Now You Don't) (Impulse! Records, 1990) opens the set with a flourish from drummer

Jon Krosnick

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Jon Krosnick, followed by the funk/bebop sound of the head. "Arc of the Pendulum" from Time Is Of The Essence (Impulse! Records, 1999) changes to a more acoustic sound, with

Aaron Germain

bass
b.1977

" data-original-title="" title="">Aaron Germain switching to acoustic bass, and keyboardist

Murray Low

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Murray Low on organ.

"Not Ethiopia" goes all the way back to the Brecker Brothers album Straphangin' (Arista, 1981), and features a frantic, virtuosic saxophone solo. "Slings and Arrows" from Tales From The Hudson (Impulse! Records, 1996) has a modal theme which leads into an extended saxophone solo, followed by a swinging piano solo. The only piece not composed by Brecker is

Don Grolnick

piano
1947 - 1996

" data-original-title="" title="">Don Grolnick's "Talking to Myself" from Don't Try This At Home (Impulse! Records, 1988). Grolnick was a regular producer and performer on Brecker's solo albums, so his compositional input here is entirely appropriate.

The album concludes with "The Mean Time," from Michael's swan song Pilgramage (Heads Up, 2007), which features an elaborate head, as well as contributions from the entire band (including Germain's walking upright bass and Low's piano solo). "Song for Barry '' from Return of the Brecker Brothers (GRP, 1992) closes the album with a tune which was a regular closer in Brecker concerts, dedicated to his mentor and Dreams band mate, trombonist

Barry Rogers

trombone
1935 - 1991

" data-original-title="" title="">Barry Rogers. A strong finish to a remarkable album.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Peep; Arc of the Pendulum; African Skies; Never Alone; Not Ethiopia; Slings and Arrows; Talking to Myself; The Mean Time; Song for Barry.

Personnel

Charged Particles

band / ensemble / orchestra

Tod Dickow

saxophone

Murray Low

piano

Aaron Germain

bass

Jon Krosnick

drums

Omar Ledezma

congas

Album information

Title: Live at the Baked Potato! | Year Released: 2021 | Record Label: Summit Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Gilad Hekselman, Mark Owen, Mike Mil...
< Previous

Azar Lawrence & Sasha Dobson
Next >

Charged Particles Concerts

Sep 18 Thu

Charged Particles

Putter's Miniature Golf Palo Alto
Palo Alto, CA

Sep 19 Fri

Charged Particles

San Francisco Botanical Garden
San Francisco, CA

Sep 19 Fri

Charged Particles

Northwest Santa Rosa Library
Santa Rosa, CA

Sep 20 Sat

Charged Particles

Menlo Tavern
Menlo Park, CA

Sep 21 Sun

Charged Particles With Tod Dickow

Lafayette Art Wine And Music Festival
Lafayette, CA

Sep 25 Thu

Charged Particles With Tod Dickow

The Dawn Club
San Francisco, CA

Sep 26 Fri

Charged Particles

Santa Cruz Main Library Downtown
Santa Cruz, CA

Oct 10 Fri

Charged Particles

Good Karma Fine Ales, Food, And Hifi
San Jose, CA

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.