Lee Konitz - The King of Alto Saxophone (Remastered) '2021

Tracks list

Tracklist:

Disc 1

01. Two Not One (Remastered)
02. Crazy She Calls Me (Remastered)
03. Foolin Myself (Remastered)
04. Ill Remember April (1954 Version) (Remastered)
05. There Will Never Be Another You (Remastered)
06. Donna Lee (Remastered)
07. Everthing Happens to Me (Remastered)
08. Fishin Around (Remastered)
09. Subconscious (Remastered)
10. People Will Say Were in Love (Remastered)
11. You Go to My Head (Remastered)
12. I Remember You (Remastered)
13. Movin Around (Remastered)
14. Back Home Again in Indiana (Remastered)
15. 317 East 32nd (Remastered)
16. Lennie Bird (Remastered)
17. I Cant Get Started (Remastered)
18. Odjenar (Remastered)
19. Ezz-thetic (Remastered)
20. Retrospection (Remastered)
21. Cork N Bib (Remastered)
22. Sunday (Remastered)
23. Jonquil (Remastered)
24. Stairway to the Stars (Remastered)
25. Background Music (Remastered)
26. Sound Lee (Remastered)
27. If I Had You (Live) (Remastered)
28. Progression (Remastered)
29. Easy Livin (Remastered)
30. Dont Squawk (Remastered)
31. Ronnies Line (Remastered)
32. Indian Summer (Remastered)
33. Star Eyes (Remastered)

Disc 2

01. Foolin Myself 2 (Live) (Remastered)
02. Ill Remember April 2 (1961 Version) (Remastered)
03. Limehouse Blues (Remastered)
04. Nursery Rhyme (Remastered)
05. Billies Bounce (Remastered)
06. Sweet and Lovely (Remastered)
07. All Of Me (Remastered)
08. Skylark (Remastered)
09. Subconscious Lee (Live) (Remastered)
10. Youd Be So Nice to Come Home to (Remastered)
11. Bop Goes The Leesel (Remastered)
12. Stephanie (Remastered)
13. Topsy (Remastered)
14. Ablution (Live) (Remastered)
15. These Foolish Things (Remastered)
16. Tautology (Remastered)
17. When Youre Smiling (Remastered)
18. Ice Cream Konitz (Remastered)
19. Sunflower (Remastered)
20. Hi Beck (Remastered)
21. Rebecca (Remastered)
22. The Nearness of You (Remastered)
23. Karys Trance (Remastered)
24. Palo Alto (Remastered)
25. Karys Trance 2 (1958 Version) (Remastered)
26. All of Me 2 (1956 Version) (Remastered)
27. Hibeck (Remastered)
28. Nesuhis Instant (Remastered)
29. Memories of You (Remastered)
30. Sound Lee II (Remastered)
31. Mean to Me (Remastered)
32. Yesterdays (Remastered)


 Read MoreBorn in 1927 in Chicago, Leon Konitz grew up the youngest of three
brothers in a Jewish immigrant family with an Austrian father and Russian
mother. His parents ran a dry-cleaning business and encouraged their children to
play music. Inspired by hearing Benny Goodman on the radio, he asked for a
clarinet, which he started playing around age 11. Influenced by his love of jazz
and the swinging dance bands of the 30s and 40s, he eventually switched first to
tenor, then to alto saxophone as a teenager. He taught himself to improvise and
left high school early to replace Charlie Ventura in Teddy Powells band. He also
spent time playing with Jerry Walds group before moving to New York City.

In 1943, he began studying with pianist Lennie Tristano. An inventive,
theoretically minded player, Tristano introduced Konitz to his varied musical
ideas, including his use of strong, swinging eighth note and triplet lines,
complex notions of contrapuntalism, and rich harmonic and motivic devices. Under
Tristanos guidance, Konitz greatly expanded his approach to improvisation, ably
balancing the influence of players like Lester Young and Charlie Parker with
Tristanos pedagogic ideas. It was a combination that helped him avoid becoming a
mimic, and one which led to his own highly individualistic sound and approach to
improvisation. He and Tristano worked as a duo playing local cocktail bars; they
also formed a sextet with the equally forward-leaning tenor player Warne Marsh.
Together in 1949, they recorded the tracks Intuition and Digression, which are
often cited as two of the first free improvisations ever documented. It was
alongside Tristano and Marsh that Konitz made his debut as leader on 1950s
Subconscious-Lee for the Prestige label, which also featured pianist Sal Mosca,
guitarist Billy Bauer, and bassist Arnold Fishkin.

Around the same time, Konitz was playing with Claude Thornhills Orchestra, where
he befriended baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan and arranger Gil Evans. Evans
began holding informal jam sessions in his basement Manhattan apartment which
drew the attention of trumpeter Miles Davis, who was looking for a different
musical project after leaving Charlie Parkers quintet. By 1948, Konitz had
joined Davis Nonet, an innovative ensemble marked by Mulligan, Evans, and
pianist John Lewis harmonically sophisticated arrangements. He appeared on Davis
1951 album Conception, and gained even more recognition after the nonet sessions
were compiled on Davis landmark 1957 album Birth of the Cool.

By the early 50s, Konitz had already begun to gain more notice for his
distinctive sound. He toured Scandinavia -- where his laid-back and probing
style found a welcoming audience -- further cementing the influence of cool jazz
on European players. He also joined the Stan Kenton Orchestra, appearing on a
number of the bandleaders albums during the decade. Konitz followed his debut
with a 1953 co-session alongside Gerry Mulligan for Pacific Jazz. More albums
followed, including 1954s Konitz, 1955s Lee Konitz with Warne Marsh, 1956s
Inside Hi-Fi, and 1958s Very Cool. He also appeared on Tristanos groundbreaking
(and at the time somewhat controversial) 1956 live album Tristano, in which the
pianist utilized innovative piano overdubs. He also joined the equally
progressive baritone saxophonist Jimmy Giuffre for 1959s Lee Konitz Meets Jimmy
Giuffre. Giuffre also supplied arrangements for Konitzs 1960 brass and rhythm
section date You and Lee, which featured contributions from pianist Bill Evans
and guitarist Jim Hall.

In 1961, Konitz joined John Coltrane drummer Elvin Jones and bassist Sonny
Dallas for Motion on Verve. Although essentially a standards session, the album
found him playing in a loose, ad hoc style, barely hinting at melodies and often
pushing the song form and harmony in inventive directions that edged toward free
jazz. The following year, he moved to California where he began having
difficulty finding gigs. Rock & Roll had usurped jazz in popular culture and
jazz clubs were beginning to close. At the same time, jazz was evolving,
propelled by the aggressive avant-garde work of players like Coltrane, Ornette
Coleman, Albert Ayler, and others. Nonetheless, Konitz persisted, returning to
New York in 1964 and eventually re-emerging with an even more broadminded
approach to his own recordings. In 1967, he released Duets on Milestone, a
stylistically varied production running from New Orleans jazz to cool tracks to
more avant-garde songs, and featuring collaborations with Joe Henderson, Jim
Hall, Eddie Gomez, Elvin Jones, Marshall Brown, and others. It was also in the
late 60s that Konitz moved to Germany with his wife. There, he continued to work
regularly, joining fellow saxophonists Pony Poindexter, Phil Woods, and Leo
Wright for the adventurous Alto Summit in 1968. Also that year, he paired with
French pianist Martial Solal for Impressive Rome and joined Italian trumpeter
Enrico Rava for Stereokonitz.

By the early 70s, Konitz had moved back to Manhattan, where he began playing
several nights a week at clubs like Strykers and Gregorys. He also appeared at
workshops in Woodstock at the Creative Music Studio. His recorded output
flourished as he released a number of albums on smaller labels, including
SteepleChase, Philology, Soul Note, and others. 1973s Altissimo found him
collaborating with saxophonists Gary Bartz, Jackie McLean, and Charlie Mariano.
He also led a quartet for 1975s Satori, playing with Martial Solal, Jack
DeJohnette, and Dave Holland. That same year, he released the solo saxophone
album Lone-Lee. There was a live album with Chet Baker, a Cole Porter tribute
album with Red Mitchell, and a duet session with Hal Galper. Konitz even
reconnected with his fellow Lennie Tristano alum Warne Marsh for a series of
albums on Storyville and played on highly regarded albums alongside luminaries
like Paul Bley, John Scofield, and Shelly Manne.

The 80s proved a fruitful period for Konitz, who continued to perform and tour
often. In 1981, he appeared at the Woodstock Jazz Festival, held in celebration
of the tenth anniversary of the Creative Music Studio. He continued playing in
Europe, working often with bassist Martial Solal and pianist Michel Petrucciani.
In 1983, he played in an octet with Swedish pianist Lars Sjösten for
Dedicated to Lee, a tribute album to the late baritonist Lars Gullin. Konitz
also built a lasting partnership with pianist Harold Danko, recording a mix of
duo and small group albums, including 1984s Dovetail, 1986s Ideal Scene, and
1987s The New York Album. By the end of the decade, Konitz was expanding his
approach, sometimes playing soprano saxophone.

In 1992, in appreciation of his deep influence on the European jazz scene,
Konitz received the Danish Jazzpar prize. He continued to push himself
creatively, working in a bevy of cross-pollinated settings, from orchestral
ensembles to free improvisations. Still, standards and acoustic modern jazz
remained a focus, as on 1992s Jazz Nocturne with pianist Kenny Barron, bassist
James Genus, and drummer Kenny Washington. 1995s Haiku was an understated and
textural quintet session with drummer Jerry Granelli, pianist Andreas Schmidt,
bass clarinetist Rudi Mahall, and vocalist Sayumi Yoshida. Konitz appeared on
trumpeter Kenny Wheelers elegiac 1996 ECM album Angel Song with guitarist Bill
Frisell and bassist Dave Holland. A year later, he made his Blue Note debut with
Alone Together, an all-star trio album featuring bassist Charlie Haden and
pianist Brad Mehldau. The trio returned for a second trio outing with 1999s
Another Shade of Blue. Konitz investigated classical music alongside the Axis
String Quartet with 2000s French Impressionist Music from the Turn of the
Twentieth Century. There were also compelling dates with Paul Motian, Steve
Swallow, John Abercrombie, Marc Johnson, and others. The Mark Masters Ensemble
joined him for 2004s One Day with Lee, and in 2007 he recorded Portology with
the Ohad Talmor Big Band.

In 2009, Konitz was honored with the NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship, one of the
United States highest jazz awards given in recognition of his long and
influential career. The following year, he released the concert album Live at
the Village Vanguard. In 2011, he released the trio album Knowinglee, featuring
saxophonist Dave Liebman, and pianist Richie Beirach. He also appeared on the
live ECM date Live at Birdland with pianist Brad Mehldau, bassist Charlie Haden,
and drummer Paul Motian. That same year, he was joined by drummer Joey Baron,
guitarist Bill Frisell, and bassist Gary Peacock for Enfants Terribles: Live at
the Blue Note. Three years later, he joined Dan Tepfer, Michael Janisch, and
Jeff Williams for First Meeting: Live in London, Vol. 1. The quartet date
Frescalalto arrived in 2017 and featured the saxophonist alongside pianist Kenny
Barron, bassist Peter Washington, and drummer Kenny Washington. In 2019, Konitz
rejoined saxophonist/arranger Ohad Talmor for Old Songs New, a nonet recording
focusing on beloved, yet infrequently recorded standards. Konitz died on April
15, 2020 due to complications from the COVID-19 virus; he was 92 years old. ~
Matt Collar

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