joe on twitter
joe on facebook
from npr.org/blogs/ablogsupreme
Woody Herman At 100: ‘A Blues Player From His Heart
By: Alan Greenblatt
Woody Herman was one of the premier bandleaders in jazz, saxophonist Joe Lovano says.
“He didn’t have the same chops and virtuosic approach like Benny Goodman or Artie Shaw, but he told a deep story,” says Lovano, who played with Herman early in his career. “He was a blues player from his heart, and really had a beautiful voice on alto saxophone.”
Born in 1913, Herman would have turned 100 on Thursday. Over the course of a long career, the reedman explored many of the styles of 20th-century jazz, and was one of the first big-band leaders to incorporate melodic lines from bebop.
To read the full article click here