Search - David Sanborn :: Only Everything

Among the great saxophonists of the past four decades, says one Rolling Stone writer, David Sanborn has earned an identity all his own. He s jazz, he s funk, he s soul, he s pop, he s blues, he s rock. Most remarkably, he excels in each of these genres with a voice that is both forceful and tender, sensuous and subtle. With Only Everything, the second of Sanborn s homage to the aesthetic of Ray Charles, he revisits his roots with fresh perspective. The New York Times called David s 2008 Here and Gone, the first of his tribute series, a disarming delight. He returns to this territory with renewed passion. If anyone would ask me what Ray or Ray s musicians meant to me, my answer might be, only everything, says David. As a concept, Only Everything is about gratitude. I m grateful not only for the musical life I ve been able to live, but the original sources of inspiration that continue to inform and excite me fifty years after encountering them. The seminal encounter in the musical life of Sanborn happened in 1956 when he was 11. My dad took me to Kiel Auditorium, he remembers, an indoor arena that housed the St. Louis Hawks during the basketball season and, at other times, big band concerts. This was Ray s little band, my first time to hear him in person. I already knew him from records like I Got A Woman, Drown In My Own Tears and Night Time (Is the Right Time). Those songs had fired my imagination. But his live performance transformed me. He sang with a passion I had never before experienced. Although they were pop hits, his songs were soaked in the blues. Beyond the authority of his voice and the spark of his electric piano, two additional forces from Ray s world took hold of me and, to this day, have not let go. The first was Hank Crawford and the second was David Fathead Newman, the band s two star saxophonists. Hank and Fathead each had his own voice that, though distinct, was closely linked to Ray s. It was the voice of pain, joy, release, and relief. Both Hank and Fathead had a mixture of deep-country blues, sanctified gospel, and big-city jazz. The message of this music came across like lightning get a sax. Sanborn got a sax and a voice of his own. Along with a handful of other alto players in the history of the instrument Benny Carter, Johnny Hodges, Earl Bostic, Charlie Parker, Cannonball Adderley, Paul Desmond Sanborn s sound is instantly recognizable. His musical voice is deeply human, a cry of both pain and celebration. When I make a record, he explains, I look for a core sound, he explains, and use it as a unifying source, the aural center of the record. On Only Everything, my producer Phil Ramone, who also produced Here and Gone, agreed that the sound was Joey DeFrancesco s organ. For my money, Joey is the ruling monarch of the Hammond B3. His mastery of the instrument is complete. But more than a technically remarkable player, Joey has a feeling that s unparalleled. No one grooves harder, yet no one relaxes deeper. While this is my first recording date with Joey, I ve been teaming with Steve Gadd for years, a remarkable drummer who plays in service of the music. He colors his drum tones with subtlety, pushing pushes us forward even as he lays back.