Jaleel Shaw

Review:

This is the seventy seventh in a series of special Jazz on the Tube reviews of live stream performances.

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Altoist Jaleel Shaw was born and raised in Philadelphia, earning a degree from Berklee and a Master’s from the Manhattan School of Music.

He has since worked with the World Saxophone Quartet (2006), the Roy Haynes Quartet and the Mingus Big Band, recorded with Tom Harrell and Nate Smith, and led three albums of his own.

Playing unaccompanied saxophone might be a little difficult for many but Jaleel Shaw sounds beautiful with his tone, even at the beginning of this performance from May 23, 2020 when he is briefly warming up,

After performing Thelonious Monk’s “Bemsha Swing,” Shaw builds up a few improvisations, often utilizing a repeated figure that he uses as a foundation for the musical thoughts that follow.

The result is a set of spontaneous, intriguing and surprisingly accessible music that is both boppish and unpredictable.

-Scott Yanow