Track Listing
1. Soul Station
2. Speak No Evil
3. Winelight
4. After the Rain
5. Dust Kicker, The
6. Monk's Hat
7. Cozy
8. Face I Love, The
9. Point of Many Returns
10. Voice of the Saxphone, The

Personnel includes: Don Braden (tenor saxophone); Vincent Herring (alto saxophone, flute); Hamiet Bluiett (baritone saxophone, clarinet, contra-bass clarinet); Randy Brecker (trumpet, flugelhorn); Frank Lacy (trombone); Darrell Grant, George Colligan (piano); Cecil Brooks III (drums); Jimmy Delgado (congas); Bill Cosby (percussion).

Includes liner notes by Benny Golson.

Personnel: Don Braden (flute, tenor saxophone); Vincent Herring (flute, alto saxophone); Hamiet Bluiett (clarinet, contrabass clarinet, baritone saxophone); Randy Brecker (trumpet, flugelhorn); Frank Lacy (trombone); Darrell Grant (piano); Dwayne Burno (acoustic bass); Cecil Brooks III (drums).

Audio Mixers: Richard Clarke; James Nichols.

Recording information: Systems Two Studios, Brooklyn, NY (02/15/1997-03/04/1997).

Arranger: Don Braden.

Don Braden's The Voice of the Saxophone is, for the most part, impressive. His quartet arrangements of "After the Rain" and the title track should turn heads. His big-toned tenor sax carries the octet in covers of hard bop gems like "Soul Station" and "Speak No Evil." He's also making headway as a composer, especially on "Cozy," which features both him and Vincent Herring on flutes. Less successful is the pseudo-Monk TV theme from The Cosby Show, which is called "Monk's Hat." ~ Ken Dryden

Vol. 30 marks the last and completion of SteepleChase Jam Session series which started 12 years ago featuring talented instrumentalists of younger (and old, too) generation on the New York scene. Derek Taylor of AAJ-NY sums up the significance of this series “As long as there is jazz, jam sessions will continue to be the glue that holds the art form together. It’s a dyed-in-the-wool tradition in the music and a primary means by which it evolves. These conclaves of like-minded players draw enthusiastically on the best traits of the practice. The days when giants like Bean, Bags, Jaw and Jug frequented after hours haunts, blowing just for the fun of it and honing their craft into a distinctly American art form are past, but the vernaculars they shaped live on in these men and show that the handed down torch is definitely still burning bright.”

Don Braden may be best known for his work with television funnyman Bill Cosby, but his musical talents go far beyond this arena. Having replaced Branford Marsalis in Wynton's combo and having appeared with Betty Carter, Roy Haynes, Dr Lonnie Smith, Art Farmer, Freddie Hubbard, Tony Williams and the Mingus Big Band it is clear that his abilities on the tenor sax are formidable. Braden is smooth and has killer chops, George Colligan plays supportive piano, and Cecil Brooks III has a propulsive style on drums which nicely compliments Joris Teepe's big robust bass sound. But the hero of the date is Braden himself. Whether lingering effortlessly on ballads or burning down the town, Braden's playing is a model of tasteful energy and disciplined brilliance.

“… Mark Turner, Don Braden and Jimmy Greene offer thoughtful and distinctive collaboration as they negotiate a bunch of great jazz originals, standard ballads and a couple of organic pieces from within this ‘band for a day’… ” (Mark Gardner) On Jam Session Vol 6, Chris Parker of CD Reviews commented, “… this lively, vigorous album is as much a tribute to the liberating effect of the jam session itself as to the talent and commitment of its participants.”

How can six men, who don’t normally play together and certainly not as an ensemble, congregate and make such fine, purposeful music of enduring consequence? That’s the spell of jazz and the lasting lure of the jam session, of which this particular one is an outstanding example.

Ever since his arrival in New York back in 1984, Don Braden has been one of the most impressive tenor saxophonists of his generation. He has uplifted the bands of the Harper Bros., Betty Carter, Wynton Marsalis, Freddie Hubbard, Tony Williams & others along the way, yet it is his work as a leader that is most significant. From start to finish, this CD is one of his finest recordings & it shows why he is rated as one of the top sax men of the early 21st Century. Together with his quartet, his chosen medium now, Braden offers a program of jazz classics, as well as a sprinkling of original tunes, including an innovative tenor sax/drum duet.