Podcast 829: A Conversation with Joel Frahm

I've been following Joel Frahm since his days in the jazz program at the storied Hall High School in West Hartford, Connecticut. Since then, he has assumed his position as one of the leading lights on the tenor sax, releasing seven albums of his lyrical sound as a leader, and serving as a sideman for some of jazz's best, including former classmate Brad Mehldau, pianist Bill Charlap, and notably with singers Dianne Schuur, Freddy Cole, Jane Monheit and more. The Bright Side is his latest release, his first in a trio setting. He is backed by Dan Loomis on bass, and Ernesto Cervini on drums. and the CD is the culmination of a musical partnership that has developed over the course of many tours and recording sessions over the last decade. The material is all original, composed by the members of the band, the first time Frahm has released an album without a cover of a jazz standard. Podcast 829 is my conversation with Joel Frahm, as we talk about The Bright Side, his forthcoming move to Nashville, and why he so enjoys collaborating with vocalists. Musical selections from The Bright Side include "Bee Line" and "Blow Poppa Joe", the latter a tribute to one of his influences, Joe Henderson, and written as a contrafact over the chord changes of "Inner Urge" plus "Temptation," a track from Joel's collaboration with the late Freddy Cole from the Grammy nominated album The Mood is You.