Musicians Celebrate Wayne Shorter’s Birthday on Jesse Markowitz-Produced Palladium 2020′ (ALBUM REVIEW)

Yes, this one snuck up on us. Wayne Shorter’s birthday was 8/25 so we are just a tad late. In any case, the music of Wayne Shorter is to be celebrated every day, not just on his birthday. What’s surprising about this collection, apart from the wide chronological span of Shorter’s compositions, and the contemporary, oft otherworldly interpretations, is that there are only four of these 22 tunes that feature Shorter’s main instruments, tenor and soprano saxophone. The collection was produced by Shorter’s social media agent and friend, the esteemed jazz promoter Jesse Markowitz for this strictly digital release, Palladium 2020. The concentration of mostly solo, duo and trio configurations are a product of the 2020 global pandemic. The collection, now available on Bandcamp, virtually brings together an intergenerational and international abundance of jazz contemporaries and legends, with remotely recorded tracks from around the world. 

Since 2015, Jesse Markowitz has worked with Shorter as his Social Media Manager, but this working relationship was just the beginning of what blossomed into a cherished friendship and partnership. For his debut release as a producer, Markowitz is honored to have the personal approval, endorsement and support of Wayne and his wife Carolina, and shares his admiration for the jazz titan: “I have gathered you all here to celebrate the majesty of Wayne Shorter, and the life force with which he conducts himself. This life force manifests in a variety of ways; the extreme generosity in using his power to open doors for people; the courage he inspires, especially in outsiders, to celebrate eccentricity and individualism; the grace of this titan who sees everyone as his peer while never positioning himself as above or better; and of course the music.”

Markowitz handpicked the musicians featured on Palladium and one of the first calls made was to vibraphonist Sasha Berliner. Last November, Markowitz witnessed a performance by Berliner at Lola, a venue located in New York City’s Lower East Side. He left the show mesmerized; her “fearless search for sound” deeply impacted him and he immediately knew he wanted her to be part of this project. On the opening track “Meridienne – A Wood Sylph” – taken from Herbie Hancock & Wayne Shorter’s 1997 album 1+1 – she not only displays her percussive talents, but those with electronics and arrangement. The album moves forward with recordings from some of the producer’s most treasured acquaintances including pianist Sean Mason (“Pandora Awakened”), tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover (with her trio, performs “The Summit”), pianist Eric Reed (“Sydney”), and an incredibly creative rendition of “Infant Eyes” is delivered by tenor saxophonist Melissa Aldana (another client of the promoter’s) and Shai Maestro. An elegant take on “This is for Albert” by the pianist Emmet Cohen’s Trio precedes a soprano saxophone/drum duo rendition of “Footprints” by NEA Jazz Master Dave Liebman alongside his son-in-law Willy Rodriguez. On “Oriental Folk Song”, Chien Lu (vibraphone & electronics) incorporates incidental noises of thunder and a car horn honking to brilliantly capture life in New York City, while Benny Green’s solo Rhodes rendition of “Contemplation” is as contemplative as it gets, and closes disc one.

A humorous voicemail from Wayne and Carolina Shorter, addressed to Markowitz (“Miles’ Doorbell”) opens disc two. The couple were responding to a photo Jesse sent from the stoop of Miles Davis’ former home (312 W 77th St. aka Miles Davis Way), and their recorded message leads into four songs Wayne wrote for the Miles Davis Quintet, all rendered by pianists: “Paraphernalia” (Pablo Held), “Fall” (Dan Tepfer), “Iris” (Luther S. Allison) and “E.S.P” (Kevin Hays). Candice Hoyes, Mimi Jones & Val Jeanty, collectively as Nite Bjuti offer a unique take on “Midnight In Carlotta’s Hair”, and in response Mark Whitfield delivers a solo guitar rendition of the same song. While guitarist Gabe Schnider interprets Wayne’s evocative composition “Face On The Barroom Floor”, originally from Weather Report’s 1985 Sportin’ Life, vibraphonist Jason Marsalis brings out “Three Clowns” (from Weather Report’s Black Market), with a minimalistic arrangement. The ballad “Sleeping Dancer Sleep On” is treated with a beautifully arranged brass chorale featuring no less than eight trombones, courtesy of Mariel Bildsten. Recorded in Charlottesville, VA & Washington Heights, NYC “Someplace Called ‘Where’,” is delivered by vocalist Veronica Swift, with Dan Chmielinski on synthesizers. A long-time friend of Jesse Markowitz’s, Mike Eckert’s dream-like rendition of one of Wayne’s most well-loved ballads, “Miyako,” on haunting pedal steel expands the palette of this music. Palladium 2020 closes with “Orbits” – taken from Miles Davis’ 1966 album Miles Smiles, Julius Rodriguez and Morgan Guerin, each playing multiple instruments, transforms the tune into a danceable number.

Palladium 2020 is a result of Jesse Markowitz’s utmost respect and appreciation for someone he regards as “one of the premier composers of the century,” but the project ultimately came to fruition amidst a pandemic and the producer’s heartbreaking (temporary) goodbye to New York City, his home for the past six years. He now offers this album to the world in the hope that it provides a glimmer of ascension above these dire circumstances. 

Markowitz’s liner notes are extensive, and we’ve shied away from excerpting them as they are available to those who access on Bandcamp. This writer is a lifelong Shorter fan, and while desiring more fully staffed bands, as well as more saxophonists in this project, the widely imaginative interpretations of Shorter’s compositions, attest to Markowitz’s opinion of Shorter as a composer. 

This summer, during the pandemic, SFJazz.org, Fridays at 5, 8 PM EST,  has been airing segments celebrating Shorter’s music from live shows in 2019 that took place after Shorter became ill and stopped performing, in an effort to raise funds for his medical expenses. There were five of them, with only one remaining. All were performed with Shorter’s quartet of Danilio Perez, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade. Guests have included Kamasi Washington, Terrace Martin, Terence Blanchard, Herbie Hancock, and Branford Marsalis. This past Friday featured Joshua Redman and Ambrose Akinmusire. September 18th’s show will feature Wayne Shorter and his quartet from 2017 with Teri Lynne Carrington at drums instead of Brian Blade.

Multiple albums have been issued this year celebrating Shorter’s music, including The Music of Wayne Shorter by the JLCO, Dave Askren and Jeff Benedict’s Paraphernalia. There may be others. In 2015, producer/director Dorsay Alavi began filming a documentary about the life of Wayne Shorter called Wayne Shorter: Zero Gravity. The film is set to be released in 2020. And Wayne is still composing the opera he’s been working on for a few years now and knowing Wayne, he will finish it. So, now you are armed with more Wayne Shorter information than you bargained for. Suggest you begin by heading to Bandcamp for Palladium 2020.