OGJB Quartet - Bamako

2019 CD release.

Oliver Lake alto and soprano saxophones, recitation (02)
Graham Haynes cornet, dousn´gouni (02)
Joe Fonda double bass
Barry Altschul drums, percussion, mbira (02)

"By the time the OGJB Quartet came into existence in 2015, Barry Altschul and I had already played together quite extensively for more than 10 years, touring and recording first with the late great Billy Bang in the FAB Trio and then, after Billy´s untimely passing, with Jon Irabagon in the 3dom Factor.

The OGJB Quartet was originally conceived as the OJB Trio. I had just finished a tour with the Generations Quartet featuring Oliver Lake and, after that tour, thought what great trio Oliver, Barry and myself would make. I had mentioned the idea of this trio to Kunle Mwanga, a friend to all of us, and Kunle replied by asking: "Why not make it a quartet and add Graham Haynes as the fourth member?" To me and Barry, this seemed like a great idea as we have both always loved the combined sound of the trumpet and the alto saxophone and Graham was a perfect choice. So, the OJB Trio became the OGJB Quartet.

The music on this recording sings and strolls down the street, it swings, it dances, it swirls around your body like water and it grooves with a deep sense of its musical history. We feel that a perfect synergy is found within this quartet. What more could we ask for?".

New York City, February 11, 2019

Joe Fonda