Tenor sax "battles" have been a tradition in jazz since the late 30s and pairing tenor saxophonists with contrasting styles has continued to the present day. Usually, more of a friendly exchange than a battle per se, two examples recorded in Seattle in 1962 and 2009 are featured on this week's episode of Jazz Northwest.
Pete Christlieb and Hadley Caliman reunited in a Seattle Studio X in 1990, and Johnny Griffin and Lockjaw Davis played a live radio show from The Penthouse in 1962. The Griffin and Davis performance will be issued on LP and CD for the first time on November 29 for Record Store Day.
Also on this week's show, Jessica Williams solo piano, Kelley Johnson's new CD, Edmonton alto saxophonist PJ Perry and more, including news of upcoming concerts at The Earshot Festival.
Jazz Northwest is recorded and produced by host Jim Wilke and airs Sundays at 2 p.m. Listeners may also subscribe to the podcast at KNKX, NPR, Apple, Google or Spotify.