Search - Roscoe Mitchell :: Hey Donald

There are always surprises in the breadth of Mitchell's musical reach, as in this 1994 session dedicated to the late Donald Myrick. He was a saxophonist, founding member of both Chicago's AACM and the famous funk group Earth, Wind and Fire, and a friend and influence to Mitchell in his high school days in the 1950s. As that greeting in the title suggests, this is a friendly wave across time. The band joins Mitchell and Art Ensemble partner Malachi Favors with two more-traditional players, the veterans Jodie Christian on piano and Albert "Tootie" Heath, a legend of bop drumming. Mitchell digs deep into the well of Chicago blues and bop tenor for "Hey Donald" and his father's "Walking in the Moonlight," and touches on a shared past and the Chicago cityscape in pieces like "Englewood High School," "The Band Room," and "The El." It's emotionally rich, even outsized, music, and the freer duets with Favors create a special dynamism in juxtaposition with the more structured quartet tracks. --Stuart Broomer