Here are a couple tenor quartet sessions, continuing the tradition started by Coleman Hawkins up to this very moment.
Hailing from Oregon, tenor saxist Nicole Glover displays a thick and rich tone on this collection of (mostly) originals with a team of George Colligan/p, Jonathan Lakey/b and Alan Jones/dr. Of the covers, she and Colligan go soft and gentle on “Tennessee Waltz” while she does a modal Trane feel on Ravel’s “String Quartet in F.” Her tenor broods over the gazelle-like rhythm section on “Water Ritual” and the team snaps to attention under her horn on “Conscience of the King” Lakey’s bass daintily bounces on “Blood Moon” and the team waltzes through a cadence on “Waning and Waxing” while Colligan brings in his trumpet for some extra texture on “Snow Dance.” Her sound is filled with groans and aches, making you feel each note.
Dave Wilson also possesses a molasses rich sound with support from Bobby Avey/p, Tony Marino/b and Alex Ritz/dr. The team gets kinetic as Wilson sears through “The Time Has Come” and Ritz’s ricochets create sparks for Wilson on the funky “There Was Never.” His lyricism is on display on the post bop “Feeling Peaceful” and goes dramatic with Marino during “On the Prairie.” His handling of the soprano gets a couple of runts, softly floating over the cadence of “God Only Knows” and handling the tricky line of “Cassidy” with aplomb. A good ad for Selmer!