Song:First Tune Of The Set
Album:The Brecker Brothers Band Reunion
Though trumpeter Randy Brecker is best known for his long time partnership with sax player brother Michael Brecker, Randy has always had a separate solo career. This 2013 CD is billed as a Brecker Brothers Band reunion which it is in spirit. He was born Nov. 27, 1945 in the Philadelphia suburb of Cheltenham, PA. He is the older brother of the late tenor sax legend Michael Brecker. After studying at Indiana University, he moved to New York City in 1966 and played with Clark Terry, Duke Pearson and The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. Brecker was a founding member of Blood, Sweat & Tears. He appeared on their 1967 debut album Child Is The Father To The Man. He left when Al Kooper was kicked out of the band and joined Horace Silver's band which is where he met drummer Billy Cobham. Brecker recorded his solo debut album Solid in 1969 which was Michael Brecker's recording debut. Then he formed Dreams with Michael, Cobham, guitarist John Abercrombie, and the songwriting team of Jeff Kent and Doug Lubahn. Dreams was supposed to be a more jazz influenced jazz rock band. They recorded two albums for Columbia and fell apart after Cobham left to join The Mahavishnu Orchestra. Then Brecker formed The Eleventh House with guitarist Larry Coryell and pianist Mike Mandel. He left after one album to join Cobham's new band. At the same time, Randy and Michael were doing plenty of session work. They finally formed The Brecker Brothers Band in 1975 and they recorded several popular albums for Arista Records. When they disbanded in 1982, Randy met and married Brazilian singer and pianist Eliane Elias and they recorded and toured through the 80s. Their daughter Amanda Brecker is a singer and frequently tours with her mom. The Brecker Brothers reformed in the 90s and Randy won a Grammy for his 1995 CD Into The Sun. After Michael's 2007 death, Randy decided to form a Brecker Brothers Reunion Band which is what this 2013 CD/DVD set is called. To be fair, I think it's more of a tribute than a reunion. The sax player is Randy's wife Ada Rovatti. Keyboard player George Whitty produced the CD. Other band members include Mike Stern on guitar, Oli Rockberger on keyboards, Will Lee on bass and Dave Weckl on drums. The music is what one would expect from these Jazz Fusion veterans. Despite recent prostate surgery, Randy Brecker continues to tour. He does a lot of guest appearances with local bands. He just released a 1976 live Brecker Brothers CD. That's around when I saw them live at the Queensbury Arms in Toronto. Here's Randy Brecker and the Brecker Brothers Reunion Band performing First Tune Of The Set at the Blue Note in New York City 2013.
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