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| Saxophonist Marcus Elliot |
I was surprised
when trombonist Vincent Chandler, founder of the Detroit Jazz Preservation
Concert Series, announced last month, following the tribute to the late pianist
Harold McKinney, that saxophonists Kasan Belgrave and Marcus Elliot would be
featured next. This decision was surprising, not because of any absence of genuine
talent, but because neither artist has yet developed an extensive body of work
as previous honorees in the series have. Chandler explained that Detroit's
young jazz musicians are producing great music and deserve recognition. On
Sunday evening, Elliot delivered one of DJPCS's best concerts, proving that Chandler's
move to spotlight younger composers was wise. Belgrave
and Elliot have graduated with high honors from the young lion stage of their
development. They are respected and popular members of Detroit’s jazz community.
Their respective performances have been DJPCS’s largest turnouts. Elliot’s quintet featured trumpeter Dwight Adams, pianist
Cormac Avila, bassist Noah Jackson, and drummer Caleb Robinson. They
opened with Elliot’s hot. “Hills of Pinar del Rio,” with Adams and Elliot
setting the tone for the elevated level of swing maintained all evening. Adams
swung with the top down throughout the concert, a perfect complement to
Elliot’s luminous blowing. In terms of swing, the quintet was evenly matched,
but Elliot was the centerpiece. I met him years ago during his tenure at the
jazz club Cliff Bell’s. I was drawn to his blowing because he’d clearly modeled
his tenor sax approach on greats like Joe Henderson and Jimmy Forrest. Over the
years, every time I attended one of Elliot’s sets, I was amazed at how his
sound continued to mature. At Sunday’s show, his compositional skills were the
focal point. His compositions show depth, allowing space for unbridled improvising,
a defining aspect of his performance. On his original like “Words for the
People,” “Learning to Remember,” and “On a Good Day,” he consistently showed his
improvisational marksmanship. During certain solos, his blowing was akin to a
youthful Yusef Lateef, and at other moments, Elliot stirred the spirit of Rahsaan
Roland Kirk. Big contributions were also made by Avila, a recent Michigan State
University graduate, and Robinson, the quintet’s secret weapon. Chandler’s
decision to celebrate Belgrave and Elliot proved to be a smart addition to an
already world-class concert series.
