Martin Johnson

Her new band has the convivial air of friends trading triumphs and challenges over drinks or a meal.

The bass has long been regarded as a foundational or cornerstone instrument, but in O's hands, it's nimbler.

She can move from setting the beat to dancing with the soloist in the blink of an eye, as she does there on Portal.

Or, as we can hear on The Sweetest Water, her solos energize the music like an accelerant.

In between O's trio recordings, she built a reputation as a composer with a broad tonal palette and an appetite for experimental configurations.

Her previous recording featured vocal leaves from Sada Seppa and Mark Turner's reserved approach to saxophone on the front line.

And she's written compelling music that honors her Asian heritage and Australian upbringing.

This recording also offers an opportunity to contrast Trumpeter or Ken Missouri's development.

Much of his work is complex and thematic, but here he lets his hair down and shows his playful side.

By going back to her first setting, a smaller group than her typical band, Linda Mahon Oh is presenting an argument that with the right musicians, less is more.

Throughout the history of jazz, there have been many famous duo collaborators, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and John Coltrane, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, just to name three, and I'm sure avid jazz fans can add many more without a second thought.

Throughout the history of jazz, there have been many famous duo collaborators, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and John Coltrane, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, just to name three, and I'm sure avid jazz fans can add many more without a second thought.

Throughout the history of jazz, there have been many famous duo collaborators, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and John Coltrane, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, just to name three, and I'm sure avid jazz fans can add many more without a second thought.

The partnership of pianist McCoy Tyner and saxophonist Joe Henderson may not be on the same level of those legends, but they did vital work together in the 60s. McCoy appeared on three of Henderson's first four recordings as a leader, and the saxophonist returned the favor on Tyner's The Real McCoy, his debut recording for Blue Note, and one of his best-loved albums.

The partnership of pianist McCoy Tyner and saxophonist Joe Henderson may not be on the same level of those legends, but they did vital work together in the 60s. McCoy appeared on three of Henderson's first four recordings as a leader, and the saxophonist returned the favor on Tyner's The Real McCoy, his debut recording for Blue Note, and one of his best-loved albums.

The partnership of pianist McCoy Tyner and saxophonist Joe Henderson may not be on the same level of those legends, but they did vital work together in the 60s. McCoy appeared on three of Henderson's first four recordings as a leader, and the saxophonist returned the favor on Tyner's The Real McCoy, his debut recording for Blue Note, and one of his best-loved albums.

On the recently released Forces of Nature, you can hear their potent mix, Ignite, in a New York landmark for great jazz in the 60s and 70s, the gritty, long-gone club known as Slugs.

On the recently released Forces of Nature, you can hear their potent mix, Ignite, in a New York landmark for great jazz in the 60s and 70s, the gritty, long-gone club known as Slugs.

On the recently released Forces of Nature, you can hear their potent mix, Ignite, in a New York landmark for great jazz in the 60s and 70s, the gritty, long-gone club known as Slugs.

Henderson is one of the greats of the post-war tenor saxophone, but in the mid-60s, he's the youngest member of that crowd. You can hear John Coltrane's thunderous emotions, Sonny Rollins' lean passion for playful melody, and Wayne Shorter's naughty complexity. Henderson synthesized these influences into a unique sound.