Praise for Odean
All About Jazz
Honorable Mention – Best New Release 2008
Odean Pope – Serenity
Odean Pope – What Went Before, Volume 1(Porter)
The Misled Children – Meet Odean Pope (Porter)
“The music (on the Ponderer) is dense but luxuriant, and it moves quickly. Thoroughly propulsive.”
Jim Macnie, Boston Pboenix
“Odean Pope’s Saxophone Choir hit the groove.”
John Diliberto, Down Beat
“The Ponderer wallops you, then surprises you with its subtlety before you can recover.”
Village Voice
“Max Roach’s longtime saxman Odean Popes Philly proud saxophone ensemble was one of the most explosive units of the 1994 Montreal Jazz Festival.”
Willard Jenkins, Jazz-Times
“Tenor man Odean Pope builds a richly arranged environment deserving of the choral moniker on Epitome, the Choir’s third CD for Soul Note. An elegant feel is established right away. Pope’s own deep, throaty tenor is the horn highlight.”
John Corbett, Down Beat
“This recording marks a welcome return for a long silent master and another winning collaboration for Pope and crew.”
Michael Rosenstein (One Final Note)
“Charged with the progressive energy of the Avant-guarde and tempered by the meditative, soulful communication of the classic jazz tradition, The Mystery of Prince Lasha is worth discovering.”
Greg Camphire (ILE Magazine)
“Bask in the excitement of the music.”
Mike Shanley (Jazz Times)
“(Odean Pope) continues to be a faithful steward of his muse. His latest trip to The Spirit Room marked another milestone.”
Derek Taylor (Bagatellen)
“Pope is simply stoked throughout the set, whether the vehicle is a playfully Monkish romp, a chestnut-flavored ballad replete with a sweeping cadenza or a bristling flag-waver.”
Bill Shoemaker (Point of Departure)
“Any living saxophonist would be glad to take credit for this record.”
Ron Sweetman (CODA)
“The writing for the saxophone Choir is brilliant, its musicianship superb…to see Odean Pope and The Saxophone Choir and Trio is to be galvanized by the infinite magic of possibility.”
Ron Welburn, Down Beat Magazine
“If John Coltrane was the heavyweight champ of the Tenor Saxophone, then Odean Pope must be the super-heavyweight Champion.”
John Chacona, Erie Times, News Showcase Downbeat Magazine Critic
Praise for Odean’s List
Tenor saxophonist Odean Pope’s album, “Odean’s List,” rivals his best work with Max Roach and his own formidable solo albums. And as far as I’m concerned, it’s far and away the best new jazz CD released this year.
He had a lot of help. Saxophonists James Carter and Walter Blanding, trumpeters Terell Stafford and David Weiss, pianist George Burton, bassist Lee Smith and drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts follow Pope through a rich landscape of bebop, blues and Latin rhythms. The horns blend seamlessly. On some of the 10 tunes they seduce listeners with warm tones capped with unpredictably rough edges. But they’re best when every note explodes in frenetic kaleidoscope of colors on tunes such as “Collections” and on the title track.
Pope and Smith shade everything with blue for a saxophone-bass duet on “Say it Over and Over Again,” a flat-out gorgeous ballad.
“I am thrilled to see this album by Odean Pope to be released on In+Out Records. I have known Odean since way back when he first came to Europe with Max Roach. After that, the first album he made for Moers Music with Gerald Veasley and Cornell Rochester didn’t leave my record player for weeks. ‘Odean’s List’ is a gem! The spirit of this album contains the very essence of what the best jazz has always been – original, creative music with these greatmusicians having the courage to soar both individually and collectively with Odean Pope’s compositions.” (Odean Pope)
Founding father of the jazz saxophone Odean Pope has been described as a tenor terror by JazzTimes. A musician s musician, he attracts some of the most exciting musical minds to collaborate with him, as seen on this CD, whose roster includes James Carter, Jeff Tain Watts, Terell Stafford, Walter Blanding, David Weiss, Lee Smith, and George Burton.
„Belong[s] to the main important innovators in jazz. Excellent! (FonoForum)
„Raw and powerful.“ (Stereoplay)
„Dense but luxuriant, and it moves quickly. Thoroughly propulsive.“ (Boston Phoenix)
Odean Pope, tenor saxophone
Walter Blanding, tenor saxophone
James Carter, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
David Weiss, trumpet
Terell Stafford, trumpet
George Burton, piano
Lee Smith, bass
Jeff “Tain” Watts, drums
Produced by Deena Adler