This beautiful collection from the masterful saxophonist Noel Jewkes is a retrospective anthology of over 30 years of his work, revised over the past 10 years with the collaboration and creative input of pianist Grant Levin and vocalist/lyricist, Kay Kostopoulos. They are joined in this effort by brilliant San Francisco musicians, Larry Vuckovich, Bill Douglass, Adam Gay, Chris Amberger, Eddie Marshall, Brian Bowman and Jake Shandling. Original works include the popular singles, “Cleopatra and the Viper” & “Wisteria” (Vol II, Tracks 2 & 11); and fresh adaptations of standards masterfully arranged by Noel Jewkes, featuring the extraordinary piano work of Grant Levin. Jewkes comments: “There is no unifying theme to this collection of songs, except for the fact that I have chosen to journey on the road less traveled, typified by Grant Levin’s composition, “Many Paths”. It is merely a collection of moments that my mind has led me to and through, both dream inspired and life acquired. The main idea with the music is to avoid some of the clichés and ruts we find ourselves falling into with jazz, and to open options choosing themes maybe not as familiar to the public. On soprano saxophone, I am bringing in some sounds and influences from the Middle East and Asiatic musics that have enchanted me for a long time. My collaboration with vocalist Kay Kostopoulos began with a casual encounter, over 5 years ago, where I was called in to play on a few tracks of her own album with Larry Vuckovich, “View from Telegraph Hill”. (“Street of Dreams” Volume I, Track No. 5, on my album is from that session). We both sensed a potential for musical collaboration. As I became more aware of her gift for lyrics and her ability to sing in various styles, I sensed an opportunity for us to delve into my library of originals, and my collection of rare standards, dating from the 1920’s up through the 1970’s. We began by revisiting the American Song book and finding lesser known songs that have been forgotten and reharmonizing them. My work includes quite a vast array of unusual tunes drawn from traditional standards, movie themes, and over 300 of my original compositions. It has been a pleasure to explore those with Kay, and to find more personal and unique material. While these songs were originally written as instrumentals, her words bring out images and stories hitherto unimagined, giving them new meaning. Additional inspiration comes from my desire to expand on the jazz vernacular with further exploration of the basic blues form. Using our collective ingenuity and creativity to update these older songs for the present generation, we include some of the best of the younger musicians. These young artists are qualified to play all forms of music, utilizing their energies and talents to realize this dream. Though this music could be considered post bop, I hope to recapture some of the nuance and sophistication of earlier classical jazz, while retaining the energy and urgency of the new music, without ever really sacrificing the basic swing.” Jewkes is an original musician, a premier tenor saxophonist, and an alto, soprano, clarinet and flute player, based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Noel Jewkes was born in Utah on June 18, 1940. His mother, father, and uncles were all musicians: they formed the Jewkes Orchestra swing band, playing cowboy and country-western music for locals at church, school and other social functions. Jewkes joined the band at age 12, playing both clarinet and saxophone. Immersed in a deep musical environment, he became adept at a variety of instruments. He later attended college and studied music privately. Jewkes moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and continued his musical growth and development, soon becoming one of San Francisco's bright lights, playing and recording on a very high level. He worked with Jon Hendricks and Jimmy Witherspoon, appearing in “Evolution of the Blues” production. He also worked with Mel Torme, Rosemary Clooney, Billy Eckstine, Mary Stallings, Jerry Hahn, Akira Tana, Jack DeJohnette, Weslia Whitfield, Mimi Fox, Larry Vuckovich, and Dave Ellis among others. Jewkes is an in-demand player. Unlike his previous Lester Young tribute album, Jewkes finds his own phrasing, vocabulary and sound in order to match the spirit and intent of the compositions. Jewkes draws from later influences of hard bop tenor players, e.g. Dexter Gordon, Hank Mobley, Wardell Gray, Sonny Rollins, and John Coltrane. We do hope you enjoy this musical offering and find some measure of enlightenment and listening pleasure. Thanks to Philip “Roscoe” Gallo Productions, Command Productions, Jessica Levant, photography, Adrian Wong, Mary Pistone, Jon Herbst