Anderson, Fred / Drake, Hamid

From The River To The Ocean

Label: Thrill Jockey Country: USA

"The closest of relationships gives its members space to expand, change, develop, and play. Tenor saxophonist Fred Anderson and drummer Hamid Drake have just that kind of partnership, one that has seen them periodically move apart and work extensively on other fronts - Anderson tending to the recent relocation of his major jazz venue the Velvet Lounge; Drake in a dizzying array of globetrotting ensembles - but always returning to the fold, digging in together and checking out what's been learned in the interim. Over the course of some three decades, master saxophonist and prodigy percussionist have continued to reconfirm their commitment to their joint project.

Following up on their acclaimed Thrill Jockey 2004 CD Back Together Again, Drake and Anderson set out to show just how much they'd grown, how beautifully their work together has evolved. Drafting an all-star band consisting of fellow-Chicagoans, the twosome entered John McEntire's Soma Studios and proceeded to record their most relaxed, perfectly balanced date yet. In a discography that has gone from a handful of rare LPs fifteen years ago to a staggering number of discs on various labels today, it may seem hyperbolic to call From the River to the Ocean Fred Anderson's greatest album yet, but the empathy and cohesiveness of the ensemble, coupled with the saxophonist's brilliant, searching improvisations, makes it a ringer."-Thrill Jockey