Etta Jones & Houston Person - Don't Misunderstand: Live in New York - 2007

Product Description: Collaborations are ubiquitous in jazz. Legendary ones are rarer, but still existent. When one of the two talents involved passes away and is survived by the other, many listeners refuse to let go of the memory and hold every succeeding project to the standards set by the collaboration. Saxophonist Houston Person escapes this predicament, but barely, not because of his talent—which is abundant—but because of how darn good he and Etta Jones were together. Don't Misunderstand is a beautiful album that perfectly encapsulates the relationship that transformed two great, but distinct, talents into a duo with a place in jazz history.

Etta Jones and Houston Person began collaborating in 1968 until Jones passed away in 2001. Their partnership never seemed strained or divergent; it was organic and explosive and Don't Misunderstand, recorded in New York in the '80s, demonstrates the relationship perfectly. The richness and robustness of Jones' voice does not overpower the precision of Person's saxophone, but the converse also holds true; Jones' voice and Person's saxophone are complementary instruments, united to convey the yearning and subdued sensuality of the songs. On tracks like "Exactly Like You," however, they seem to compete, her voice earth-shattering and ethereal and his notes tender and passionate. It's a near perfect track, the highlight of the disc and a musical synopsis of their musical relationship. The arrangement in said relationship is obvious: Jones sang, Person played.

Houston Person Biography: In the 1990s, Houston Person kept the soulful thick-toned tenor tradition of Gene Ammons alive, particularly in his work with organists. After learning piano as a youth, Person switched to tenor. While stationed in Germany with the Army, he played in groups that also included Eddie Harris, Lanny Morgan, Leo Wright, and Cedar Walton. Person picked up valuable experience as a member of Johnny Hammond's group (1963-1966) and has been a bandleader ever since, often working with singer Etta Jones. A duo recording with Ran Blake was a nice change of pace, but most of Houston Person's playing has been done in blues-oriented organ groups. He has recorded a consistently excellent series of albums for Muse, eventually switching to HighNote Records for 2006's You Taught My Heart to Sing, 2007's Thinking of You, and 2008's Just Between Friends, which featured bassist Ron Carter. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

* Born: November 10, 1934, Florence, SC
* Active: '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, 2000s
* Genres: Jazz
* Instrument: Sax (Tenor)
* Representative Albums: "The Party", "The Talk of the Town", "Legends of Acid Jazz"
* Representative Songs: "My Romance", "Never Let Me Go", "Goodness"

Review: Etta Jones is Very BLUESY JAZZ SINGER and She is at her best when shes with Houston Person and Accomplanied by a souljazz hammond B3 player.For Some reason most of her recordings are with Acoustic Piano. I dont care for these.A piano cannot get the gutsy sound that matches her voice like the B3.I like her recordings with Rhodes Electrc Piano but not nearly as much as the B3.Houston Person plays the Sax with taste and gusto.If you like bebop lines on Sax he holds his own if not better than Sonny Stitt and David Newman.Todays Sax Players are usually too Brite,Brash,Schreechy and noisy.This Sax eloquence on this cd is rarer now than ever. ~ Amazon Customer