Premiere: Kenny Garrett’s ‘Joe Hen’s Waltz’

By DownBeat I Oct. 7, 2021

“Joe Hen’s Waltz” is alto saxophonist Kenny Garrett’s contribution to Relief, an album to benefit the Jazz Foundation of America’s Musicians’ Emergency Fund. The cut below is an outtake from Seeds From The Underground, Garrett’s 2012 release on Mack Avenue. The legend pays tributes to one of his heroes, fellow saxophonist Joe Henderson, with the help of bandmates Benito Gonzalez on piano, Nat Reeves on bass and Ronald Bruner on drums. To hear the tune, click here:

In March 2020, during the early days of the pandemic, a consortium of record labels and industry partners assembled to support the launch of the Jazz Foundation of America’s COVID-19 Musicians’ Emergency Fund. The mandate was simple and urgent: to provide direct financial assistance for basic living expenses to musicians and families whose livelihoods and security were jeopardized by the collapse of the global performance industry.

Blue Note Records, Concord Music Group, Mack Avenue Music Group, Nonesuch Records, the Verve Label Group and Warner Music Group banded together to raise the funds. It was a first-of-its-kind alliance of the leaders in the jazz industry.

The proceeds of this album benefit that fund. To buy your copy, click HERE. DB