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Benny Reid ; Clear, Not Smooth
Alto saxophonist Benny Reid pays attention to
details when it comes to composing and recording.
On his sophomore disc, Escaping Shadows
(Concord), layered alto saxophone, piano, keyboards,
guitar, bass, drums and voices resonate
with crisp clarity. When that sonic sheen gets
paired with Reid’s intricate compositions and
melodic focus, his music embodies a realm that
can entice staunch jazz fans along with novices
more inclined to radio-friendly pop.
“My music tends to be through-composed: I
have many melodies and many sections with
different harmonies and different grooves,” Reid
said. “The pop influence is prevalent because of
the appearance of there being less going on, but
in reality it’s not true. If you have a good
melody, it can kind of disguise everything else.”
Escaping Shadows takes sonic, and compositional,
cues from Reid’s 2007 Concord debut,
Findings. Although some of the music for both
discs dates back to 2002, Reid said that on the
newer one, more time and a larger budget helped
him meet his artistic goals.
“I was more involved on the production side
of things,” he said. “It was important to obtain a
certain sound with this record and to put a little
polish on it. I feel like I was more concise—my
compositions didn’t have to be as long.”
Although Reid wields an incisive, citrus tone
on the alto and improvises remarkably, he sees
himself as a composer. He tends to write picturesque,
episodic compositions that lean toward
the earnest and singable.
“A catchy melody drives a song,” Reid said.
“After that, harmony is the vehicle to enhance it.
Oftentimes in jazz, there’s so much emphasis on
harmony, because people improvise over that
and are able to really show off their musical
skills. But melody is the gem of the song. And
sometimes it can be easily forgotten or avoided.”
Because of Reid’s melodic sensibility, his
frontline partnership with guitarist Richard
Padrón, and layers of keyboards and wordless
vocals, his music is often compared to Pat
Metheny’s. It’s something that Reid is comfortable
with, considering that he cites Metheny as a
significant influence. “The comparison is certainly
valid, but what I’m doing has its own
twist,” he said.
Also, like Metheny, Reid sometimes gets
lumped into the smooth jazz category, which is
something that he takes in stride.
“It’s a little bothersome because it’s not
smooth jazz,” Reid said. “Smooth jazz is a
sound that’s kind of similar all around and has a
repetitive nature to it. Harmonically, my music
has constant changes; the solos are constantly
changing. But if you want to call it smooth jazz
then play it on the smooth jazz radio stations,
because I’ll take that audience, too. I don’t care
what you call my music, just be careful not to
pigeonhole it the wrong way.” —John Murph
DEVIN DEHAVEN