For about five years in the early 2000s, Lovano played in a quartet with Hank Jones, a dean of jazz piano whose career stretched back to the 1930s and included stints with Benny Goodman, Charlie Parker, and Ella Fitzgerald. So when Jones asked Lovano to play with his trio, the saxophonist felt "a little bit intimidated," he admits. But it wasn't long before they began to breathe together, musically speaking. They recorded four albums and became friends: "With Hank, there was a lot of love and a lot of beautiful magical moments," he says. This program - dedicated to the memory of Jones, who passed away in 2010 at age 91 - is Lovano's attempt to recapture some of that love and magic.
GRAMMY-winning Lovano will sample the repertoire that he explored with Jones beginning in 2003 on the Blue Note album I'm All For You.