Phil Woods

So I also kind of co-dedicating this to Hal because man, what a monster player and improviser, you know?

I knew his name from early on when I discovered Phil Woods.

And then later on Tom Harrow, he made a recording with him too.

Such a nice guy.

OK, now I've just done two years in a very cheap college, but could just mess around and and I just play play gigs.

And I went to the summer camp and the Bud Shank was there, but the Phil Woods Quintet was there as well.

And Hal Galper and Phil Woods and Tom Harrell.

And also Bob Brookmeyer was there, Bobby Shue.

There was a lot of like real heavyweights, serious years and teachers there.

Filipino rapper-producer who had hits like Trap, Anthem, and Cats on Mars.

Phil Woods was born in 1931, legendary alto saxophonist who was big in the bebop era and was also the iconic saxophone solo on Billy Joel's hit single, Just the Way You Are.

Speedo Carroll was born in 1937.

Real name Earl Carroll.

One of the greatest lessons I learned was...

when I was doing those jazz cruises in the 90s and up into 2000, the floating jazz festivals and meeting people like Flip Phillips and Tommy Flanagan and Junior Mance and, you know, all those guys, Clark Terry and, you know, Jerry Mulligan and Phil Woods.

And they were all on those ships and to a person.

They were all kind and sharing and no attitude and no ego.

Jeff Hamilton was here.

Went back with the Phil Woods sextet.

And yeah, I've always listened to jazz as kind of my home base, even though I play a lot of funk and rock and other genres that jazz is the teacher and funk is the preacher.

So you've been here several times.

But he wasn't real comfortable playing with me because I wasn't going to do what other people do.

And it was the same thing with Freddie and Phil Woods and Archie Shep and many of these wonderful people.

because they're geared to a certain thing.

You know, Freddie used to, he would throw his trumpet at me.

And he had moved up to our area, was playing with our band.

And we got to talking about Phil Woods, the saxophonist.

And I mentioned I had played with Phil Woods when I was in high school at kind of an all-state jazz event.

And he said, well, you know, he lives in Delaware Water Gap.

And I said, well, really? And he said, yeah, you know, it's...

That comes from John Coates.

So I went and, you know, sitting there having dinner, listening to John Coates, just kind of rip open this music.

And while I'm sitting there, Phil Woods, the great saxophonist, the Grammy Award winning National Endowment of the Arts saxophonist, walks in and he's wearing bedroom slippers.

And then we got into the set and I never considered myself a great reader.

You know, like some cats could sit down and like Phil Woods and Dick Oates and some folks could just sit down and look at the music and play it perfect.

You

know,

And a few others.

Phil Woods is a saxophonist, or was.

He passed away in 2015.

Born in 1931, so he lived a good long time, 84 years, just about.

Boy, Herbie Mann, just great stuff.

Many, many others.

Phil Woods, the saxophonist.

This week's Little Big.

Tell me.

Phil Woods.

Oh, yeah.

Where have we heard that name before?

Dr. Wu.

Very nice.

Phil Woods, as you recall from our Joy of Sax episodes.

Yeah, he was with the, uh, Billy Joel Just the Way You Are solo.