1995 · Album
Hey Donald
Recorded 1994 · Delmark · Personnel: Roscoe Mitchell (saxophone), Jodie Christian (piano), Malachi Favors (bass), Albert "Tootie" Heath (drums)
Mitchell's Groove: A Saxophonist Finds His Footing
Mitchell's honking saxophone sounds frankly ludicrous when the rhythm section locks into straight time and groove.
Roscoe Mitchell brought together Jodie Christian on piano, Malachi Favors on bass, and Albert "Tootie" Heath on drums for these 1994 sessions—the first time this particular quartet had recorded together. The choice of sidemen matters here. Christian, Favors, and Heath were seasoned players who knew how to lay down pocket grooves, and that's exactly what they do. They're not playing free or pushing against structure; they're settling into straight time, building momentum underneath, establishing a foundation.
It's in that context that Mitchell's saxophone becomes interesting and strange. His approach—the honking, the mordant tone—sits uneasily over the groove. There's friction there, and not the kind that resolves into fusion or funk crossover. Mitchell sounds like he's wrestling with the format, testing how far he can push his instrument while the band holds down something steady. Some moments work cleanly; others feel deliberately jarring, as if he's checking whether the groove can absorb his more abrasive ideas.
The album is dedicated to Donald Myrick of Earth Wind & Fire, a saxophonist from a completely different world—funk, soul, studio work. That gesture says something. Mitchell isn't trying to be Myrick, but naming the album after him suggests respect for a musician who also played saxophone in unconventional ways. Hey Donald (1994) is a solid session, a moment where Mitchell explored what happens when a free player sits down with musicians who prefer to lock in.
