Album Notes

“I never thought of it as fusion music; just good tunes with rich harmonies, using the power and colors that synthesizers and electric guitar offer,” Liebman explaines.

In October 1995, the David Liebman Group performed a series of concerts at Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild (MCG) in Pittsburgh, PA, where this stage of Liebman’s musical journey was documented. The result is the Dave Liebman Group, Live at MCG which captures the electric and live aspect of what the saxophonist was doing in the first half of the 1990s.

The six songs on Live at MCG are complex and thoughtful. Herbie Hancock’s classic “Maiden Voyage” known for its use of suspended harmonies and an ostinato rhythm provide points of departure for Liebman’s adaptation. The Phil Markowitz composition “Cut” is as Liebman states “one of the most rocking tunes in three quarter time you are ever likely to hear.” The famous “All Blues” bass line has been adapted to an 11/4 meter with altered harmonic colors. “Mine Is Yours” (by keyboardist Phil Markowitz) is a personal favorite of Dave’s, described in his words as being “operatic in scope.” Finally, “Beyond the Line” and “New Age” are two Liebman compositions with a preponderance of major harmonies, rather atypical of his often highly chromatic and dissonant writing.

With this configuration of the Dave Liebman Group (still his working band) including Phil Markowitz in the keyboard chair and drummer/percussionist Jamey Haddad, the music is vibrantly colorful while taking the listener on a journey where rhythms are neither jazz, nor world, nor anything categorical - just open and interesting. In this version of the David Liebman Group, guitarist Vic Juris served as the “second horn” shading Liebman’s soprano saxophone as well as soloing. Rounding out the quintet, Tony Marino on bass(es) seamlessly handles any challenge no matter the style or context.