Album Notes

"Howie Leshaw's lifetime in music is writ large in this mellow gem of an album. From the klezmer-drenched festivals of his boyhood to his early classical training, from the way downtown jam sessions of his jazz apprenticeship to the society ballrooms of the rich and famous, from the clubs to the studios, Howie's been there, he's done that. The title tune, "Shadow Song," is like much of the album: a little sweetly sad, but persistently hopeful. Jazz is in Howie's heart and he opens his heart for us with these songs. In "Siempre Lulú," his masterful tenor sax evokes Miles's soulful sound in Kind of Blue. "Buckle's Waltz" is a three A.M. jam, keeping you a little breathless but satisfied. There are hints throughout of Howie's mastery, in a separate life, of the klezmer clarinet, and then there's a splash of bossa nova. There's consummate musicianship in his ensemble throughout. It's not a quantum leap from these guys to Trane's immortal quartet. Shadow Song is meditative, reflective, deep. There's a lifetime of jazz in Howie, his music, and his musicians. Share Howie's music with him."

Bill Hewitt


"Alternately lyrical and propulsive, always fresh and inventive,
this is a new jazz quartet to be reckoned with by anyone with ears
to hear inspiried music."

Herb Schapiro