Owen Broder Quintet “Hodges: Front and Center” Vol. 2

The Owen Broder Quintet features saxophonist Owen Broder and a program of compositions associated with Johnny Hodges, the alto saxophone icon. While Hodges is discussed almost wholly in relation to Duke Ellington, Broder and his quintet of collaborators on the world stage shift focus to the Rabbit (the nickname that Hodges earned early in his career) as a bandleader in his own right. Broder presents Hodges: Front and Center as “a heartfelt tribute without ever aping the object of his affection or straying too far from the path. In short, he finds a perfect balance,” (The New York Jazz Record). The repertoire culls from the Ellington canon as well as from the saxophonist’s often overlooked catalogue of small group albums.