PAPATAMUS REDUX

CELLAR MUSIC (RELEASED OCTOBER 10, 2025)

Tenor saxophonist Grant Stewart was among a group of “young lions” when he recorded his first session (Downtown Sounds) on the Dutch Criss Cross label in 1992. Thirty-three years later, and with more than 20 records under his own name, Stewart continues to roar, purr, prowl, leap and stalk on Next Spring.  Like his earlier sessions, Stewart expands his deep connection to the hardbop tradition in the way he sounds and tunes he plays. He roars through “I Know That You Know,” a tune recorded by Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins and Sonny Stitt on their classic 1958 Sonny Side Up date, and Jerome Kern’s “I Won’t Dance.”  In true Dexter Gordon fashion, Stewart purrs on “Father Flanagan,” a beautiful ballad written by pianist Barry Harris, and “There’s No You,” a tune Coleman Hawkins explored on his 1957 Genius of Coleman Hawkins release. He prowls through the changes of “Kiss and Run,” a standard Rollins recorded in 1956 on his Plus 4 session, and he leaps through the angular structure of Thelonious Monk’s “Introspection.”  Stewart also stalks the modal intricacies of Wayne Shorter’s “Nefertiti.”  In addition to those tunes, Next Spring features several originals including the title track, an up-tempo swinger full of twists and turns, and “May in June,” with its classic hard bop feel, shifting from a swing to a bossa beat. Like any lion, Stewart does not attack the nine selections on his own. His “pride” on Next Spring includes pianist Tardo Hammer, bassist Paul Sikivie and younger brother, drummer Phil Stewart. Like the leader, these musicians are kings of the hard bop jungle as well. Check out Sikivie’s arco solo on “Kiss on Run” as well as his strong pizzicato solos on other tunes. Hammer’s classic single note runs are perfect for Harris’ “Father Flanagan,” and his opening solo on “Introspection” captures the harmonic humor of Monk. Drummer Stewart is just as comfortable with the subtleties of ballads as he is with the robust feel of trading fours on hard bop swingers. Although Next Spring may not be adding anything new to the library of retro hard bop sessions, it is refreshing to hear a former “young lion” still roaring, purring, prowling, leaping and stalking his way through familiar ground. 

BOTTOM LINE:  Saxophonist Grant Stewart admires the music and sound of Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins, Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster. So, it is no surprise that his deep tone, fluid phrasing and his choice of tunes, not to mention a top-notch rhythm section, dominates Next Spring, a release that is truly in the tradition.