I Remember You - Stephen Riley

Recorded in December 2019 and released on SteepleChase Records in 2021, I Remember You is a pianoless quartet date led by tenor saxophonist Stephen Riley with guitarist Vic Juris, bassist Jay Anderson, and drummer Jason Tiemann. The session carries particular significance as Juris's final recording — Riley's former teacher at William Paterson College passed away from cancer just weeks after the date, showing no decline in his playing. The nine-track program draws entirely from the standard repertoire and jazz compositions, including "You Stepped Out of a Dream," Thelonious Monk's "Ugly Beauty," and John Coltrane's "Equinox," with the title track anchoring the set thematically. The absence of piano places Riley's tenor and Juris's guitar in close dialogue throughout, sharing the harmonic duties while Anderson and Tiemann provide a responsive, conversational rhythm section. Riley's warm tone and lyrical phrasing suit the intimate setting, and Juris matches him with the melodic sensitivity and subtle harmonic choices that characterized his decades of work as a sideman and educator. The album fits within SteepleChase's long tradition of straight-ahead, standards-focused quartet sessions, capturing four musicians in unhurried, natural interplay.