Wardell Gray
Tenor Sax Solo on
Neil's Blues

About

Wardell Gray's two-chorus tenor saxophone solo is the fourth of five solos on this blues, and his bigger, darker tone provides a welcome textural shift amid the bright-toned alto and trumpet that precede him. At 142 BPM over the 12-bar form in F, Gray's robust sound and rhythmic drive add a grittier dimension to the performance. This session was among Gray's final recordings before his death later in 1955, lending these choruses an added historical poignancy within the context of his abbreviated career.

Wardell Gray was 33 to 34 years old at the time.