Before he moved to New Orleans in the '90s,
Ed Petersen
seemed like a fixture on the Chicago jazz scene. But the
John Coltrane
-influenced tenor saxman didn't do much recording as a leader, and he was little known nationally.
Upward Spiral
,
Petersen's
first album as a leader, gave jazz fans outside of Chicago the chance to hear him with his Windy City quintet of the late '80s, which included guitarist
Fareed Haque
, pianist
Brad Williams
, bassist
Rob Amster
and drummer
Jeff Stitely
. The post-bop unit is heard performing four
Petersen
originals at Chicago's
Green Mill
on June 5, 1989 and five other songs in the studio three weeks later. In both environments,
demonstrates that while he's no innovator, he's a competent and likable saxman. For those who known
Haque
as a fusion/crossover guitarist along the lines of
Al DiMeola
and
Pat Metheny
, it's interesting to hear him playing straight-ahead. ~ Alex Henderson