The Johnny Griffith Quintet

Johnny Griffith • Alto/Tenor Saxophones

Jeremy Pelt • Trumpet

Adrean Farrugia• Piano

Jon Maharaj• Bass

Ethan Ardelli • Drums

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REVIEWS

EDWARD BLANCO - allaboutjazz

"Saxophonist Johnny Griffith demonstrates here why he is one of the premier jazz players in Canada and the world, playing the instrument with energy and sophistication"

WBGO Radar - Tim Wilkins

"Canada is a place where chops can grow - sometimes to epic proportions. A case in point is Toronto saxophonist Johnny Griffith"

Jazz Life Magazine - Japan

Featured In Jazz Life Japan - click to read article

Chris Young - Toronto Star

"Dance With The Lady really swings in a 60's Miles-Coltrane throwback and thrilling way"

Stuart Broomer - Whole Note Magazine

"A kinetic player, pushing toward a raw expressionist edge, showing affinities with John Coltrane and the ancestral energies of rhythm & blues"

Art of Cool - Ben Gray

"Outstanding solos from Griffith, Pelt, and Farrugia"

Jazz Weekly - George W. Harris

"Modern hard bop as in the vintage days of Blue Note Records"

Jazz Buzz

Σαξοφωνίστας από τη νέα γενιά της καναδικής τζαζ, ο Johnny Griffith κυκλοφορεί το “Dance with the lady”...

Jaymz Bee - Jazz FM91

"Johnny knocked one out of the park with this CD!"

O's Place Jazz Magazine

Featured in O's Place - Jazz Magazine

Allaboutjazz.com - Dan Bilawsky

"Johnny Griffith manages to do what few artists are capable of doing: he blends the styles of the past and present while projecting the attitude of today."

Winnipeg Free Press - Chris Smith

"Dance With The Lady really swings in a 60's Miles-Coltrane throwback and thrilling way."

Midwest Record

"Griffith plays his axe like a New Yorker with something to prove. ...one bad cat that's going to be blazing his trail across the night time sky for some time to come"

Critical Jazz - Brent Black

"Canada swings and Johnny Griffith is leading the charge, Dance With The Lady is stellar! Griffith has that compositional x-factor and is obviously as artistically gifted as he is technically proficient."

Improvijazzation Nation magazine - Rotcod Zzaj

"These folks understand what jazz is really all about – FUN!"

Canadian Audiophile - Jordan Richardson

"It pulses with melody and resonates with big splashes of the good stuff."

Ottawa Citizen - Peter Hum

Toronto saxophonist Johnny Griffith has also drafted a hard-hitting New Yorker for his latest release, the solid post-bop...

Philadelphia Tribune - Bob Karlovits

"Griffith's 'Dance With The Lady - A fresh, post-modern quintet"

Track notes

The Zissou Predicament – An explosive hard-bop inspired tune, named for Johnny’s favor ite movie, the life aquatic. Steve Zissou: “I’m going to find it and I’m going to destroy it. I don’t know how yet. Possibly with dynamite.”

Princess Aura Goes to Phyrgia a contemporary jazz composition named for Flash Gordon. Ming the Merciless’ daughter Aura, tries to convince Flash to join her on her secret pleasure moon –Phrygia. This song is inspired by that moon and explores the third mode of the major scale…Phrygian.

Syrah, a dedication to one of Johnny’s true loves –an open bottle on the back porch.

The Kuleshascope is named for Canadian Art Music composer Gary Kulesha. Uses twelve tone composition techniques…but sounds like Anton Webern met Black Sabbath and then went to a jazz club.

Mile Walk a brooding slow dark tune featuring Jeremy Pelt sounding very much like Miles Davis.

Cinders take its name from a trip to the ballet to see Prokofiev’s Cinderella. The tune takes it’s harmonic concepts from the Russian master composer , yet is very reminiscent of Kenny Wheeler’s style.

That Night Under The Bench, named for a time Johnny spent homeless in NYC. Afraid to sleep at night, he was sleep deprived and began to have delusions. The angular sax/bass introduction joined by the contrapuntal trumpet and piano melodies were written during that rough time he spent trying to stay awake…under a bench.