James Brandon Lewis is a New York-based jazz tenor saxophonist, composer,and bandleader. His instrumental voice marries the emotional power of gospeland the grit and groove of blues and R&B to the modal and vanguard influences of Albert Ayler and John Coltrane, and Sonny Rollins expressive melodicand tonal discipline. Moments, his 2010 debut, was followed by two outingsfor Sony Masterworks revived OKeh imprint: Divine Travels in 2014 and thewidely celebrated Days of Freeman the following year. After working Americanstages and clubs, he toured European and Asian festivals. Radiant Imprints,a duo outing with drummer Chad Taylor, appeared in 2018 and was followedby the quintet offering An UnRuly Manifesto a year later. In 2021, after he wasselected as the Rising Star Tenor Saxophonist in the Downbeat InternationalCritics Poll, Lewis issued The Jesup Wagon, his debut for Tao Forms.

Along the way, Lewis drew the attention of many improvising artists, most notably the saxophonist and jazz deity Sonny Rollins, who doesnt offer effusivepraise very often. Moved by Lewis deep, spirit-seeking sound, Rollins saidWhen I listen to you, I listen to Buddha, I listen to Confucius … I listen to thedeeper meaning of life. You are keeping the world in balance.

Eye of I opens with 44 seconds of gritty, high-throttling low-down groove, anear pulverizing opening designed to cleanse all traces of ordinary from thepalette. From there, Lewis offers a prayerful cover of Donnie HathawaysSomeday Well All Be Free and then the first of his disarmingly addictiveoriginals, The Blues Still Blossoms in addition to many others.

Tracklist:

1. Foreground
2. Someday Well all be Free
3. The Blues Still Blossoms
4. Middle Ground
5. Eye of I
6. Within you are Answers
7. Womb Water
8. Background
9. Send Seraphic Beings
10. Even The Sparrow
11. Fear Not (feat. The Messthetics)

UPC: 045778795017
Label: Anti
Release Date: 2.3.23
Format: Vinyl