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Those who know that the definition of jazz diverges more than it converges have always loved the music of Eddie Harris (1934-1996). Even if hooking up electronic gizmos to his horn, unleashing an eerily earthy vocal or digging into another funk tune, everything he played and sang was done with deep, heartfelt conviction. Harris could bop with the best, but refused to be taken prisoner by the jazz fundamentalists. Field shouts, churchy call and response, booty-shaking rhythms, the coolest R&B sounds: Eddie Harris knew they were all cut from the same African cloth. When Harris hooked up with his old Detroit friend and occasional touring partner Wendell Harrison for a joint appearance at the 1994 Montreux Detroit festival, the act was promoted as "The Battle of the Tenors." Yet, as the saxophone was only one of Eddie Harris' mediums, he agreed to go just one quick round (on Sonny Rollins' "Tenor Madness") before getting into a variety of other things (such as African vocal, piano playing, electric funk saxophone, and singing his all-time hit "Eddie Who?") that testify his complete showmanship and make this recording a true legacy.
Growing up when Detroit's hard bop scene was peaking, Wendell Harrison was mentored by pianist Barry Harris and played gigs with such as Hank Crawford, Marvin Gaye, and Esther Phillips. While commanding a fiery, juicy tenor himself, Harrison spent the last decade conquering the clarinet and making it his first instrument. On stage with Eddie Harris, he made the wise decision to step back and let his buddy do his own thing. "That's why this record is such an important document," says Harrison. "Most of his own records didn't really reflect all the things Eddie is about -- singing, comedy, saxophone, piano, tunes. This one covers the man himself."
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