Biography
The Manhattan Jazz Quintet stand apart from most ensembles because live appearances on American soil, let alone within Manhattan itself, have remained exceedingly rare, yet both their occasional visits and their recordings have enjoyed consistent popularity in Japan. Formed in 1983 at the urging of the King label and Swing Journal, the leading jazz periodical in that country, the original lineup featured pianist and leader David Matthews alongside trumpeter Lew Soloff, tenor saxophonist George Young, bassist Eddie Gomez, and drummer Steve Gadd. Emphasizing straight-ahead hard bop swinging, the group issued its debut album, titled simply Manhattan Jazz Quintet, which unexpectedly topped Japanese sales charts and earned Swing Journal’s 1984 Gold Disk Award as the nation’s best-selling jazz release that year.
After several seasons the ensemble disbanded when Gomez and Gadd chose to concentrate on separate endeavors, though every member of the quintet would later achieve notable individual success. The same personnel reconvened for sessions in 1990, during which guitarist John Scofield appeared as a guest on several tracks, and again in 1993. That year Victor Lewis took over the drum chair from Gadd; Andy Snitzer eventually succeeded Young on tenor saxophone, and Charnett Moffett replaced Gomez on bass. Throughout the 1980s the group recorded chiefly for King in Japan, with most of those dates licensed in the United States through Projazz, though a handful of later dates—among the few actually captured in Manhattan—appeared on the Sweet Basil label. In the new millennium the Manhattan Jazz Quintet have maintained a steady recording relationship with Video Arts.
After several seasons the ensemble disbanded when Gomez and Gadd chose to concentrate on separate endeavors, though every member of the quintet would later achieve notable individual success. The same personnel reconvened for sessions in 1990, during which guitarist John Scofield appeared as a guest on several tracks, and again in 1993. That year Victor Lewis took over the drum chair from Gadd; Andy Snitzer eventually succeeded Young on tenor saxophone, and Charnett Moffett replaced Gomez on bass. Throughout the 1980s the group recorded chiefly for King in Japan, with most of those dates licensed in the United States through Projazz, though a handful of later dates—among the few actually captured in Manhattan—appeared on the Sweet Basil label. In the new millennium the Manhattan Jazz Quintet have maintained a steady recording relationship with Video Arts.
Albums
