yaya3

Prior to uniting in Yaya3, saxophonist Joshua Redman, keyboardist Sam Yahel, and drummer Brian Blade had already crossed paths on many occasions. All three had led their own recording projects, and Blade had contributed as a sideman to Yahel’s Trio and In the Blink of an Eye as well as to Redman’s Freedom in the Groove. The decisive meeting point for the three proved to be Small’s, the New York club where Yahel held a twice-weekly engagement. On one such evening, with Blade already in the lineup, scheduled guitarist Peter Bernstein could not appear, prompting Yahel to enlist Redman as a last-minute replacement. The performance proved so successful that the musicians arranged a standing weekly slot at the venue and later organized a winter 2002 tour. Warner Bros. Records, Redman’s label, took notice and signed the trio, which took the name Yaya3 from one of Yahel’s nicknames. Their self-titled debut album appeared in June 2002 and signaled Warner’s revival of the Loma Records imprint.