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Saltman Knowles Quintet
“Return of the Composer”
Label: Pacific Coast Jazz
Street Date: February 24, 2009
Mark Saltman (bass), William A. Knowles (piano), Lori Williams (vocals), Jimmy “Junebug” Jackson (drums), and Rob
Landham (alto saxophone), and Alvin Trask (trumpet)
The Saltman Knowles Quintet
The Saltman Knowles Quintet is a shining example of the tradition in jazz for long‐term artist collaborations. This
Washington DC group is known for serving up melodically alluring while rhythmically infectious music with a sincere and
emotional collection of songs. Bassist Mark Saltman and pianist William Knowles, the leaders of this seamless blending of
sounds, met while attending the composition program at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and created a musical
bond with similar affections for the music of Billy Strayhorn, Horace Silver, Cedar Walton and Charles Mingus.
The new release, “Return of the Composer” exemplifies the cohesive unit created with a strong underlying
foundation, interesting melodic lines, spirited rhythms and superlative musicianship. With four CDs under their belt the group
decided to continue their journey into creative musical explorations by including the soulful sounds of vocalist Lori Williams in a
more unconventional way. The use of the voice as an instrumental texture executing complex melodies while avoiding the
cliché of standard vocal presentations is the icing on the cake of this delicious voyage of musical expression. The compelling
clarity of Lori’s vocals add to the rich spirit of this CD that includes drummer Jimmy “Junebug” Jackson, alto sax player Rob
Landham and trumpeter Alvin Trask who provide a lush array of musical brilliance to this solid mix.
According to Saltman Knowles “What makes this record different sound wise is the use of vocalese (using the voice as
another instrument). We're lucky in the sense that we can have both an instrumental sound like a straight swinging quintet as
well as a vocal sound. . The music we write is melodic, harmonically dense, and swinging. Often our music is a sketch of
personal situations in our lives or of those friends who are close to us. Music is our way of commenting about life.”
“Pianist William Knowles and bassist Mark Saltman are in top form on “Return Of The Composer”. While their
music could be considered part of the modern jazz mainstream, it has its unusual and distinctive qualities. There is much to
discover on this memorable outing.” ‐ Scott Yanow, Jazz Journalist and Author of ten jazz books including The Jazz Singers,
Jazz On Film and Jazz On Record 1917‐ 76
ABOUT “Return of the Composer” in their own words:
The title comes from the Star Wars movie “Return of The Jedi” but basically speaks to the focus of our sound that is founded on
what we believe is being ignored in music today, which is a return to solid song writing and compositions.
Track 1 – Homeland: It’s about longing for a place to call your own where you feel like you belong and can feel comfortable.
The concept is more of a spiritual home than a physical one.
Track 2 – Bellport: Bellport is a sleepy somewhat segregated town in NY. Alvin, Bug and I played Ain’t Misbehavin at the
Gateway Theater. The theater housed the band in a renovated chicken coup. The experience was less than savory.
Track 3 ‐ A Study In Purple: (written by Mark Saltman) I actually came up with the groove on the morning I found out one of
my colleagues died of sickle cell. But the title is about the color corresponding with the feel of the song.
Track 4 ‐ Shalom and Salaam: This composition comes from the words peace in Hebrew and Arabic. It uses elements from
both cultures and is my personal wish for peace in the Middle East. I used to study with Dr. Yusef Lateef, who is one of my
musical fathers and we had so much in common.
Track 5 – Disfavor: Disfavor is for Tim Knowles, a dedicated educator who briefly lost his job and bounced back. My pops is a
likable fellow. Iʼm used to seeing him healthy happy and in charge of life. Itʼs hard to watch loved ones struggle.
Track 6 ‐ Seeds and Deeds: Just your general groovin' tune. The deeds we do today are the seeds for things tomorrow.
Track 7 ‐ It's Been A Mad Spring: This comes from just a crazy time in life when my Dad had passed away and sometimes you
look back and it seems that life has just been business as usual‐ until you reflect back and realize how fucked up it all was.
Track 8 ‐ Creepin' Up: A good groove puts a hump in your back. It starts in the toes and proceeds up the body. Iʼve always been
fond of 12/8 grooves.
Track 9 ‐ A Pillar of Saltman: This was written for my Dad, Kopi Saltman, who as I said earlier passed away; I always felt that
while he was very quiet, he always tried to hold firm to his ethics and beliefs.
Track 10‐ Pain Management: Every genre of music has songs for the broken hearted. Jazz is no exception. She ran off with
another man.
Mark Saltman always wanted to join his stepbrother, Steve, every time he played the drums in their basement. Born in
Bridgeport, Connecticut he grew up with a father who listened to jazz, which helped to influence Mark’s future passion for
playing bass. “My Father, who “Return of the Composer” is partly for, used to have a big Jazz collection. He was into Horace
Silver, Art Blakey, Miles Davis, Brubeck and some West Coast like Shorty Rogers. I used to listen to his records and I kind of
knew the song “Take 5” but I really started to dig it when I heard Al Jarreau's version of it.” His next big influence was the great
American jazz multi‐instrumentalist, composer and educator, Dr. Yusef Lateef whom Mark met while attending the University
of Massachusetts at Amherst. Dr. Lateef helped Mark form his unique musical ideas and concepts by encouraging him to find
his “own sound within”. Eventually he did a recording with Dr. Lateef entitled “CHNOPS Gold +Soul”. “I spent a lot of time
with Dr. Yusef Lateef when I was up at the University of Massachusetts. I was supposed to have an hour lesson, but if the
people after me didn't show up it would go on for a long time. I think the record was six hours straight. We used to talk about
all kinds of things including music, religion, and politics. He is Muslim and I am Jewish, so we really went into the whole
religious thing. It was totally respectful and incredibly enlightening. “ While at Hartt school Mark had the opportunity to study
with Jackie McClean for a year, along with a couple of other great musicians, Midge Pike and Salvatore Macchia on the bass
and Richie Hartt whom Mark refers to as “a great guitar player”. His desire to compose manifested at an early age from an
intuitive reaction to a frustrating childhood but it helped him to fill the gap and ultimately became the focus of his life. These
deep experiences opened Mark up to the intricate and haunting melodies of many unique jazz masters. “From a composition
standpoint I really like Billy Strayhorn, Sting and Horace Silver. Strayhorn was a master at beautiful melodies and harmonic
interest; I mean just listen to a song like “My Little Brown Book”. Sting I love because he is a supposed pop artist but look at
how sophisticated his music is not to mention brilliant lyrics. And Horace Silver really brought the music forward with different
feels while still using great chord changes.” Besides his dedication to the Saltman Knowles Quintet, Mark is an educator in the
Washington DC schools and likes exploring the relationship between sound and color in the study of Synaesthesia.
William Knowles was born in Milwaukee Wisconsin where as a young boy he banged on his great grandmother’s piano so
much that she finally gave it to his mother for him to play at home. His passion for piano still hasn’t ended. With two older
famous cousins in jazz, John and Jeff Clatyon, it is no surprise that William seized the music gene and became interested in jazz
at a young age. His determination to make music his career took him to Howard University to study jazz and he continued his
education with graduate work in composition at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst where he first met and
collaborated with Mark Saltman. William studied with Stanley Cowell and was personally inspired by Cedar Walton, Danillo
Perez, Harold Mabern, Tommy Flanagan, and Hank Jones. “What impressed me about all of these players is their writing and
choice of well written tunes. I also love Hank and Tommy's touch and harmonic sense while Mabern makes the modal thing
make sense.” Besides his dedication to the Saltman Knowles Quintet, William contributes his pianistic talents to the theater
community in such shows as: Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill, Ain't Misbehavin, All Night Strut, Dinah Was, King of Cool and
Tambourines to Glory. He has composed and arranged music for Slam, Pearl Bailey, Jazz Royalty, and Cool Papa's Party. “I love
being a part of a team of artists and telling a great story. “
Saltman Knowles Quintet have been together for quite some time winding a path with various like minded musicians including
saxophonist, Charles Langford and drummer, Mark Prince. Since their first introduction in their college days Mark and William
have been creating compositions that express their musical philosophies. The bond that binds the two is their mutual hunger
for melodic content woven within a tapestry of harmonic emotional patterns. “It all starts with a singable melody because
without that there is no glue. Then, we like to do something that sounds harmonically unique but has a groove. We like to
write things that evoke very strong feelings.” They both reside in Washington, a lively, culturally rich area with a number of
clubs, venues, and theaters. Besides producing three CDs with Soulservice including “Stop, Look and Listen”, “Dream Catcher”
and “Sandcastles” their last release, “It’s About the Melody” received excellent reviews and introduced the soulful appeal of
vocalist Lori Williams. Saltman and Knowles spent time as artists in residence for the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage,
received two grants from the DC Commission of the Arts and Humanities and won the Best International Jazz song in 2007 from
Toronto Exclusive Magazine. The new release, “Return of the Composer,” continues the ascent of musical excellence for this
artistically original Quintet.
Label Website: PacificCoastJazz.com /Distributed worldwide by MVD Audio/Big Daddy Music
Available soon at: CDBaby.com, iTunes, Amazon.com
Media Contact:
Joy Foster, SV Media Relations/SVMediaRelations@gmail.com/SVMediaRelations.com, (310) 487‐004

SaltmanKnowles