Branford Marsalis Sets His Blue Note Debut With New Record ‘Belonging’

Saxophonist Branford Marsalis is set to make his Blue Note Records debut with the March 28th release of Belonging, a full album interpretation of Keith Jarrett’s 1974 ECM album of the same name which introduced the pianist’s European Quartet. Belonging is Marsalis’ first new release since 2019 with his acclaimed quartet featuring pianist Joey Calderazzo, bassist Eric Revis, and drummer Justin Faulkner. The album’s lead single, “Spiral Dance,” is out now.

When Belonging was originally released by Jarrett in ’74, it wasn’t on Marsalis’ radar. “I was a freshman in high school, listening to R&B,” he recalls. “I didn’t know Belonging existed.” It was pianist Kenny Kirkland who would later introduce him to Jarrett’s work with his European Quartet; “We were sitting on a plane sometime in the eighties and Kenny put his headphones on my ears and played [Jarrett’s 1979 album] My Song. When he tried to take the headphones back after five minutes I slapped his hand away; and when we got to the next city, I went out and bought every recording by that band.”

Belonging follows the inclusion of album track “The Windup” on Marsalis’ 2019 album The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul. While recording the song, bassist Revis had the idea for the group to interpret Belonging in full.

Approaching the material, the group sought a balanced interpretation. “On the composition ‘Belonging,’ I clearly played things that Jan played on the record,” Marsalis points out. “I didn’t try to reject the idea when it occurred, but at no point did we plan to consciously pay tribute. I’m always listening to the whole record, not just the saxophone solos, and the most impressive thing about Belonging for me is how it all fits together.”

The quartet will be touring extensively across North America and Europe over the coming months. More information can be found on Marsalis’ website.

Order Branford Marsalis Quartet’s Belonging.