28th October 2009

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top 11 saxophone moments of all time

I have prepared the following saxophone solo list partially in honour (with a “u”) of The Lonely Island’s “Saxman”, and partially in honor (without a “u”) of another song, which will be discussed below…

Please listen to all of the above song. You will laugh your face off. Have I ever steered you wrong?

Don’t answer that.

But in all seriousness, I really miss the presence of the saxophone in modern rock music. One of the things I most appreciated about The Killers’ recent Day & Age album was the prominent use of the sax, especially in “Losing Touch”, “Joy Ride” (especially at 1:03), and “I Can’t Stay” (especially at 1:39).

I really hope that the sax makes a strong comeback. Until then, sit back and check out the ELEVEN BEST SAXOPHONE MOMENTS IN POP/CLASSIC ROCK HISTORY. Yes, it’s a Top 11 list. Get over it. Please also get over the fact that each artist only gets to appear once. So all you Clarence Clemons fans who think more Bruce songs should be on this list, go write your own list.

And away we go…

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11. Rolling Stones - Brown Sugar

Classic Stones tune. Super-spirited and fairly buzzy sax solo appears at 1:38.

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10. Pink Floyd - Money

Now, I know there are a fair amount of Floyd haters out there, but this solo is simply divine. Leads up perfectly to the intense axe solo just afterwards. Go to 2:02 to hear it.

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9. Steely Dan - Dr. Wu

Anyone who knows me must know that choosing my favorite sax solo from this band was like choosing my favorite sax solo played by my own children. Or something like that. (Check my review of Steely Dan live in NYC.) Regardless, the sax solo is at 1:31, and is — like most of Steely’s stuff — remarkably smooth.

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8. Billy Joel - Still Rock ‘n Roll to Me

Again, there are a cadre of great Billy J songs that could qualify for this PRESTIGIOUS list. This one is the best of the bunch. A salient factor in the inclusion of this song over others is the fact that I’ve always wanted a pair of pink sidewinders and a bright orange pair of pants. Check the solo out at 1:52.

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7. Supertramp - The Logical Song

Ok, I admit it! I went through a HAYUUGE Supertramp phase last fall. Don’t think that this delectable (if not a little angry) sax solo wasn’t a big reason for that. Go to 1:53.

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6. Hall & Oates - I Can’t Go For That

First things first: to ascertain my feelings on Hall & Oates (or H&O as I like to call them), please refer to this post.

Go to 2:42 for this delightful sax solo, and then wag your finger along with Daryl as he sings “I can’t go for that.”

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5. Men at Work - Who Can It Be Now

K. Now, this isn’t EXACTLY a solo. Regardless, one of the best songs to come out of the 80’s. And it has sax EVERYWHERE. Coincidence? No.

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4. George Michael - Careless Whisper

This might be the full realization of the saxophone’s cheesy potential. The inventor of the saxophone back in the Iron Age must have been HOPING that his new snaky woodwind instrument would one day play this riff. Or something like it. Says George Michael: “You’re welcome, sax inventor.”

Also, if this sax solo was personified, it would be the creepy guy hanging by himself in the corner of the bar, way too dressed up, making burning eye contact with any female he happens to see, and then offering to buy said female an appletini.

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3. Gerry Rafferty - Baker Street

This one gets going at about 0:24. This song gets special attention, since it was the one that helped inspire this entire list.

My law school buddy Will once asked both (other law school buddy) Jordan and me if we knew the song “with the really awesome sax part…it goes like, ‘bada bah bah - bada bidada…bada bah bah - bada dahhh.’” Jordan and I racked our brains. And racked. We KNEW the song. We could SING the song. But we couldn’t figure it out. UNTIL, a few days later, out of nowhere, Jordan sends an email to both of us with a subject line something like “the internet is my bitch”. Which contained the link to Gerry Rafferty’s “Baker Street.” Needless to say, Will and I were overjoyed. And the sheer EPIC-NESS of this saxophone part really got me thinking about saxophones in general. And yes, that’s a completely normal response.

(Sidenote: Gerry Rafferty was the lead singer of all-hype no-substance British “supergroup” Stealer’s Wheel. This crew put out the radio classic “Stuck In The Middle With You,” which is a song that has been attributed to the wrong bands for years, and will be for years to come. The song also (obviously) served as the background to the scene in Reservoir Dogs where Michael Madsen cuts that dude’s ear off.)

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2. Bob Seger - Old Time Rock ‘n Roll (Live)

Oh, lord. There are TWO phenomenal solos in this one: 2:54, 4:43 (and pay particular attention to the sequence at 4:59). I remember hearing this live version when I was a kid and INSTANTLY wanting to learn the sax. How can you not?

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1. Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run

And so here we are: the absolute gold standard that all saxophone solos must compare themselves to. Perfectly aggressive. Not that loud. Not even that long. It accomplishes exactly what it wants to accomplish, and then lets Bruce do what he does best: slide into cameras with his crotch. Go to 1:52 for the sax solo.

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And whew. What a journey. More similar - perhaps not as epic, but similar - journeys to come. Until then…thanks for reading.