For all of you who have been asking: Where has the saxophone been in pop music for the last 2+ decades? Well other than the occasional indie band using it, it’s been more or less in hibernation.
This little hibernation is over now thanks to the world’s #1 female pop icon, Lady Gaga. Lady Gaga enlisted the saxophone skills of none other than Clarence Clemons, on 2 of the tracks of her new album Born This Way.
Both “The Edge Of Glory” and “Hair” from yesterday’s released Born This Way album, signal to the world that yes, it is possible to successfully wed an acoustic instrument into electronic music. And that the saxophone, with its uncanny ability to mimic human vocal characteristics, is the most likely candidate for such an acoustic/electronic union.
At present there is no video yet for “The Edge Of Glory”. However as of yesterday, it was already No. 3 on the pop charts.¹
Clemons’ first entrance is around 3:02 in the song, where he has approximately a 30 second solo. Then he comes in around 4:30 again to weave around the vocals, before taking the song out.
Regardless if you’re a Lady Gaga fan or not, or if you’re a pop music fan or not, one thing is for certain: high level exposure like this of our instrument is a good thing. If the younger fans of Lady Gaga are exposed to the saxophone, then that may open up the possibility that more younger people will consider the saxophone as an instrument of choice.
No longer is the sax confined to the stuffy role of jazz—in young people’s minds. It has thrown its shackles, and is running free on the dance floor.
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