Without a doubt, as a rock and blues tenor player my greatest single influence has been Lenny Pickett. I have for years been fascinated by Pickett’s fluency in the altissimo range, and mesmerized by his overall style as a rock and blues player.
I have carefully listened to Lenny Pickett’s approach to the altissimo range, and while not claiming to have near the facility that he does in that arena, when playing that style of music, I am known as one of those screaming tenor players—consistently playing up to F#4. (Sometimes higher on a good day.) 😉
From all accounts Lenny Pickett is a humble man. His screaming tenor solos have been a quintessential element of the Saturday Night Live’s (SNL) house band’s sound since 1985, and since 1995 he has also been the band’s musical director.
In addition to being a full-time performer, Pickett is also a faculty member at New York University, in the Department of the Performing Arts, Jazz Studies.
A couple of days ago a came across these two videos of Lenny Pickett being interviewed. This is perhaps the most fascinating interview with a musician I have ever heard. Pickett is without a doubt not only a very talented man; he also a very brilliant one.
In this interview Pickett talks about his musical beginnings; his teenage years; what got him started on his now-famous altissimo range; his time with Tower of Power; as well as his current tenure with SNL.
Since Pickett mentions the now famous outfits he wore with TOP, it’s only fitting to conclude with a vintage 1973 Soul Train performance, complete with a gold lamé suite. What’s good about this performance, is that all the band members are introduced by name.
