Marc Copland - Mid-1990s To 2000

Mid-1990s To 2000

In the 1990s, on the recommendation of Peter Erskine and John Abercrombie, Copland recorded with Vince Mendoza, in the process making the acquaintance of Japanese producer Takao Ogawa. A few years later Ogawa and Copland bumped into each other in a New York studio, agreeing to meet to discuss recording possibilities. Ogawa subsequently organized and produced Stompin’ with Savoy (Savoy), featuring an all-star quintet including fellow Philadelphian Randy Brecker and the late Bob Berg. Because of the limited distribution in the USA of his previous CDs, this release effectively became Copland's American debut. It garnered high praise in the American press, which cited his unique way of re-interpreting the standard repertoire, an approach which was widely copied by younger musicians later in the decade. The release led to three years of touring with the quintet in major clubs around the country. Savoy recorded three other albums, as well as a fourth CD that was never released.

• Stompin’ with Savoy/Savoy, 1995 (Randy Brecker, Bob Berg, James Genus, Dennis Chambers)
• Second Look/Savoy, 1996 (John Abercrombie, Drew Gress, Billy Hart)
• Softly/Savoy, 1998 (Michael Brecker, Tim Hagans, Joe Lovano, Gary Peacock, Bill Stewart)
• Untitled/Savoy, unreleased (Drew Gress, Bill Stewart, Jochen Rueckert)

Softly, like the other Savoy albums, was praised for its original approach and sophisticated musical approach, but also received special attention for its presentation of a unified album concept.