Joe Elefante - Return of the Light (2025) [Hi-Res]

Joe Elefante's jazz career was reignited following the tragic loss of his wife in 2024, prompting the musician to leave his schoolteaching job and return to jazz. The first recorded outcome of this decision is the album Return of the Light, a pleasant quintet session that Elefante intends as "a meditation on compassion, connection and the possibility of healing," drawing on his jazz expertise and Buddhist beliefs. The recording features trumpeter Freddie Hendrix, alto saxophonist Erena Terakubo, bassist Sameer Shankar, and drummer Dave Heilman. Elefante wrote nine of the eleven compositions, including the ballad "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)" and John Coltrane's "Some Other Blues," performing on piano and also singing and scatting on "Some Other Blues." The album is noted for impressive solos from all collaborators, representing a superb and well-earned group effort.



Tracklist:
1-1 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Jazz for Dummies [6:59]
1-2 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Mudita [6:55]
1-3 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Return of the Light [9:03]
1-4 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Cromwell [5:12]
1-5 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Ankara Blues [6:30]
1-6 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Nobly Born [4:09]
1-7 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) [10:17]
1-8 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Simple Girl [8:13]
1-9 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Loving Kindness [1:29]
1-10 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Sore on the Floor [6:32]
1-11 Joe Elefante;Freddie Hendrix;Erena Terakubo;David Heilman;Sameer Shankar - Some Other Blues [6:15]