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1/19/2015 – If you’re not one of those jazz fans who are “rabidly reed oriented” – I can guarantee that you WILL be after you’ve had a few snorts of The Tipton’s Sax Quartet! What a SHOW, folks… the players (Amy Denio: alto sax, clarinet, voice; Jessica Lurie: alto & tenor sax, flute, voice; Sue Orfield: tenor sax, voice; Tobi 
Stone: baritone sax, voice Tarik Abouzied: drums and percussion) are all very familiar to me, especially Amy and Jessica, who I’ve reviewed (and/or interviewed) many times over the last 30 years or so! Tonight is the first time I’ve been in my favorite jazz haunt (Rhythm & Rye) since the beginning of 2015… they’ve rearranged the room…. stage is now on the other side, with the sound system & control booth much more accessible… layout is much more like a “club”, at least for this Monday night jazz gig… will reserve my final judgement until after the band does sound checks & started playing. Initial impression is that it feels much more like a “scene” – & that’s a very good feeling! The stage definitely looks more legitimate. Lots of folks rollin’ in right at 8:00 & not even a sound check yet. Though I’ve watched, listened to & reviewed Amy over many years, this is the first time I’ve seen her with the Tiptons, & it promises to SMOKE… 4 sax ladies & a drummer… if you don’t enjoy jazz reed work, this may not be your cuppa’… but if you do, you’re in for a maximum tilt treat! Jessica intros/MC’s, with a vocal start-up from her, then she and Amy, in the manner of true masters, just WRAP the audience into their vocal spell… next, the horns cut in on a slow dirge… sonically, they are KILLER… when Sue Orfield plays her super blues in solo mode, it’s totally GREAT! This is the kind of pro playing you only get when a crew has been playing together for years & years, & the proof’s in the pudding, volkz…. EVERYONE in the audience is listening for the next note… not a drab of “chatter” in the house…. the vocal fadeout, similar to the opening, has all ears in the house waiting for the last breath to be uttered, so they can burst into a round of well-deserved applause for this great band! Though it’s clear these numbers are all well-rehearsed and thought out, each & every phrase comes across as totally natural and free. If you haven’t listened to The Tipton’s before, you need to catch the next live show in your area (R&R was the first stop on yet another West Coast tour)… I can say (without qualification) that this is the BEST show I’ve ever watched at Rhythm & Rye!!! Absolute COOL!!!