Home Brew

KENNEDY McLEOD QUINTET

BRR-202504CD

Track Listing

  1. 590 Blues (McLeod) [6:41]
  2. Dark Time (Kennedy) [5:44]
  3. Area 19 (McLeod) [5:56]
  4. Home Brew (Kennedy) [6:12]
  5. Isla (Kennedy) [6:35]
  6. Blues for DK (McLoed) [5:01]
  7. Tenacious ‘T’ (Kennedy) [6:46]
  8. One for PJ (Kennedy) [5:09]
  9. Who’ll Be Looking Back (McLeod, Noel) [7:03]

This recording from saxophonist Donny Kennedy and pianist Jeff McLeod beautifully encapsulates many of my core beliefs about music and the qualities that help make it special; Great compositions, performed with dedication, care and heart by musicians that have all honed their craft and constantly strive towards a high level of expression, both individually and as a collective. There is a relaxed but highly nuanced quality to every performance on the album, and it makes for a joyful listening experience from start to finish. And how wonderful to be treated to original compositions from both McLeod and Kennedy, which intersect and complement each other effortlessly throughout, while cutting a wide swath of styles and moods for the listener.
I have known Donny, Jeff, Steve, Pat, and Dave (as well as recording engineer Andre White who, as he always does, captured this music so brilliantly) for over twenty-five years, and some of them for over thirty-five! I’ve had the great pleasure of making music with all of them on numerous occasions over many years, and aside from their masterful musicianship, you would be hard pressed to f ind a finer group of human beings. I have tremendous respect and admiration for all of them, and I look forward to hopefully experiencing this band live very soon.
— Kelly Jefferson (October 2024)

Thanks to Jeff, Dave, Pat and Steve for their beautiful playing, and ability to adapt on the fly to some unexpected circumstances. Thanks to Andre for his amazing ears and expert recording skills. Thanks to Jihye for her help and for taking photos. Thanks to my family (Candace, Kaylee, Isla and Teagan) for all the support and inspiration. Thanks to Mom and Dad (Bev and Don) for all the support over the years, being great audience members and always helping out with the kids when we need it. Thanks to Dave Dick for helping facilitate recording in the Shubox at the University of Regina. Thanks to Ken Young for all the help setting up for the recording.
Jeff and I would also like to acknowledge financial support from the Saskatchewan Band Association and SK Arts. — Donny Kennedy

Massive thanks to Donny for doing the bulk of the legwork in getting this recording off the ground. It couldn’t have happened without you! As a young high school student in Regina, Saskatchewan, I became interested in jazz just as Donny and a crew of other slightly older Regina musicians headed off to study jazz at McGill University in Montreal.
They often did hometown concerts when they were back for the holidays and I made a point to check them out. I was always knocked out by how well they played and I left those early shows deeply inspired. Years later, Donny and I became great friends while teaching at the annual Prairielands Jazz Camp in Regina and we eventually released our first co-led recording Belaney’s Secret in 2013. Now, more than a decade later, I’m so excited to present our follow-up recording Home Brew. Thanks for everything, Donny. All these years later, I continue to be inspired by you and I always have a great time when we share the stage.
Thanks to Pat Collins, Dave Laing, and Steve Kaldstad — the third Reginan in the band. You all brought so much energy, musicality, and positive vibes to the session; you also pivoted amazingly and without question when things didn’t quite go as planned… Thanks to Dave Dick and everyone at the University of Regina Department of Music for hosting us and to Andre White and Jihye Im for their work in the studio. Thanks to the Saskatchewan Band Association for their financial support and to the Prairielands Jazz Camp for bringing us together. Thanks to my dad Bruce McLeod and stepmother Gail Kruger for putting me up when I was in town. Finally, a huge thank you to my amazing wife Erin Noel for her love and constant support.
— Jeff McLeod

Album Credits

Donny Kennedy – Alto Sax
Steve Kaldestad – Tenor Sax (Alto Sax on track 8)
Jeff McLeod – Piano
Pat Collins – Bass
Dave Laing – Drums

Produced by Donny Kennedy and Jeff McLeod Recorded on July 11, 12, 2024 at ‘The Shubox’ University of Regina
Recorded and Mixed by Andre White
Mastered by Guy Hébert, Concrete Mastering
All Compositions and Arrangements by Donny Kennedy and Jeff McLeod
“Who’ll Be Looking Back” by Jeff McLeod and Erin Noel
Executive Producer Craig Monk
Album Design by Tori Weston, DESN 231, Typography II, Design, MacEwan University
Design Management by Peter Haughland, Associate Professor
Bent River Records Team: Kristjan Buckingham, Padraig Buttner-Schnirer, Russell Comrie, Riley Dickinson, Will Drake, Rose Ginther, Ijaz Janmohamed, Paul Johnston, John McMillan, Jussi Pitkanen, Leili Rastad, Xavier Svekla
Special thanks to MacEwan University’s Provost, Dr. Craig Monk, for his ongoing support of Bent River Records.