Supersax

by Scott YanowIn 1972, Med Flory and Buddy Clark formed a five-sax nonet (usually including a trumpeter) dedicated to playing the harmonized solos of Charlie Parker. Their recordings for Capitol, MPS, and Columbia (unlike their live performances) did not contain any individual saxophone solos and found the sax section playing note-for-note Bird improvisations (including the roller-coaster "Ko Ko") with impressive precision. Clark left the band in 1975, but Flory continued the group on a part-time basis for several decades, sometimes using the L.A. Voices. Among the top sidemen through the years have been Bill Perkins, Warne Marsh, Jay Migliori, Jack Nimitz, Lanny Morgan, trumpeter Conte Candoli, and trombonist Carl Fontana.