BY: DIGITAL WAX MEDIA STAFF
Iconic jazz musician, Branford Marsalis has released a new single, “Belonging,” the title track from Marsalis’ upcoming Blue Note Records debut album of the same name. Due out on March 28, 2025, through Blue Note, Belonging will serve as a full-length interpretation of 1974’s Belonging by Keith Jarrett, originally released on ECM.
Featuring members the saxophonist’s highly regarded quartet, which includes members Justin Faulkner on drums, Eric Revis on bass, and Joey Calderazzo on piano, Belonging will be the first release from Marsalis as a bandleader since 2020’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and his first with his quartet since 2019’s Grammy-nominated The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul.
Marsalis’ performance on the title track, much like the rest of the album’s cuts, was inspired by the quartet’s collective love of Jarrett’s Belonging, and features Marsalis on soprano saxophone.
“We were sitting on a plane sometime in the eighties and Kenny put his headphones on my ears and played [the 1979 Keith Jarrett album] My Song. When he tried to take the headphones back after five minutes I slapped his hand away; and when we got to the next city, I went out and bought every recording by that band,” says Marsalis of his initial discovery of Jarrett’s work.
“We were all listening to [Jarrett’s] ‘The Windup’ for the last record, and [bassist] Revis said that we should just record Belonging, the whole album is so great and we could do things with it. We all liked the idea, and then the pandemic came. When the pandemic ended, we all still felt that yeah, we should do this.”
Among the insights brought to the project by Marsalis and his band are those of experience and hindsight, with the bandleader stating of the project,
“The biggest benefit we have is 50 years of information that Keith’s band didn’t have, and our ability to process that shared experience.”
Branford Marsalis will be touring North America and Europe behind the Belonging material with his quartet throughout the remainder of the year. Performance dates for the ensemble can be seen below, and details on ticket purchases can be found at the Branford Marsalis website.
”Belonging” and lead single “Spiral Dance” are currently available to stream on all major platforms.
- Friday, March 4, 2025
Santa Fe, NM Jazz Tour Lensic PAC
7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, March 5, 2025
Scottsdale, AZ Jazz Tour Scottsdale PAC
7:30 p.m.
- Sunday, March 6, 2025
Tucson, AZ Jazz Tour Fox Tucson Theatre
7:30 p.m.
- Friday, March 7, 2025
Las Vegas, NV Jazz Tour The Smith Center
7:00 p.m.
- Saturday, March 8, 2025
Las Vegas, NV Jazz Tour The Smith Center
6:00 p.m.
- Saturday, March 8, 2025
Las Vegas, NV Jazz Tour The Smith Center
8:30 p.m.
- Monday, March 10, 2025
Santa Cruz, CA Jazz Tour Kuumbwa Jazz
7:00 p.m.
- Monday, March 10, 2025
Santa Cruz, CA Jazz Tour Kuumbwa Jazz
9:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, March 11, 2025
Berkeley, CA Jazz Tour Freight & Salvage
8:00 p.m.
- Wednesday, March 12, 2025
Stanford, CA Jazz Tour Bing Concert Hall
7:30 p.m.
- Thursday, March 13, 2025
Cerritos, CA Jazz Tour Cerritos Center PA
7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, March 15, 2025
Kansas City, MO Jazz Tour Folly Theater
7:30 p.m.
- Thursday, March 27, 2025
Nashville, TN Classical Tour Schermerhorn Symphony Center
7:30 p.m.
- Friday, March 28, 2025
Nashville, TN Classical Tour Schermerhorn Symphony Center
7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, March 29, 2025
Nashville, TN Classical Tour Schermerhorn Symphony Center
7:30 p.m.
- Monday, April 1, 2025
Stuart, FL Jazz Tour The Lyric Theatre
7:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, April 2, 2025
Sarasota, FL Jazz Tour Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall
7:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, April 3, 2025
Largo, FL Jazz Tour Central Park PAC
7:30 p.m.
- Friday, April 5, 2025
Savannah, GA Jazz Tour Lucas Theatre for the Arts
8:00 p.m.
- Saturday, April 6, 2025
Richmond, KY Jazz Tour EKU Center for the Arts
6:00 p.m.
- Monday, April 8, 2025
Orlando, FL Jazz Tour Judson’s Live
7:00 p.m.
- Monday, April 8, 2025
Orlando, FL Jazz Tour Judson’s Live
9:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, April 9, 2025
Orlando, FL Jazz Tour Judson’s Live
7:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, April 9, 2025
Orlando, FL Jazz Tour Judson’s Live
9:00 p.m.
- Wednesday, April 10, 2025
Clarksburg, WV Jazz Tour Robinson Grand PAC
7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, April 12, 2025
York, PA Classical Tour Strand Theatre
7:30 p.m.
- Friday, April 25, 2025
San Antonio, TX Jazz Tour Jo Long Theatre
8:00 p.m.
- Sunday, April 27, 2025
New Orleans, LA Jazz Tour Fair Grounds Race Course
11:00 a.m.
- Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Minneapolis, MN Jazz Tour Dakota
6:30 p.m.
- Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Minneapolis, MN Jazz Tour Dakota
8:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Minneapolis, MN Jazz Tour Dakota
6:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Minneapolis, MN Jazz Tour Dakota
8:30 p.m.
- Thursday, May 1, 2025
Madison, WI Jazz Tour Shannon Hall
7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, May 3, 2025
Rahway, NJ Jazz Tour Union County PAC
8:00 p.m.
- Sunday, May 4, 2025
Rochester, NY Jazz Tour Hochstein Performance Hall
8:00 p.m.
- Thursday, May 22, 2025
Chicago, IL Jazz Tour Chicago Hilton Grand Ballroom
6:00 p.m.
- Sunday, June 1, 2025
Charleston, SC Jazz Tour Charleston Music Hall
7:00 p.m.
- Monday, July 1, 2025
Montreal, Quebec Jazz Tour Théâtre Maisonneuve
8:00 p.m.
- Sunday, July 6, 2025
Glynde, England Jazz Tour Glynde Place – Love Supreme Jazz Festival
12:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, July 8, 2025
Rome, Italy Jazz Tour Casa Del Jazz
9:00 p.m.
- Friday, July 11, 2025
Rotterdam, Netherlands Jazz Tour Ahoy – North Sea Jazz Festival
2:30 p.m.
- Saturday, July 12, 2025
Gent, Belgium Jazz Tour Bijlokesite
4:00 p.m.
- Sunday, August 30, 2025
Washington, DC Jazz Tour The Wharf
12:00 p.
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