A Tribute to Joey DeFrancesco - Tenor Madness Band

Tribute to Joey DeFrancesco- Tenor Madness band

with Dan Trudell, Greg Arty, Doug Lawrence &  Jerry Weldon 

Before Joey DeFrancesco’s untimely death on August 25th, 2022, he was booked to appear at Chicago’s legendary club The Jazz Showcase with his newest creation - Joey DeFrancesco’s Tenor Madness Band. This would have been Joey’s third appearance at the The Jazz Showcase in 2022 and he was excited to present this new band to his beloved Chicago audience.

Joey picked two of his favorite tenor saxophonists in the world for the front line of his new band - Doug Lawrence (star tenor soloist with the multi-Grammy® winning Count Basie Orchestra) and Jerry Weldon (star tenor soloist with Grammy® winning Harry Connick’s band). Both players come from the swinging “big sound” school of tenor playing that Joey loved so much. The school that include greats like Gene Ammons, Dexter Gordon, Arnett Cobb, Lockjaw Davis, Johnny Griffin and others.

Doug Lawrence and Jerry Weldon have both been featured soloists with a virtual “who’s who” of the jazz organ world, including - Wild Bill Davis, Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff, Dr Lonnie Smith, Charles Earland, Bill Doggett, and of course, Joey DeFrancesco.

In 2021, Joey DeFrancesco’s Tenor Madness Band premiered at Parker Jazz Club in Austin, TX to rave reviews and sold out audiences. The band was such a success that Joey booked The Jazz Showcase in Chicago and started making plans to take the band on the road in 2023. It would be a tour that included a live recording at the famed Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London among other highlights.

Rounding out the band for this appearance at The Jazz Showcase is Chicago’s great jazz organist, Dan Trudell. Dan will be playing Hammond B3 along with Greg Artry on drums. Both Trudell and Artry are popular mainstays on the Chicago jazz scene and world-class musicians in their own right. They have worked with Benny Golson, Ron Carter, Jimmy Heath, Frank Wess, Joe Williams and many others.

When the devastating news of Joey DeFrancesco’s sudden and unexpected death became public, musicians and fans around the world mourned in disbelief. It is truly a tragedy of epic proportions for the music world. Joey’s “bigger than life” talent and persona was, and never will be, matched. He was one of those musicians that only come around once in a lifetime. Joey will, without doubt, go down in history as one of the greatest jazz artists of all-time.

After the initial shock of Joey’s passing, it was time for Wayne Segal, proprietor of The Jazz Showcase, to make a decision on how to proceed with the dates that Joey had been engaged.

Wayne made the decision to keep the band Joey had originally booked and make the engagement a tribute and celebration of Joey’s life. It seemed like the only logical choice and something that Joey would have wanted. With the blessings of Joey’s beloved wife, Gloria DeFrancesco, The Jazz Showcase proudly and respectfully presents our Tribute to Joey DeFrancesco. We sincerely hope you can attend our heartfelt send-off for the greatest jazz organist and multi-instrumentalist that ever lived. The one and only Joey DeFrancesco.

Host or Publisher Jazz Showcase