TROY ROBERTS is a two-time Grammy nominated Australian saxophonist and composer who now works in and around New York City. He’s just released his eleventh release as a leader… ‘Days Like These’. The 8 tracker, though, marks a milestone in Troy’s career. It’s the first release on his own, new label, Toy Robot Music.
Though on ‘Days Like These’ Robert’s name is out front, it’s a collaborative effort featuring organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts. The trio have history. Roberts has enjoyed being a regular member of DeFrancesco’s band for four years and worked with the organ grinder on two recent Van Morrison albums … ‘The Prophet Speaks’ (2018) and ‘You’re Driving Me Crazy’ (2018). Roberts has also been a member of the Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts Quartet and the synergy between the three is obvious on each epic workout (the shortest track clocks in at almost seven minutes!) as Roberts allows the players to stretch out. Amongst those other players are pianist/organist Emmet Cohen, who appears on five tracks.
‘Days Like These’ is a swinging affair and the presence of Joey DeFrancesco gives a flavour of 60s soul jazz to proceedings… it’s out now.
