{"id":11552,"date":"2025-11-12T23:29:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T05:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=11552"},"modified":"2025-11-13T13:30:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T19:30:20","slug":"review-mark-turner-autobiography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-mark-turner-autobiography\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Mark Turner&#8217;s &#8216;Reflections on: The Auto-Biography of an Ex-Colored Man&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"\">A more cerebral artist, saxophonist and composer Mark Turner, never makes it too easy for the listener. However, he may have reached his zenith with <em>Reflections on: The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man<\/em> (Giant Step Arts, 2025), a work that combines verbal narrative and music.  As its title suggests, the album reflects upon the named book by civil rights activist, diplomat, professor, and composer of the Black national anthem, \u201cLift Every Voice and Sing,\u201d James Weldon Johnson. Johnson\u2019s book is a semi-fictional account of a biracial man able to \u201cpass\u201d as white during post-Reconstruction America. The novel remains one of the defining texts of African-American literature. Even now, over a century after it was written, the work continues to provide a critical perspective midst ongoing struggles with race and identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"lyte-wrapper fourthree\" style=\"width:420px;max-width:100%;margin:5px;\"><div class=\"lyMe\" id=\"WYL_eIP_0rc5BGI\"><div id=\"lyte_eIP_0rc5BGI\" data-src=\"\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/eIP_0rc5BGI\/hqdefault.jpg\" class=\"pL\"><div class=\"tC\"><div class=\"tT\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"play\"><\/div><div class=\"ctrl\"><div class=\"Lctrl\"><\/div><div class=\"Rctrl\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><noscript><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/eIP_0rc5BGI\" rel=\"nofollow\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/eIP_0rc5BGI\/0.jpg?resize=420%2C295&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"YouTube video thumbnail\" width=\"420\" height=\"295\" \/><br \/>Watch this video on YouTube<\/a><\/noscript><\/div><\/div><div class=\"lL\" style=\"max-width:100%;width:420px;margin:5px;\"><\/div><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">\u200bOf his album, Turner states that he \u201cwanted music enriched by words, not words enriched by music.\u201d It was essential to him that music be an equal partner, not provide a merely supporting role. And he largely succeeds, though Turner does not do this alone. He leads a quartet of trumpeter Jason Palmer, keyboardist David Virelles, bassist Matt Brewer, and drummer Nasheet Waits. At times, the group sounds orchestral. At others, it turned its focus towards the solos of Turner, Palmer, or Virelles. Like much of Turner\u2019s other work, the music is harmonically rich and at times rhythmically indefinable. It is emotionally intense but far from overbearing or explosive. Turner\u2019s sonic range is also immense. &nbsp;In this author\u2019s estimation, no other saxophonist can make a single saxophone sound like a baritone, tenor, alto, and soprano all in one. \u200bAnd Palmer is a perfect foil to Turner, with the two providing some of the most synergistic tenor saxophone and trumpet ever heard on record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"120\" style=\"position: relative; display: block; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/v=2\/track=2048182122\/album=567510331\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">When first published, Johnson\u2019s book listed its author as \u201canonymous,\u201d with such a label also serving as a title for the opening movement on Turner\u2019s record. On it, the narrator is conflicted and guilty from the outset:<em> \u201cI think I find a sort of savage and diabolical desire together with all the little tragedies of my life and turn them into a practical joke on society, and too I suffer in a vague feeling of unsatisfaction, of regret, of almost remorse, from which I am seeking relief.\u201d <\/em>On \u201cPragmatism,\u201d the narrator tackles issues around interracial marriage. He considers why so many Black men marry women with fairer skin, as do educated Black women with white men, ending with the line: \u201c<em>It\u2019s no disgrace to be Black, but it\u2019s often very inconvenient.\u201d <\/em>On \u201cThe Texan \u2026The Soldier,\u201d Palmer does most of the heavy lifting instrumentally before the movement ends with the devastating line of <em>\u201cAfter all, racial supremacy is merely a matter of dates in history.\u201d \u00a0<\/em>On the final track, the protagonist turns confessional: <em>\u201cIt is difficult for me to analyze my feelings concerning my present position in the world. \u00a0Sometimes it seems to me that I&#8217;ve never really been a negro, that I&#8217;ve been only a privileged spectator of their inner life.\u201d <\/em>The passage then ends definitively with the statement, <em>\u201cI have sold my birthright for a mess of pottage.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">\u200b<\/p>\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"120\" style=\"position: relative; display: block; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/v=2\/track=492130394\/album=567510331\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">While the words and music on <em>Reflections<\/em> are inseparable, \u00a0certain musical moments do stand out on their own. The backing trio, led by Virelles on piano, is brilliant on \u201cJuxtaposition,\u201d as they pave the way for Turner and Palmer\u2019s gorgeous intertwined lines. Turner solos extensively on \u201cPulmonary Edema,\u201d a series of liquid runs and clusters. Highlighted by the backing trio, here is where Turner\u2019s immense range and technical mastery of the horn most fully come into view, even as Palmer provides the lead voice. The duet between the two horns reveals some of the best tenor-trumpet unison playing for four minutes on \u201cIdentity Politics.\u201d \u200b<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"120\" style=\"position: relative; display: block; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/v=2\/track=3421474164\/album=567510331\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Yet the peak musical moments arrive in two pieces that find Virelles on the Prophet synthesizer, \u201cNew York\u201d and \u201cEurope.\u201d On the former, the group replicates the busy energy of the Big Apple with riveting playing by Palmer. The latter is initially more exploratory and ambient in feel and ends with one of the most provocative spoken-word passages joined by Turner at some of his most intense: \u201c<em>You will come to see that evil is a force, and, like the physical and chemical forces, we cannot annihilate it\u2026to attempt to right the wrongs and ease the sufferings of the world in general is a waste of effort. You had just as well try to bail the Atlantic by pouring water into the Pacific.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">There are albums and there are landmark projects that extend beyond music itself. <em>Reflections on: The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man<\/em> is a rare example of the latter. Words and music have seldom been more provocative. Listen often and intensely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><strong><em>&#8216;Reflections on: The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man&#8217; is out now on Giant Step Arts. It <a href=\"https:\/\/markturnerjazz.bandcamp.com\/album\/reflections-on-the-autobiography-of-an-ex-colored-man\" title=\"\">can be purchased on Bandcamp<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Photo Credit: Jimmy Katz<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A more cerebral artist, saxophonist and composer Mark Turner, never makes it too easy for the listener. However, he may have reached his zenith with Reflections on: The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (Giant Step Arts, 2025), a work that combines verbal narrative and music. As its title suggests, the album reflects upon the named [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":11553,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"iawp_total_views":41,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/unnamed-2.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/peRkRR-30k","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":762,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/irreversible-entanglements-who-sent-you\/","url_meta":{"origin":11552,"position":0},"title":"Review: Irreversible Entanglements&#8217; &#8216;Who Sent You?&#8217;","author":"Brian Kiwanuka","date":"May 13, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"In their debut and the live album released a year ago, Irreversible Entanglements wowed audiences with energetic free-jazz poetry performances, and that doesn't stop on Who Sent You? (International Anthem, 2020). Camae Ayewa does not have as many lines as on the band's first album, but whenever she does speak\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Irreversible Entanglements","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ie-groupshot-crop_page_image.jpg?fit=870%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ie-groupshot-crop_page_image.jpg?fit=870%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ie-groupshot-crop_page_image.jpg?fit=870%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ie-groupshot-crop_page_image.jpg?fit=870%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11138,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-glover-memories-dreams-reflections\/","url_meta":{"origin":11552,"position":1},"title":"Review: Nicole Glover\u2019s \u2018Memories, Dreams, Reflections\u2019","author":"Jim Hynes","date":"August 12, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Portland, Oregon native and current NYC resident, tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover may be best known as a member of the all-female jazz supergroup Artemis. Or possibly as a member of Christian McBride\u2019s Ursa Major. But she is also a bandleader, having recently released her third album as a leader -\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_0881.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_0881.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_0881.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_0881.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11358,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-garabedian-quartets-solos\/","url_meta":{"origin":11552,"position":2},"title":"Review: Noah Garabedian\u2019s \u2018Quartets and Solos\u2019","author":"Jim Hynes","date":"September 30, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"With Quartets and Solos (Contagious, 2025), bassist and composer Noah Garabedian appears for the first time on saxophonist Dayna Stephens' label. As one might expect, Stephens is a vital member of the quartet, wielding his tenor saxophone and EWI. Rounding out the ensemble are pianist Carmen Staaf, drummer Jimmy MacBride,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/img_1824.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/img_1824.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/img_1824.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/img_1824.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/img_1824.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7829,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-triple-fever\/","url_meta":{"origin":11552,"position":3},"title":"Review: &#8216;Triple Fever&#8217;","author":"John Chacona","date":"February 11, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Just when you think we\u2019ve reached peak piano trio, a new recording arrives to demonstrate the infinite elasticity of the venerable formation. It happens so often as to become routine. Yet surprises still abound, and this is one, a digital-only EP from a hitherto unknown label - to me, at\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Untitled-.jpg?fit=1084%2C723&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Untitled-.jpg?fit=1084%2C723&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Untitled-.jpg?fit=1084%2C723&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Untitled-.jpg?fit=1084%2C723&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/Untitled-.jpg?fit=1084%2C723&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11651,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/best-2025\/","url_meta":{"origin":11552,"position":4},"title":"PostGenre&#8217;s Best of 2025","author":"PostGenre Writing Staff","date":"December 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Deeming any album the \"best\" of a given year is inherently fraught with problems. First, there are the logistical issues. Generally, thousands of recordings are released annually. Given that a year has only 8,760 hours, it is logistically impossible to listen to everything. Often, classifications can help limit the scope.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Best of Lists&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Best of Lists","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/lists-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/img_2649.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/img_2649.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/img_2649.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/img_2649.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11552"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11552\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11554,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11552\/revisions\/11554"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}