Vincent Herring - Split Decision

Split Decision brings Eric Alexander and Vincent Herring back into the ring twenty years after their first saxophone battle, captured live at Smoke Jazz Club with a rhythm section that could keep pace with anything the two of them threw at each other.

Their original 2005 head-to-head set the template for a very specific kind of jazz event, two tenor and alto powerhouses genuinely competing rather than just trading polite solos, and this third record proves the chemistry never actually cooled off in the two decades since. Mike LeDonne on piano, John Webber on bass, and Lewis Nash on drums give both saxophonists exactly the foundation this kind of cutting contest needs, sturdy enough to let the two horns push each other without ever feeling like the rhythm section is just keeping time in the background.

Pharoah's Dance opens the set at full intensity, both players announcing they're not here to hold back. My Romance slows the pace into the record's most romantic stretch, proof the two can trade tenderness as convincingly as fire. Mo's Theme closes the album on its most collaborative note, less duel than genuine conversation after an hour of friendly combat.

Twenty years later, the rematch justified itself completely. Some rivalries only get more interesting with age.