Last week was Wynton (plus some Ellis); this week we have Branford. The Marsalis family has taken over Music Friday.

While searching for the best tune for this Friday, I came across a short Spike Lee film made in 1986, starring Branford: "Horn of Plenty."

I saw Branford playing with a trio in Chicago about 15 years ago. One song seemed to be cut in half at the start of the intermission; when the second half of the show started, the three started right back into the middle of the same song, as though no time had elapsed. You would probably have to hear it to know how well that worked.

If you were a fan and you saw him playing on the Jay Leno show, you probably had a sense of a great talent trapped on that set. Clearly, his soul has recovered from that time.

Now for plenty of music behind the cut — Branford with an assortment of songs and players,
in a concert to benefit Musician's Village and Habitat for Humanity, music right from the streets on a cloudy day in New Orleans.