Robert Lowe Passes

By Lars Bjorn

Guitarist Robert Lowe, Jr., passed away around Christmas (no exact date available). He was born in Detroit in 1948 and started to play guitar at seven years old.

Lowe was a player who excelled in both jazz and R&B settings. He recorded with the Lyman Woodard Organization on their Don’t Stop the Groove album, recorded at Cobb’s Corner in 1979. Organ groups had become a specialty of his, as he also played with organists Dr. Lonnie Smith and Charles Earland in the 1970s and Richard Groove Holmes in the 1980s. He worked with a number of vocalists such as Marlena Shaw, Mary Wilson and the Supremes, Kim Weston and Spanky Wilson.

Jeff Marx Passes

By Piotr Michalowski

Saxophonist Jeff Marx, who passed away on December 13, 2013, achieved much in his 62 years of life. Raised in Detroit, he studied and played in the Bay Area before moving on to New York, Chicago, and finally back to Detroit. He was mainly known for his hard-edged post-bop tenor and soprano saxophone playing (and sometimes also the flute), which graced many stages throughout the country and often strayed into more avant-garde territory.

Marx’s instrumental technique was impressive; he had a wonderfully rich sound on his horn, with a firm attack and a highly emotional approach to music. Over the years he played and recorded with many well-known musicians and toured Europe a number of times.

Marx recorded often with his friends, percussionist Jeff Siegel and pianist John Esposito.Their last CD, entitled Tahrir (Sunjumo Records), appeared in 2012 and included a feature for the rare mezzo-soprano saxophone, made only in the late twenties by Conn, that Marx had been mastering over the last few years.

Jeff was a versatile artist who was comfortable in many different contexts and he is missed by the many musicians that shared the stage with him in clubs in Detroit and surrounding areas.