R.I.P Steve Houben

I have often lamented, on this site and elsewhere, the very limited visibility of foreign musicians (except if they live among us) —including Belgians—in France, a country that is narrow-minded and xenophobic (that’s a bit bold, but I stand by it!).

And today (March 22, 2026) I’m lamenting twice as much because I’ve just learned of the passing of a great musician from Liège with an international reputation: Steve Houben. Every jazz fan should know him, and if you don’t, here’s your chance to catch up. For those who love French-language chanson, chances are you’ve heard of Steve as part of the HLM trio he formed with the Belgian singer (who has sadly passed away) Maurane and their fellow countryman, pianist Charles Loos.

This speaks to Houben’s musical versatility, given that he had previously played and/or recorded with none other than Chet Baker, the young Bill Frisell, Gerry Mulligan, George Coleman, or Michel Benita. The fact is, the Liège native—who founded the jazz department at his hometown’s conservatory before becoming its director—has always kept one eye on the U.S. (where he studied at the famous Berklee School in Boston) and the other on Europe, particularly Belgium.

Let’s be honest: what other European country besides the Low Countries can boast a proportion of great jazz musicians equal to that of Belgium? I won’t name (even under duress) Toots Thielemans, Philip Catherine, David Linx, Dré Pallemaerts, or Bobby Jaspar (a saxophonist and flutist, like Houben). But who among you knows the guitarist Jacques Pirotton, the saxophonist-flutist (again!) Manuel Hermia, drummer Felix Simtaine, double bassist Sal La Rocca, trombonist Phil Abraham, pianist Michel Herr, the Aka Moon trio, the Rêve d’Elephant orchestra, the Brussels Jazz Orchestra… (enough already!)?

You have an excuse: few French club, venue, or festival programmers have ever offered you the chance to discover these excellent musicians.

But let’s get back to Steve Houben. He has always displayed an open-mindedness and a diversity of tastes that led him to explore traditional music as well as jazz and chanson.

A virtuoso, certainly, he nevertheless prioritized the warmth of sound and the generosity of phrasing that made him one of the most endearing saxophonists and flutists in Europe. I won’t impose a posthumous biography on you here—you can find those elsewhere online, including on the websites of Belgian national media outlets: RTBF, Le Soir, La Libre Belgique… which mourn his passing and highlight all his musical and human qualities. But I cannot encourage you enough to explore this musician’s discography. It will easily convince you of his worth and the diversity of his talents. He leaves behind a son who is a trumpeter and singer: Greg Houben, who announced his passing a few days after his seventy-sixth birthday.

One final tip: if you have trouble waking up in the morning or after a nap, here’s the ultimate remedy: “Apache/Geronimo” by the Houben/Pirotton/Pougin trio on the album *We Can’t Stop Loving You* with its iconic cover. A mix tinged with Belgian humor, somewhere between Charlie Parker and the Shadows, that would make even the crippled dance and proves that, while Steve Houben may be gone, his music is here to help us stay alive!