Who is your biggest inspiration?

I’d have to say every musician I meet. There so many talented and enthusiastic performers I encounter both young and old that inspire me to compose, arrange and perform. Writing a duet for a grade 1 violin and tenor horn and seeing their delight at having something written just for them gives me as much of a buzz as sitting alongside some amazing performers that have worked with the likes of Frank Sinatra and Sir Simon Rattle

Which musician, past or present, would you most like to meet?

Composer, arranger and valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer has long fascinated me as someone who couldn’t be pigeonholed by genre. From the austerity of his Skylark arrangement for the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis band to his swinging jazz playing with Clark Terry, he has it all.

What hobbies do you have, other than music?

I do most of the cooking at home and I love improvising with the ingredients in the cupboard but I also enjoy preparing a recipe by people like Antonio Carluccio or Jamie Oliver.

When did you first start playing an instrument?

I was a violinist at junior school but I really got the bug when my brother (a tuba player) told me to learn the bass trombone when I started secondary school so I could sit next to him in the band. Best advice I ever had and we do work together still.

Which is your most memorable performance, either as a performer or audience member?

When I was 14 I got a ticket to see Dizzy Gillespie and the United Nation Orchestra at the Colston Hall in Bristol. With the likes of Slide Hampton, Arturo Sandoval and of course Dizzy himself, I was rather spoiled for seeing live music afterwards as nothing could quite match the magic of these amazing players

If you didn’t have a career in music, what would you be doing now?

I always wanted to be an architect and design homes like Frank Lloyd Wright but I would probably be stuck in an office job with a decent salary but little music in my life. I’m far happier where I am now.

What is your favourite meal?

My next one!

Tom Cawley – Piano

Calum Gourlay – Bass

James Madden – Drums

Freddie Gavita’s Transient kicks off with the intriguingly titled Strimming The Ham. A loosey-goosey groove introduces a tune that sinuously winds its way around his fine trumpet sound. The happy slappy vibe that permeates this piece shows some great interaction between the soloist and accompanist. There is a live-ness to this that will get audience heads nodding and feet tapping. 

Turneround has a driving ostinato with Freddie’s bronzed flugelhorn sound dominating in a cool way. Calum is a wonderful exponent of the bass solo where he can be melodic, rhythmic, still be a bass and not compromise. He relaxes back into his traditional role backing piano maestro Tom Cawley’s solo. Coruscating figures and polyrhythms keep you engaged, leaning forward not wanting to miss a single drop. Shades of Mr Hubbard pervade Freddie’s own solo with some stretching out harmonically but with delicious blues inflection. Drummer James Madden is well served by great production for his solo and his drumming throughout the album.

Beloved is typical programming slowing the mood and allowing Freddie and Tom to stretch out ECM style. An introspective exploration that has tinges of classic Keith Jarrett trio in Cawley’s solo.

Yearning moves us gently up a gear building power quietly with Freddie channeling some Randy Brecker flavour in this spacey melody that yearns and resolves. 

The next track Sprezzatura (an Italian word defined as “a certain nonchalance, so as to conceal all art and make whatever one does or says appear to be without effort and almost without any thought about it”) has a restrained classiness with a pianoless trio. The interaction between horn, bass and drums here is very conversational and sounds effortless.

The drums, the drums, the drums in the distance introduce us to a careful piece of music on the limits of notes speaking their full weight. His instrumental control is demonstrated admirably with leaps of range and flurries of notes. The Vow is a long journey of improvisation statement redolent of the electric Miles.

As a teenage fan of The Thundercats cartoon, I was expecting a driving theme for Lion-O. A decorous cymbal-led introduction gives way to a New York post-Bop muted trumpet head. As a feature for the drums of James Madden as much as anything, the composed elements are memorable leading to Freddie’s own solo work which is deft and sure.

The eightie’s stylings of Wynton Marsalis must weigh on every modern trumpeter as much as those of Hubbard, Miles and Brecker. This is particularly evident in Freddie’s melody/rhythm writing for Iverson Oddity. Imagine a rainy New York evening, a brilliant quartet entertaining guests in a fashionable restaurant where the music, the food and the ambience combine nightly for memorable modern jazz experiences with friends.

Pull Your Socks is a charming melody that owes a debt to classic Blue Note with it’s insouciance. Tom Cawley’s ideas run on from Freddie’s beautifully stated tune. The bass solo again is a simple delight.

The Buffalo Trace closes this selection with a weary cigarette dangling from the lip. Quietly soulful with a big trumpet sound that almost talks, sobs and moans this is a fitting end. 

Transient is not a way to describe Freddie’s talent as a writer, performer and band leader. He is here to stay, so stay to hear when you get the chance.
You can find out more about Freddie and check out this CD and other work on his website here: https://freddiegavita.com/

Jim Watson – piano and keys

Chris Dodd – bass

Neil Bullock – drums

With

Bryan Corbett – trumpet

Tom Chapman – percussion

Recorded 9/2017 Vibe Records

Chris has been a fixture on the British jazz scene for a long time and his back catalog is a sporadic and diverse one. This album of new compositions is his first as a band leader since 2002’s Slightly Askew.

New Crobuzon. The opening singing bowl and percussive scratches from percussionist Chapman heralds a free cadenza-like opening that leads to a dark groove with lovely muted bass, cluster piano and an attractive head featuring Chris and guest Bryan Corbett on trumpet. Bryan’s solo is mysterious and eloquent with shades of the electric Miles. The chord sequence provides shafts of sunlight that all of the soloists exploit. The energy and interaction produced by these musicians in the studio setting is nothing short of bewildering and must be even more so live.

We Are Alive has a Chick Corea/Yellowjackets style of melody that is both highly accessible  and complex. We are treated to a masterclass of interaction between Watson, Dodd and Bullock with rhythms and harmonies dancing into flights of fancy that is irresistible. Bowden himself stamps his authority with a solo of coruscating scales and polyrhythms. A showcase for Neil Bullock is a natural development within the track and showcases his jazz chops in ways his more well known drum features don’t allow him to do. The Zawinul-esque end to the chart is a charming end to this uplifting track.

Pollock Painting like the art is both simple and complex. A dry groove with slippery melody is a perfect vehicle for the musicians to express themselves and create patterns from their  interaction. The trumpet solo is a real treat and again is redolent of Miles of the 80’s punk jazz. 

Looking Back is change of direction with a more acoustic and lighter touch. The Stand out solo for me is from the bass. Chris Dodd is a bass soloist that doesn’t fall into the overused tropes of the Jaco clone or six string pyrotechnics. He is simply a musical player with a great melodic and rhythmic sense which is an equal match to anyone in the band. 

Ridiculous Itinerary is another outing with Bryan Corbett. The modal fast groove expertly uses an odd time signature that is so natural that few would notice. The juxtaposition of the drum and bass with floaty melody is again expertly handled by the band. The fx trumpet solo is another delight and takes the track off to a distant galaxy without leaving it marooned.

The final offering is We Talked and is of a more conventional jazz bent than the rest of the album. It speaks of a simple beauty and like the rest of this album is a tribute not only to Chris’s playing but also his writing and inspiration of the musicians he has assembled.
Unlikely Being is for me an epic journey both dark and light. Chris’s skill as a composer of melody and harmony have produced a canvas for all the performer’s to display their art and the result is a painting that always intrigues and entertains with each encounter.

Tom Lindsay – vocals, piano and keyboards

Tom Moore – upright and electric bass

Ric Yarborough – drums

Elliot Drew – alto and tenor sax

Nick Dewhurst – trumpet and flugelhorn

Joris Bolhaar – trombone

Coming from the Midlands, this is Tom’s first solo release and as a result features the full gamut of his stylistic output.

Opening with a Cullum-esque groove for the head of If I Were A Bell, things relax into a swinging solo section with Elliot channeling some Phil Woods and Tom’s piano solo follows nicely. The spare left hand and gaps have a Keith Jarrett insouciance. I greatly enjoy the change of vibe again for the ending.

The verse for Surrey With The Fringe On Top is redolent of the Bill Evans/Tony Bennett sessions and is something I hope to hear for his next album. That Tom uses his English accent works is a strength and judges perfectly that difference between musical theatre and trite English song. Again the piano solo shows that Tom is equally at home playing a modern jazz piano trio as well as starring as the vocalist.

Belongs To You is an original that Tom penned for his Wedding day and featured a big band of friends. This recording sits well in the album selection and swings really nicely. I have to declare an interest here as I played bass trombone on the track. This has instant classic swing through it like a stick of Blackpool rock.

Now’s The Time is again by Tom and carries on the vibe where the vocals perform like a horn and the rhythm section supports appropriately. It is a testament to his skills that he can write a melody and lyrics of this standard and then deliver the vocal and piano performance to match their quality.

Just marks a departure stylistically to a funky shuffle with keys and bass guitar but the linchpin again is Tom’s vocal. It’s great to hear a proper trombone solo and a bass guitar solo where the band doesn’t cut out and supports with a full texture.

You Might Be The One is one of those songs that has an intimacy that speaks to your heart and head, raises a smile (albeit a wistful one) and leaves you moved. This has a measured perfection.

Last July reminds me of the trio vibe of Brazilian singer/pianist Eliane Elias and the vocal risks he takes are always pulled off leaving you enjoying the delicious danger of jazz improvising.

Brick By Boring Brick is a meditative reworking of American rockers Paramore’s original. The introspection of the melody and lyrics is admirably suited to this reinterpretation. The quiet building of power is wonderful.

Revolution is Tom’s final original offering is a combination of Latin and Pop sounds that owes a lot to Jamiroquai in it’s vocal vibe. Nick Dewhurst shines on flugelhorn. The production here, as elsewhere on the album, is tremendous with layering of keyboards, diving between trio and full band and multitrack vocals.

Take The ‘A’ Train has a feet moving New Orleans shuffle with sumptuous snare work and piano figures that stay out of the way. The fade out with band chorus goes to show how close and fun a band this is.

Overall, this doesn’t sound like a first album. The changes of pace and the overall homogeneity of the vocals create a sound world that is entirely that of Tom and his band. Great swing, groove, beautiful singing, surprising changes of mood all go to produce an album of work which everyone can really enjoy.

Read more about Tom Lindsay and his music here:

http://www.tomlindsaymusic.com/

You can purchase the CD and download direct from here:

Neil Yates – trumpet and flugelhorn

Mike Outram – Guitar

George Cooper – Keys

Mark Whitlam – Drums

An 2018 album funded by fans and supporters, this hit my doormat recently and it is a work of quality musicianship and production.

Al Swainger is a highly sought after bass player based in the South-West of the UK and composed all the music you hear. He has assembled a crew of talented jazz stars who journey through his sound environments and deliver a feast of new sounds that leave you wanting more.

Opening track Too Late features some amazing production reminiscent of both The Who and John McLaughlin with sampled vocals that give a nod to Nana Vasconcelos. The chorus fretless sound of Al plays a sinuous melody over an infectious groove from Whitlam.

Sophos Estranhos opens with a shimmering Rhodes solo before Neil Yates’ ghostly trumpet dances with the rhythm section on a beautiful and slippery latin tune.

Spring Cleaning has Chick Corea to thank for it’s engaging latin flavour inspiration. Unison figures, late period Freddie Hubbard style from Yates, Stanley Clarke bass are all in the mix for a tune that must be even better live.

The Rockpool is atmospheric in its simplicity and is charming.

Time Considered features Yates again on flugel and Cooper on piano and is elegant.

Cyrano gently eases back into a world of sounds that again feature guitarist Mike Outram performing a poignant melody. A Zawinul-esque keys solo shows off the wonderful rhythm section interaction and communication, never overplayed. The energy transformation and development during the solos here draw you in and you could lose yourself. A fine bass solo leads into an outro once ethereal and then burning and worthy of Weather Report.

The final track opens with a Gymnopdie exploration for Outram and then leads to a meditative trio piece that once again showcases how accomplished these friends are in their interaction and listening.

For a bass player led album, this isn’t taken up with inordinate amounts of bass grandstanding but is a mature and musical collection of compositions and improvisation opportunities that he generously provides for his sidemen.

Ben Cottrell : director

Anthony Brown, Sam Healey, Ben Watte : saxophones

Owen Bryce, Graham South, Nick Walters : trumpet

Ed Horsey, Simon Lodge, Rich McVeigh : trombone

Anton Hunter : guitar

Richard Jones : piano/Rhodes

Stewart Wilson : bass

Finlay Panter : drums

Recorded at Real World Studios, Wiltshire 13th-16th January 2014

I had the unexpected pleasure of seeing this band perform at the Marlborough Jazz Festival to a lunchtime crowd of 10 people back in 2010. Then as now, I couldn’t get over the enthusiasm, joy, energy and skill of this band. It seemed so sad that they were put on in a graveyard shift when this band is a true headliner.

All In is the band’s third album and is a passionate journey through the compositions of composer/bandleader Ben Cottrell. Himself an in-demand writer, this cut gives his ideas unrestricted full reign and realisation by a collective of friends and musicians.

The opening track Rocky is reminiscent of the early eighties band, the Vienna Art Orchestra coupled with the dense melodic writing of Frank Zappa. It is a combination of fanfare and wolf whistle and is an ideal opener for a gig; two minutes and fifty seconds of in-your-face music.

My favourite track Pop is up next and has such an optimistic quality in its harmonic accompaniment that it just travels forward in an outburst of happiness. It owes something to the big band versions of Pat Metheny’s music and is a wonderful vehicle for Nick Walters muted trumpet.

I have often enjoyed the music of Steve Reich and Philip Glass and wondered how it could work in a jazz context. Track 3: Rain is a piece of music that achieves its titular character through a use of repeated motifs, complex grooves, gentle harmonic inventions and a beautiful flugel melody. The first sparse orchestration of the album appears in the middle of this track and features a Patrick Hurley solo on the Fender Rhodes that is exploratory in its harmony and rhythm. 

Havmann is a more acoustic affair with piano, double bass and a great deal more space for the band. The bravery of Graham South’s flugel solo is something to behold with its epic gaps between phrases. The track closes out with a Snarky Puppy style band soli dimming down to a muted brass coda.

Hendo – a new martial art or a weekend away for a bride-to-be? A latin inspired layering of grooves that moves into a 70’s detective thriller style soundtrack is primarily a vehicle for Sam Healey on soprano saxophone. 

Bowie’s Let’s Dance is a trip back to the 1970’s and admirably show’s off the brass and the blending of the whole horn section. A little over production at the end adversley affects what is otherwise a good track.

Fairytale, like Cottrell’s other compositions always tries to avoid the cliches such as the resolution of chords leaving a yearning quality. This track in comparison to the previous one is so underproduced that you can hear just the band and nothing else. Every breath is audible and it is a real credit to the band to include a track of such honesty.

I hope this band carries on recording and performing and becomes a part of the the modern British jazz tradition. All In represents a stunning collection of compositions that, on the whole achieve a great balance between composer, soloist and ensemble.

Amy Roberts – flute, clarinet, alto sax

Richard Exall – clarinet, alto sax, tenor sax, vocals and arrangements

Ben Cummings – trumpet, vocals

Ian Bateman – trombone

Craig Milverton – piano

Bill Coleman – double bass

Nick Millward – drums, vocals

Recorded at Ian Riley Studios, 2015

There may be a little hubris in the band name but when you consider that each member of the group has performed across the world as musicians in the bands of Chris Barber, Acker Bilk and Kenny Ball then you realise that this is a justified label.

For their second outing on CD since forming in 2013 Richard has assembled a set of tunes that acknowledge the band’s former employers and showcases newer material in an attempt to broaden the palette of their audience.

After an introduction by Richard Strauss, the album settles down into a great selection of jazz that showcases the melodic and solo chops of the band. Ian Bateman evokes a true Ellingtonian trombone sound in his rendition of Caravan with a stunning solo from him and pianist Craig Milverton. This tune, amongst others features an excellent bit of arranging from leader Richard Exall. The sudden pairing of this tune with Oyo Como Va jars a little but any fears are put to rest by Amy Robert’s magnificent flute playing. Ben Cummings is not only a great trumpet talent but sings with a soul and control that many first study vocalists would be envious of. Georgia and My Girl are swinging and entertaining in equal measure. 

The rhythm section of Milverton, Coleman and Millward is sublime in the accompaniment nowhere more so than Tanga. A Dizzy Gillespie composition, it features a bright tempo and beautiful chord changes that the horn players negotiate with skill and delicacy.

For me the standout track though is But Beautiful. Bateman again shows his chameleon-like qualities with a J J Johnson inspired sound for the melody and his solo. Then again, as a trombonist myself I am incredibly biased.

That there are 7 in this jazz band and that they are magnificent is just fact. That you should check out their recorded and live performances is merely compulsory in my opinion. The Magnificent 7 is entertaining, skilled, slick and swinging.
The album is available via their website http://www.bookajazzband.com/mag7.html and of course at their live gigs.

Pat Sprakes – guitar

Paul Jefferies – bass guitar and double bass

Steve Wyndham – drums

Roger Beaujolais – vibraphone

Tommaso Starace – saxophones

An eagerly expected sequel to her first album Piano Divas in 2017, The Music’s On Me is another production funded mostly by the many fans she built up whilst touring and running the Chesterfield Jazz Club.

On this album, Wendy is the diva and not at all in the negative sense; she shines through this album like a newly minted penny. How nice it is to hear an unselfconscious English accent singing jazz too.

The first track of the selection is The Music In Me and is one of the originals. It shows how much she is influenced but not beholden to Diana Krall graciously giving the first solo to guitarist Pat Sprakes after a chorus of her self-penned witty lyrics. Her own solo is nicely swinging over a rhythm section beautifully recorded. I especially like the drum sound with the subtlety of the snare.

Haven’t We Met has echoes of the beauty of the Eliane Elias trio. Her piano comping to her own vocals is dense and swinging with shafts of sunlight that lift at the right moments. It is worth a listen to the track focusing on Wendy’s piano playing in her solo with her rhythmic sense floating around the 3/4 time. The closeout solo from Sprakes is fine but I perhaps would have opted for a fade-out; whilst unfashionable it does leave the best of the energy remaining on the palette.

Pools, a Don Grolnick chart is the first to feature guest vibes player Roger Beaujolais and features lyrics written by Wendy. The start is another homage to Elias but then transitions to a more Dave Holland sound with the vibes. The subtle drum textures from Steve Wyndham are undetectable unless you listen to them and then you are hooked. Again we have the sung-piano solo where the vocals disappear as she starts to stretch out. I’m reminded of the soloing of Andy Sheppard’s early pianist Dave Buxton with her use of block chords. The lyrics are a perfect match to the dark sophistication of Grolnick’s melody and harmony.

Sandalia Dela has a great Brazilian sound and yet comes from Derbyshire. Is Wendy now to be called the Flora Purim of the Peak District? The breeze created by this band soothes the brow and the mind on this musical corcovado. It is a shame however that we couldn’t have had some of Starace blowing Getz-like over the gentle but insistent energy of this rhythm section.

Playground is a gentle and sophisticated track and has tender lyrics masterfully written by Wendy. The sentiment of her writing combines perfectly with the mood of the melody. Beaujolias delights yet again.

Nothing Like You returns to the Krall inspired mood with a tricky bebop tune that ends as suddenly as it began.

Pretucciani’s September Second has long been a favourite of mine and Wendy’s lyrics and piano playing adds a lightness that is charming. Starace makes his first appearance on this track with a deft solo that leads onto an improv from bassist Paul Jefferies.

West Coast Blues is a Wes Montgomery tune that has new lyrics from Wendy and husband/guitarist Pat Sprakes. With such an obvious link to the guitar in the writing, this is a feature for Sprakes to stretch out and it is a delicious sound he makes over a rhythm section that is so at home with itself. The drum solo is a welcome addition over a Scofield-esque groove. With the return of the lyrics it is lovely to admire the Ira Gershwin style punning in the line “We’ll look for that beach house, Could it be David’s hard-to-reach house?”.

O Gato Molhado or The Damp Cat is an original jazz samba penned by Sprake and Kirkland with English and Portuguese lyrics. It has more of that incessant Rio vibe that his group can play expertly.

Sunday In New York has a big band style introduction and a swinging feel that would have made Tony Bennett smile and hammers home this bands credentials as a great live act.

Travelling Home is a delightful closer for the album. It is an achingly personal paen to the life of the musician and the hours spent on the road in pursuit of the art. This is another chance for Pat Sprakes to solo over this Yellowjackets-inspired groove. Tomasso Starace is on soprano here and is such a welcome addition to the track that I wish he was able to do more on the album.

The Music’s On Me is a collection both subtle and complex, happy and poignant, swinging and grooving. Wendy has again done much to show that jazz in Britain is current and accessible which proves why she is so in demand around the country to perform. This is the best of jazz for my mind where the audience hears new ideas and hard tunes introduced in a gentle way that is simply irresistible.