Ezra Collective Patterns, Brighton Wednesday 14th November, 2018 “This is about joy and happiness and celebrating everything that’s good” proclaims Femi Koleoso. “There’s no boundaries to how you express yourself – dance, shout, be mad quiet and stare – but let’s lose the barriers, we ain’t superstars or nothing”. He’s talking about the crash […]
Thelonious Monk Mønk (Gearbox CD 1841) Live recordings are a precious part of any Jazz collection. If the recording quality is good and the performance outstanding you have a gem to treasure. This session in Copenhagen in 1963 certainly deserves that description. I heard this quartet at the De Montfort Hall in Leicester in […]
Dexter Gordon Quartet Tokyo 1975 (Elemental 5990428) Espace Cardin 1977 (Elemental 5990431) Two beautifully packaged CDs from Elemental these are in fact ‘discoveries’ – concert recordings not previously issued. Unfortunately there are many examples of Dexter available, so do they have any special interest? During his 15 years in Copenhagen Dexter acquired an A-list […]
Fraser and the Alibis New Generation Jazz at The Verdict, Brighton Friday 28th September, 2018 Fraser and the Alibis formed 10 years ago when they met on the jazz degree course at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. This was not an album launch as planned, as the new album is still […]
Skinny Pelembe Green Door Store, Brighton Wednesday 26th September, 2018 A recent signing to Brownswood, as part of their excellent Future Bubblers series, Skinny Pelembe performed a set that highlighted his creativity and originality, with assistance from a top class band. Talented bassist Alley Lloyd also provided vocals on some of the numbers propelled […]
Yussef Dayes The Haunt, Brighton Wednesday 26th September, 2018 The bouncer outside is busy checking ID and handing out wristbands to those lucky enough and old enough to buy booze legally; inside the system is playing trap to entertain the packed out crowd. The keys and bass players appear first and, after a short […]
Jean Toussaint, Chiminyo, Arthur O’Hara Trio Jazz In The Round at Emergence Festival, St. Mary in the Castle, Hastings Saturday 29th September, 2018 Jazz In The Round promoters Chris Phillips and Jez Nelson must have scoured the South in their search for suitably-shaped venues to accommodate their expanding vision; St Mary’s In The Rock, […]
Jazz Jamaica All Stars Brighton Dome Concert Hall Saturday 29th September, 2018 The relationship between jazz and reggae was for a while a rare combination, until the breakthrough of Jamaican jazz guitarist and visionary Ernest Ranglin, whose fresh approach saw a revolutionary breakthrough towards the fusion of Jamaica’s national music with the technical aspects […]
Eastbourne Splash Point Jazz Festival The Fishermen’s Club, Christ Church and Leaf Hall, Eastbourne Sunday 30th September, 2018 Splash Point Jazz’s inaugural jazz festival in Eastbourne saw 12 different bands performing across 3 separate venues. The largest venue of the festival, Christ Church, hosted Festival Director Neal Richardson’s Band who performed a number of […]
Joe Armon-Jones Patterns, Brighton Wednesday 10th October, 2018 The new London jazz scene, recently featured in the New York Times, is all about the live experience and this is something that Mr. Bongo is bringing to Patterns in Brighton over the next few months. Ezra Collective’s pianist Joe Armon-Jones, on his return to Brighton, […]