The band harks back to the heady days of the quintet co-led by Ronnie Scott and the great Tubby Hayes. In the time honoured way you can expect plenty of up tempo tenor jousting, bell notes bouncing from wall to wall and cascades of bebop quavers coruscating the continuum! Award winning repertory bandleader Peter Long and custodian of the Hayes legacy Simon Spillett will go head to head over the old Couriers classics, with driving virtuosic rhythmic support from Rob Barron, Alec Dankworth and Peter Cater.
Expect such favourites as the original arrangements of Cheek To Cheek, Love Walked In and The Serpent, as well as some of Tubby’s later standards such as Suddenly Last Tuesday and Finky Minky, all linked together with stories and comments from the two front men.
“This is hard bop for today. Art Blakey delivered the message, Five-Way Split received it, decoded it and added their own stamp”
Bebop Spoken Here
Five-Way Split is a new jointly led band formed in 2020 featuring some of the finest contemporary bebop musicians in the UK. Five-Way Split is fronted by internationally renowned trumpet star Quentin Collins and Greek saxophone phenomenon Vasilis Xenopoulos, with the golden touch of pianist Rob Barron. Added to this are virtuosic bassist Mátyás Hofecker and rock-solid drummer Matt Home.
The band’s vision is to carry on the lineage of groups like Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers as well as mirroring the New York contemporary bop scene. From this inspiration, the band presents a sound that respects the tradition of the hard-bop era whilst also bringing it up to date for today’s audience. With an extensive repertoire of hip, swinging material by greats like Jimmy Heath, Cedar Walton and Horace Silver, along with their carefully crafted and imaginative original compositions, Five-Way-Split delivers a night of the best swinging and soulful music.
Other press quotes:
Quentin Collins “Splendid” ★★★★★ – BBC Music Magazine.
Vasilis Xenopoulos “One of the most fiery young saxophonists around” ★★★★- The Times.
Rob Barron “Classic Jazz Piano at it’s best” 5/5– UK Vibe
“Five-Way Split – each member as formidable as the next” – London Jazz News
Sarah Jane Morris is a singer with an astonishing vocal range. Her thirty-year career, during which she has garnered a loyal and loving international audience, has been wide-ranging and her rich contralto voice goes from strength to strength. She has performed with many groups over the years, from rock to soul to African blues, with classical orchestras, a one-hundred cello ensemble, with acoustic guitars and jazz big bands. Her voice, her versatility, and her emotional intelligence – the absolute authenticity of feeling which she conveys – make her a world-class compelling performer. It is a joy to see her back at Fleece Jazz, and in such good company.
With comments from the Guardian like “The next British Guitar hero”, we can expect a superb performance from Marcus Bonfanti. The Times chimed in with “Utterly Spellbinding”. Marcus is a blues singer, composer and guitarist. It will be a pleasure to welcome him to Fleece Jazz
Tony Rémy is one of the world’s most exciting guitar players of any genre. His hard-edged rhythmically driven approach is enriched with jazz intuition and bluesy soul. His ability to adapt to any style of music sets him apart from many other guitarists and is the principle reason why Tony’s name is consistently near the top of the ‘must have’ list. Just ask Annie Lennox, Jack Bruce, Pee Wee Ellis, Mick Hucknall, Glenn Hughes, Craig David, etc. why they called him and the answer will always be the same – “Tony Rémy delivers!”
I love the work of the mighty Henry Thomas. Whether his is backing an international artist, in the pit in the west end, or specially, playing for us at Fleece Jazz, he is a stunningly fine multi-instrument bassist. He has gigged and recorded on countless hit records, TV and film soundtracks. He is also famous for his role as a co-founder of the BBC TV series Rockschool. He has the rare expertise of being able to sightread and improvise at an extremely high level.
“This is straight-ahead modern jazz in the African-American tradition, coming from the Monk and Trane lineage, but not bound to emulating it.”
Previous visitors to Fleece Jazz but together here for the first time, saxophonist Dave O’Higgins and guitarist Rob Luft perform tunes from their recent release, Pluto.
Dave O’Higgins has 24 albums as leader to his credit. He currently performs with the Harvey/O’Higgins Project, O’Higgins & Luft, Darius Brubeck Quartet and the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra. Rob Luft is an award-winning 28-year-old jazz guitarist from London whose virtuosity has been compared to that of six-string legends John McLaughlin, Al Di Meola & Paco De Lucia. Luft’s sound morphs Wes Montgomery with Bill Frisell, revealing his own trademark and worldly influences, while Dave O’Higgins’ emotive melodies evoke Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, Joe Henderson and Michael Brecker with a melodic logic of his own.
Ross Stanley began playing with the band on organ but here brings more harmonic space to the soundscape with the piano. This opened up a place for the exciting sound of Luke Fowler on bass who impressed us on his previous visit to the Fleece as part of Tommaso Starace’s Power of Three trio. American drummer, Rod Youngs, so integral to the vibe of the band completes the line-up.
“O’Higgins’ hard but never oppressive swing anchors Luft’s more charmful, visionary flights. It’s a potent mix.” – Andy Robson, Jazzwise.
Ross Stanley was held up in Spain, so the admirable Jim Watson took over at a few hours notice. He was superb.
This gig’s review is from Robert Carr of the Hadleigh Nub News. All of the pictures from the gig are on our gallery page
Take care,
Dave
A fun night with Jivin’ Miss Daisy at Fleece Jazz
By Robert Carr
With blizzard conditions making travelling difficult on a bitterly cold Suffolk night, the entertainment supplied by Fleece Jazz at the welcoming Stoke by Nayland Hotel Resort provided just the tonic (gin optional) to warm the audience members.
From the off, Simon Thorpe’s Jivin’ Miss Daisy band set the swinging tone of the Fleece show with a bold and brassy performance of Count Basie’s Peter Pan, the first of many tunes from his orchestra’s vast repertoire.
Simon is the band leader and bassist of the nine-piece combo whose line-up for the show was: Mark Crooks (alto saxophone & clarinet), Liz Fletcher (vocals), Alex Garnett (tenor saxophone & vocals), Colin Oxley (guitar), John Pearce (piano), Matt Skelton (drums), Malcolm Earl Smith (trombone & vocals) and Enrico Tomasso (trumpet).
An up-tempo arrangement of Royal Garden Blues followed. Over 100 years old, because it is based on the earliest of riffs, the blues number is considered to be one of the most important compositions in jazz history. It also allowed band members to introduce themselves on their instruments.
Vivacious vocalist Liz introduced herself to the audience with several songs from the Great American Songbook. These included Harold Arlen’s Get Happy, which Simon told us is his band’s signature tune. Liz has a lovely personality and a sweet-sounding voice in keeping with the dance and swing band style of the era when each had its own singer.
A particular delight was Liz, Simon and Enrico’s vocal harmonization on Cole Porter’s You Do Something To Me, augmented by Mark’s super sax solo. Also, a lovely surprise was the arrangement of Stairway To The Stars where Liz was sensitively accompanied by Colin on guitar, together with the piano, bass and drums of the rhythm section.
Such was the feast of wonderful 1920s, 30s and 40s standards offered from the pens of Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, The Gershwins, Rodgers & Hart, et al, I would have liked to have listed all of them, but there has to be a limit.
Similarly, from such a talented line-up it is difficult to feature all the musicians. However, Ellington’s calypso Limbo Jazz so elicited dazzling virtuoso trumpet playing from Enrico that it was a stand-out performance. As a youngster, hearing a Louis Armstrong record inspired Enrico to learn to play his chosen instrument. This led him to a successful career in which he has won so many British jazz awards.
Named after the heart-warming movie Driving Miss Daisy, Jivin’ Miss Daisy was formed in 1999 and has been swinging ever since. Simon told me that he had been “really looking forward to the return to Fleece Jazz, one of the best clubs in the South-East, with its long stellar jazz history and loyal supporters.”
Not every jazz gig is as lively as this was. So, with so much dance music on offer for the fun night out, it surprised me that nobody strutted their stuff on the dance floor – not that anybody on my table chanced it. Next time, perhaps.
Resident at Stoke by Nayland Hotel Resort, the club has been presenting jazz for the best part of 30 years, garnering renown for the quality of their shows and friendly atmosphere. It was my first time at the club, and I can see the reason for its reputation – I hope to revisit it soon.
Advance information about Fleece Jazz shows can be obtained by asking to be added to the club’s mailing list. Log on to www.fleecejazz.org.uk then click ’email list’ to subscribe.
Next up on Wednesday 22 March is the Oddgeir Berg Trio. Tickets are available from www.wegottickets.com/fleecejazz or by telephoning the booking office at 01787 210796.
JIVIN’ MISS DAISY SETLIST, FLEECE JAZZ 08/3/23
Peter Pan (Count Basie) from 1954
Royal Garden Blues (Clarence & Spencer Williams) 1919
I’ve Got the World on a String (Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler) 1932
Get Happy (Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler) 1930
So in Love (Cole Porter) 1948
Lullaby in Rhythm (Clarence Profit/Benny Goodman/Edgar Sampson/Walter Hirsch) 1938
Flaming Reeds and Screaming Brass (Jimmie Lunceford)
Limbo Jazz (Duke Ellington) 1962
Meet Me Where They Play The Blues (Steve Allen/Sammy Gallop)
10.You Do Something To Me (Cole Porter) 1929
11.Stairway to the Stars (Malneck/Signorelli/Parish)
“The best of British jazz” – Chris Phillips Jazz FM
“Precise ebullience and relaxed funkiness” – The Guardian
“A revelatory experience” – UkVibe
The dancing exuberance of South African Township music, the convivial groove of gospel-influenced soul jazz, the joyful sway of Cuban guaguanco rhythms, the bluesy melodies of middle eastern praise songs and so much more all come together in pianist Philip Clouts’ superbly accomplished quartet.
Clouts was born in Cape Town and the music of his homeland has stayed with him as he has continued on a voyage of discovery that has led him across all five continents, soaking up Caribbean calypso and the soulful strains of the Indian subcontinent while honouring and learning from jazz heroes including Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett, and Charles Lloyd.
A band primarily playing bebop, without a drummer, is not to everybody’s taste. It is to mine. You get the combined sound and great clarity from each instrument. This band’s musicianship and joy in playing together were exceptional. Power of Three indeed.
Tommaso Starace is a great presenter: lovely stories, good (and very bad) jokes, and most important, he was clear about song titles and composers. As to the latter, Steve did have a query or two about attribution. But the thing is his playing. His mastery of the instrument is amazing, with a big dynamic range, ideas piling on one another, accurate slurs (if that is not an odd combination) even in the altissimo. He radiates the joy of playing. Interestingly, when others are soloing he leaves the stage, giving them all the space in both the sonic and spatial senses. You can still see him loving what his friends are doing on-stage.
Jim Watson is special. He is in a class with very few members: those whose left hand is as strong and inventive as his/her right. I could not pick out an individual solo to talk about. They were all superb. Fleece Jazz has a listening audience, but shouts and whistles were heard after several of his solos. He doesn’t go onto automatic when accompanying, either. Like all three of the musicians, his listening skills are A+.
Australian Luke Fowler is new to Fleece Jazz, but I hope we will see him many times in the future. Of course, without a drummer, his pulse had to be strong and accurate. Luke is a brilliant soloist. Although he is perfectly competent in the highest register of the bass, he doesn’t rely on that register for solos.
Thanks to a lovely band for a great evening. Steve agrees, and brings a set list for you to see.
The next gig will have you dancing in your seats or on a dance floor. The wonderful nonet, “Jivin’ Miss Daisy”, will be returning to us. See the poster at https://fleecejazz.org.uk/Daisy.pdf.
Take care,
Dave
TOMMASO STARACE SETLIST, FLEECE JAZZ 22/2/23
Kansas City Blues (Charlie Parker)
This Here (Bobby Timmons) as performed by The Cannonball Adderley Quintet
Del Sasser (Sam Jones) as performed by The Cannonball Adderley Quintet
Kiki (Charlie Parker) Did Tommaso mean Ko-Ko?
Autumn in New York (Vernon Duke)
Caravan (Duke Ellington)
* * * * * * *
If I Should Lose You (Ralph Rainger/Leo Robin)
Passport (Charlie Parker)
Speak Low (Kurt Weill/Ogden Nash)
Segment (Charlie Parker)
Work Song (Nat Adderley)
ENCORE: Voyage (Kenny Barron)*
* Voyage was performed by Stan Getz, accompanied by pianistKenny Barron. Barron performed with Getz for the last five years of the saxophonist’s career.
Last night we had two deps at this gig due to illness in the band , but they were amazing. We wish Neville Malcolm and Robin Aspland quick recoveries. Jerry Logan was the bassist: he was the pulse of the band, inventive and accurate. Carl Hudson played piano and keyboard with intensity and joy.
This was a band with power and love throughout the evening. We loved Dave Lewis’s raw, yet lyrical sound on tenor sax. Rod Youngs is a brilliant and very powerful drummer.
There are some jazz singers with “little girl” voices, and those singing from the throat, not the belly. Lizzie Deane must have the diaphragm of an opera singer. She has a huge dynamic range, and a timbre range from sweet to howl and everything in between. She moves from up front vocalist to band member with ease.
Whether in up tempo happy, slow intense ballad or a shouting cry of pain, the band clearly had a love of the material. They also had a joy in listening to each other. Yes, it was a lovely gig.
I have to say that the techy didn’t have a great night, what with lighting troubles, and reverberant mics. I wonder who that could be. Oh yes: me.
On Wednesday 22 February, the very welcome return of saxophonist Tommaso Starace, with his “Power of Three”. He will be with Jim Watson on piano and Luke Fowler on bass. It will be a varied and delicious evening, do come.
Thanks again to Steve for providing the set list.
Take care,
Dave
DAVE LEWIS’ 1UP BAND SETLIST, FLEECE JAZZ 8/2/23
Turn It Round
Casablanca
Deep Underground
Hurt Inside
Rain on Venus
Sun Was In My Eyes
I Don’t Need No Doctor
Ain’t It True
* * * * * * *
A Real Mother For Ya (Johnny “Guitar” Watson)
Take A Little Time
Bright Lights
Either ‘Love Gives More Than A Taste’ or ‘Got To Hold On To That Feeling’ *
Good Man
Great Big Hole In My Heart*
Blue Horizon
Sweetest Thing
ENCORE: What Do People Say?*
* Dave Lewis announced most numbers but by the second set he would occasionally just say two words to the band about the next number without telling the audience what they were about to hear or what they had heard. Those titles with an asterisk are my guesses based on lyrical refrains within the song.
Peter Fairman said “John was Burning!”. Steve and Dave were away. Miles Dagnall wrote the following review of this gig.
If a rock band only needs three chords and the truth, what happens to the man who knows three thousand? Can he still maintain the authentic feeling expressed in the blues and marry it with the technique necessary for accomplished jazz playing ? This is John Etheridge so the answer is of course, ‘yes’. Ably supported by this edition of his Blue Spirits with Pete Whittaker on keys and George Double on Drums, the trio delivered a set full of passion and inventiveness.
Starting with ‘Love, Lovely Love’ and an intense version of Ray Charles ‘You Don’t Know’, and a ‘Secret Love’ full of a skipping rhythm, highlights of the first set included John’s own Broken Hill – familiar to fans of Soft Machine – full of sweet and sour moments on both organ and guitar and an almost tangibly crunchy and riff-filled version of John Schofield’s’ Do Like Eddie’.
The music was interleaved throughout with heartfelt tributes to jeff Beck, who John had played with (naturally) dropping into snatches of Nessun Dorma and a moving version of Jeff’s favourite Stevie Wonder tune, ‘Cause We’ve Ended as Lovers’. The range of John’s repertoire, included a delicate solo rendition of Rabbie Burns’, ‘My Love is Like Red Red Rose’ which morphed into Billie Holiday’s ‘Bless the Child’, and an inventive trio take on Hank William’s Cold Cold Heart, honouring the tune, while re-writing it with inventive sleight of hand – Pete’s funky chords and George’s precise drumming adding unexpected flavours . The gig ended with a passionate version of Hendrix’ Little Wing; George and Pete adding their own ideas to John’s blues- soaked playing. ‘Summertime’, as an encore, left the full house looking forward to warmer times, and glad they had braved a miserable January night to witness a master at work.
Now this was special. Wonderful material written by Alan Barnes, and edited by Mark Nightingale, eight of the best players about having a great time, Alan’s telling of the story of the book, and a very happy audience.
It has been many years since I had read Dickens’ “David Copperfield”, but Alan did a lovely job in giving us synopses for each of the songs. Every song, at least for me, evoked my memories of the book. He had a script to work from, but he was very aware of the audience so that he could ad lib when he wanted to, Early in the first set, he admonished me for “playing with my knobs” (remember, I was the sound guy), He got the audience to holler out the names of characters he described. Alan had a great ear for spontaneous comedy.
About the music: I don’t think it was easy to play. It had lots of notes in places, and very careful spare areas; I am thinking of David Newton’s piano solo in the 3/4 “Mr Micawber”. Clark Tracey’s careful, evocative drum intro to “Uriah Heap” before Alan Barne’s only use of the bass clarinet with sonority and shivery runs, which evoked “Uriah” beautifully, Alan had great solos on alto sax and clarinet during the rest of the gig.
In “Barkis is Willing”, there was a sweet entry from the horn chorus, followed by one of Simon Thorpe’s bass solos. You can hear why Simon is such a ‘go to’ player. “Creakle and Tungay” has Bruce Adams displaying his power on trumpet, followed byKaren Sharp’s lyricism on the baritone sax. I could listen to Robert Fowler’s work on tenor sax or clarinet all day.
Mark Nightingale is a trombonist of international note, a composer and an editor, and his playing on the gig ranged from the powerful and dramatic to the sweet. His solo in “Steerforth” was my favourite of his work on the gig.
Usually I listens for the solos, using the head as a platform for the solo work. Indeed, the solos were worth the price of admission, but I found the written work captivating. Alan interspersed beautiful harmonies with contrapuntal sequences in just about all combinations of horns. I will be listening to it again and again.
Just for fun, my naughty nephew took a very short video of Alan having fun:
The next gig is another Tuesday, the 10th of January in the New Year. The young musicians in The Magpie Trio are a fascinating listen. Do join us.
