The Lain Barnes Allstars Album with Mike Wills

The Winard Harper Album

A reminder, first of all, that if you consult the list I produced last week you will see that at HEDSOR TONIGHT, we have that very accomplished guitarist, John Coverdale. A very self effacing musician, you may already know him if your child goes to Eton, as he teaches guitar to the Collage students there. If you don't, then come and hear his very polished playing tonight at Hedsor, from 8.30 pm, £3 to get in, and a raffle ticket to get out. He will, of course, be playing with The Clive Burton Quartet.

I'm still getting very positive feedback about last Fridays concert. The Clive Burton Quintet, plus John Slater on trumpet, played a masterful Dixieland session, which showed their versatility off brilliantly. Its a pity more didn't turn out to hear them.

Sunday at Fifield, the guest will be saxophonist Pete Davis.

MONDAY 21st (yes, next week, after Saturdays cup final, just when you thought life was no longer worth living!) I have my next Guitar Jazz night at The Hedsor Social Club. This will feature Gypsy Jazz led by guitarist Monty Greenhalgh. Do come along to this extremely foot tapping evening, £5 on the door, NO RAFFLE, you can feel free to leave at any time! But I'm sure you will want to stay till the very end.8.30 pm start.

For your future diary entries, I am gong to use the third Monday of the month for my guitar jazz evenings, as it leaves a little more space between the last Monday (as they were going to be) and the first Tuesday, where Mo runs the Bourne End Community Centre Jazz evening. We must leave ample time in a week for you all to wash your hair!!

Whilst mentioning Hedsor Social Club, jazz is gently being extended there. Watch out for another band taking another Monday soon! ALSO in response to the many starving fans who in the past have only been able to gorge themselves on Crisps and Chocolate bars from the bar menu, you will now be able to look forward to fresh filled bread rolls. Prepared by Jeff, the bar man, himself, they will be on sale to interested parties for around £1 each.

For those of you who don't know any of the musicians by name, and they would like to find out more about them, and also to find some more jazz in the Chiltern Area, an excellent web site to go to is http://www.jazzeddie.f2s.com/ I will try to add in some more detail of the musicians playing for us each week, but sometimes, time is of the essence, and I don't always have time to put it all down. Many of you I know, do know all about all of our guests, but equally, many don't. Always try Eddie's site, it is a mine of information.

One of the features of Thursdays at Hedsor is the raffle. It has been known for me to provide cd's for this that have not been snapped up by interested and knowledgeable jazz fans (or perhaps they have been deliberately left there by interested and knowledgeable jazz fans, I'm not sure), anyway, a couple of weeks ago, I won back in the raffle a cd so donated by myself! "By Yourself" by Winard Harper, is one of those CD's with a cover that is almost impossible to understand. Get inside, and the sleeve notes were especially written for microdot transfer. And so, as most people had never hear of said Harper, it was left unsold. However, as mine, I just had to find out the truth about this CD. Mr Harper is a young drummer, and the music isn't unintelligible dribble, but very clean modern bop. He also has some interesting partners on it. Don Braden on Tenor Sax, and Eddie Henderson on trumpet for two. Add in some tracks with David "Fathead" Newman on tenor as well, and you have a cracking album. When will record producers learn that its no good putting modern art on the cover with absolutely no idea of who is playing what.If any record shop can read the numbers off the cover, it is on epicure 478197 2, marketed through Sony Music.

Another CD I will mention features a live set by saxophonist Mike Wills. It was a great pleasure to have him playing with the band on Friday, and he appears on "Laughing at Life" with the Lains Barn Allstars. This is an album that will delight our more traditional jazz loving friends, and was recorded at Lains Barn in Wantage Oxfordshire on March 16th 2006. Its a great "territory" band, with Mike and Tony Blincowe on reeds, Ben Cummings trumpet, Kevin Grenfell trombone, Roger Heely piano, Dave Moorwood guitar, Roger Davis bass and Tony Augarde on drums. Its on p.e.k sound PKCD 304

As usual, the artwork for both CD's will be on the blog.

Thats it for now folks,

Geoff C