Good Morning England

another jazz blog from Geoff with not a lot of NEW jazz or LIVE jazz to talk about.

But I have found things of interest from the past. Some of that past has been my collection, and some of the past has been a record companies collection!

First during the weekend I pulled something from my collection. 

Some time ago I talked about the Rolling Stone’s drummer Charlie Watts and his Big Band recording made at Ronnie Scotts (Watts at Scott’s) in 2004. 

He was after all a lifelong jazz fan. 

I knew he had made a recording at Fulham Town Hall in 1986, as I have the LP (!) and I had transcribed it to CD some years ago for easy storage, so I pulled and played it.

It isn’t the greatest recording, but it’s one of the biggest big bands I have ever come across with 31 in “The Band”. With so many to organise the sound does get a bit messy, but do have a listen (see below). There are some of the UK’s most unrepresented players on this including Annie Whitehead on trombone, and also some of the UK’s very best players too, like Stan Tracy as the piano player. One of the players amongst the throng has also played at Hedsor, saxophonist Willie Garnet.

Willie with Charlie Watts

The late Ken Rankine and Willie were great friends and Willie sat in during one of our Christmas parties.

The recording was released by CBS in 1986, see

https://www.discogs.com/The-Charlie-Watts-Orchestra-Live-At-Fulham-Town-Hall/release/1126702

The event was also filmed and broadcast by the BBC, and that is available on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAU2SSZPiqs

Its pretty low res, but as a piece of history, and as you may have some spare time, do take a look.

The other find was that of a record company that is still in business, but is also having a sale.

Do take a look at https://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/products.php?cat=377

a small sample of their offerings

You will see that they have a pretty interesting selection of jazz recordings for you to indulge yourself with. Dig a little into their selection and you will find that many are on sale for only 99 pence. Post and packing will add £2 but if you buy more than one that price should drop.

One of the CD’s I have ordered was of Radio Luxembourg’s 208 Rhythm Club recordings from broadcast made in 1961 by the early Chris Barber Band with, again, Ottile Patterson. 

These recordings were actually made in London by Landsowne Records and their producer Denis Preston who made many of the early LP recordings by both Chris Barber, Alex Welsh and Kenny Baker on the Nixa “Jazz Today” label. If you look at the Dutton catalogue closely you will find many of them here (or should that he “there”?)

If you brows what Dutton Vocalion do have, you are bound to find some things you might like (and can afford!), and no, I’m not on commission! 

Well, enough for now. 

I think it is clear from the current state of the pandemic that an early return to any sort of sociability, let alone live jazz, does appear to be months away. Do let me know what you are doing to swage the pangs of the reduction in jazz intake. Try emailing me at  Octogeoff@outlook.com 

Stay safe, if you get bored try growing lerts!

 My bloggy bits this week really carry on from my comments of last week about Roy Williams.

I was writing about that great British trombone player and mentioned that Festival Hall concert where he dueted with trombonist George Chisholm. I had written it up from memory, but later in the week I looked out the CD of the concert (I had it originally on LP too!), and I was  wrong!! 

It was on London’s South Bank, but it was in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, not the Festival Hall. The concert was on 28th November 1971 and it was given as a memorial to Louis Armstrong. The duet I was remembering was Roy Williams and George Chisholm playing “It’s All Right With Me”, and I think it only right if I quote from the sleeve notes written by Liam Keating about that particular tune. 

The redoubtable George Chisholm guests on Cole Porter's “It's all right with me”. George is joined by Roy, and both trombonists, displaying a mutual admiration, build upon each others solos to excel even their own high standards. Roy breaks away from the introductory duet and performs four scintillating choruses, only to be bettered by four from George. After a two chorus interlude from Jim Douglas we are treated to two choruses of swapped "fours" (George is the more outgoing of the two and is inclined to separate his phrases more than Roy) and then a grand final duet, spanning four choruses, sans rhythm. I will refrain from saying any more about this track - it would inevitably be an understatement! 

The CD reissue was published in 1995 by Black Lion Records as BLCD760515. If you don’t have it already I really do recommend it. 

Please don’t get it confused with a celebration of Louis’s birthday given in the same place a year earlier, as that recording is dreadful. It has some good music on it, with Humph and Alex Welsh again participating, but the recording left everything to ones desire!

Roy Williams and George Chisholm do do another duet in this concert playing “Tea for Two” and there is a lot of great jazz on this double album, but the recording for some reason badly lets it all down. I can remember the comments about it in the musical press when the LP’s were first released. 

If you can find a copy then have a listen, but a lot of the players are off mike, and the ensemble is badly out of balance. However it does give you the chance to hear Beryl Bryden, a stalwart British blues singer from the dawn of the British revivalist period. She was a large lady with a matching voice, AND she played a washboard. 

The mix of styles playing this concert is kind of confusing, but it was celebrating the music of Louis Armstrong. If only it had been recorded with a sound as good as some of the acoustic recording Louis made, have a listen to some of Louis Hot 5 recordings, then it would be worth buying, but there are too many buts on this one.

The 1971 concert came very soon after Louis died, and looking it up on Wikipedia just to check my facts, I was surprised that the place where he died had a very familiar look about it!!  He died on 6th July 1971 in Corona, New York!!

This continual semi house arrest state we currently endure has made me look back at CD’s that I haven’t pulled from the collection for some time. You may recall that at Christmas time I was delivered of a Chris Barber Band recording made in Nottingham by Alan Gilmore which was well worth collecting and in my digging around and listening this week I have come across a CD by the Humphrey Lyttelton Band also recorded by Alan Gilmore in Nottingham. 

The recording isn’t as good as the Barber one, (but better than the one referenced above from 1970) but nonetheless well worth a search out. it’s the Humph Band with Gospel Singer Marie Knight, recorded in 1958. 

There are a number of reasons not to be frightened off this one. Most of the songs are NOT gospel, and the band was one of Humph's very best. John Pickard was on trombone, and the reed section was Tony Coe, Jimmy Skidmore and Joe Temperly. Yes folks 1958. And you just have to believe that the Humph band of the day did play “Shake, Rattle and Roll"!! You just have to hear how drummer Eddie Taylor lays down the beat!

Its on the Calligraph label CLG CD 047, and was released in 2010

There you have it for this week. 1958, 1970 and 1971. I wonder where next weeks search and listen will take me. In the meantime do keep the home of jazz in your thoughts as the United States of America starts life with a new president.

 This Weeks Jazz from Geoff Blog :-

Is late, and hasn’t got much content. However, I do have a recommendation for you.

One of the joys of the past few years has been the visits to Hedsor Jazz of that fine trombone player Roy Williams. Sadly Roy was taken ill about a year a go, and is no longer able to play. This is a real loss to all who loved his amazing control over the slide trombone. He was a regular with The Alex Welsh band, and played alongside John Barnes in that great British band. When Alex ceased playing both Roy and John joined The Humphrey Lyttelton Band, and their unique combination continued for a number of years before John Barnes left, leaving Alan Barnes in his place. 

There are many fine recordings for us to remember Roy by. There is that wonderful Festival Hall Tribute to Louis Armstrong where Roy duets chorus after chorus with George Chisholm. Two trombones fighting it out to the end. 

But I had another one in my collection that showed what a wide ranging player Roy was. In the world of jazz we often try and tie individual players down to one particular style or even as being with one particular band. On a German Labelled CD “Live and Swinging” there are 5 musicians who have all played on more than one type of music.

Led by drummer Peter York, “Live and Swinging” has Roy Williams on trombone, Alan Barnes on saxophones various, and bass player Harvey Weston. Both Harvey and Roy had been with Alex Welsh Band. Alan Barnes had been with Humph when Roy was still part of it, and had been in the band alongside John Barnes. 

Peter himself had been in “The Spencer Davis Group”, a 1960’s rock, pop band,  and had then also spent 3 years with the Chris Barber Band. When Peter York decided to relocate to Germany, he often toured with the band on this 1998 recording. The band being completed by pianist Wolfgang Dalheimer. 

The album I have is on the Nagel Heyer label (CD091) and has the quintet paying with skill and enthusiasm. They are excellently cohesive, and obviously knew each other very well. It was a joy to hear Roy at the peak of his form with Alan still developing his playing ability. 

For me the only downside is that drummer Peter has to sing! Aside from that it’s a great jazz record. Alan features on “Istfahan“ and Roy on “All The Things You Are”. Peter of course just features!(after all he is the leader, and a drummer)! 

As a cd it is well worth you searching it out. Maybe the Amazon list price of £24 is a bit steep, but I’m sure you will find ways round that. It is well worth your trouble as it is a fine swinging record. And a tribute to the wonderful playing we used to have from Roy Williams.

Regarding the return of jazz to Hedsor Jazz, we have no news at the moment. As soon as we can get back to a lower lock down level we will put on some more live and swinging (socially distanced) jazz there, but until then, do try the canned variety.

 The First Blog of 2021

So, what can I say. There is Hope for 2021 as there is a vaccine on its way. 

BUT someone told the virus, and now it is an improved and more virulent one. 

Happy New Lockdown 3!!

So, how to keep entertained? 

Last week I referred to Humphrey Lyttleton playing alongside pianist Mick Pyne, and reminded people that Peter Clayton had introduced them as “the band that can get to gigs on a tandem”!

That was in 1983. So I thought I had better dig out my recording of the broadcast, which I did, and played it again perhaps for the first time since 2009. That was when I turned the tape into a CD for my own personal use.

But drastic times need drastic measures, and I am going to risk letting you hear it via a link to my drop box folder, where an MP3 version of the CD now resides for a short period of time. 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ywg5k7ylh5iwurc/AACW8LOPIhtYKP4unFR2NrSGa?dl=0 

I had forgotten that on the same recording was a version of Humph’s 8 piece band, with a sax section of legends. Bruce Turner, John Barnes and Kathy Stobart. And the recording has the added bonus of the voice of Peter Clayton. 

He was for me the voice of jazz on the BBC. Jazz Record Requests on Radio 3 and Jazz Club on Radio 2, and that was back in the days when Humph himself had a weekly program on Radio 2 called “The Best of Jazz”. 3 hours a week of jazz with one of those hours a recording of a live performance. Many of these were recorded in BBC’s Maida Vale Studios in front of an invited audience, of whom I was often one.

In this time of live jazz starvation it is good to look back on one’s live jazz experiences. I hope you enjoy the above recording enough to pay any fine I might incur through sharing the music with you. However if you should feel any guilt do please put money in Cancer Research’s collecting box.

Not a lot else to report. If you like the duetting contained in the drop box download, try that old standby YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nq4ZccP7IvCaomkEz87zznVSvJ7gHxypA

For more of the same.

One of the songs on that compilation was “We Fell Out Of Love” which Humph wrote for singer Elkie Brooks, which has some very poignant lyrics. I first heard that sung by Elkie Brooks with Humph at the Royal Festival Hall. At that time I had no idea who she was, and she appeared onstage in a very floaty white dress, and when not singing proceeded to flirt with Bruce Turner. Maybe she had heard his version of the tune “Cream Puff”! 

Well I have dropped enough names for those of you who are intrigued by them to search for the sounds themselves. They are all out there. 

So, try hard, wait patently for your jab, and in the meantime don’t break the law by going out!