5 Days still to go before we reach December, 30 days to that parcel embracing day called Christmas! And before we take a short jazz break over Christmas and the New Year there is still some wonderful jazz to explore at The Hedsor Bar.

Coming THIS THURSDAY, November 28^th, we have Lester Brown on trumpet, returning for 2 weeks in a row. Accompanying him will be saxophonist Martin Dunston. I think this may be Martins third visit to Hedsor, so do come along and enjoy that collision of notes called JAZZ that we enjoy so much.

 

Last week Lester had Alam Nathoo by his side and they certainly produced some wonderful collisions (maybe the word collusions might be better?) but however you play with the words, the way those two played with the notes was amazing. It was also a pleasure to have Nigel Fox back with us again. "Our" Ken McCarthy was indisposed with a bad cold, and Nigel stepped in at short notice. I know we are only a small audience at Hedsor, but I count it a real privilege to hear such fine music being played at Hedsor Jazz.

We are planning to continue at The Hedsor Bar into 2025 but to ensure that we can do this please spread the word about our wonderful jazz club, and come yourselves as often as you can.

December musically is a short month with only 3 gigs (but just look at the quality of those gigs, (poster art below). AND on the 19^th we have our Christmas Party. 

Entry to each of our gigs is £10 per head and that includes any evenings when we have a buffet. They all start at 8pm, and I understand that the Hedsor Bar’s web site has now got the correct start time for our gigs!

 

January is still in the planning stage, but it will have 4 gigs in it, so watch THIS SPACE. In 2025 we also hope to introduce you to some different jazz styles on an occasional basis.

It was a pleasure to have Steve Riddle back with us again last week. He threatens to give up playing altogether, so do please nag him silly to continue. I know he really never got over the cataclysmic damage that his upright bass sustained, and I know he doesn’t think the stick bass produces such a satisfying sound, but he is too good a bass player to be allowed to disappear from the music scene. My photos from last week are below, including that nice cheeky shot of Steve just below Lester, who is also looking, well, cheeky!

One final "note"! Sunday December 1st has an unusual gig in an unusual place. In Maidenheads United Reformed Church, West Street, Maidenhead, SL6 1RL there will be a Jazz Service starting at 10.30am. Taking part will be singer Gill Cook, Saxophonist Mark Aston, and the Hedsor Jazz trio of Ken McCarthy, Peter Hughes and Martin Hart. I will be holding it together with a few words so why not come along, its even free to get in!

 A Warning

For those of us who travel to Hedsor Jazz via Cookham Bridge I have just been informed, courtesy of he Bucks Free Press online, that the Bridge will be closed again this Thursday, November 21st, from 7.30pm until 5am next day.

Another Tuesday, another blog to entice you to another Hedsor Jazz evening!

Yes, it is getting colder, and the evenings have already got dark, but Hedsor Jazz offer’s a warm welcome, and the music is jazz, GREAT JAZZ!

This week, Thursday November 21^st, that jazz will be provided by Lester Brown on trumpet with Alam Nathoo on tenor sax and they will be backed by our regular rhythm section (well rhythm is regular!).

Lester has been “our” trumpet player for many years, coming to us soon after Clive Burton passed away. Alam is a relatively new find, but one of the most amazing musicians I have come across in years. His solos border on the impossible, and his understanding of any tunes chord structure is phenomenal. If you haven’t heard him before, you must come and listen.

 

Now for an update on our December program.

We have had to change the line-up for December 12^th. After all, we couldn’t really afford Johnny Thirkle and when Jamiroquai have a booking we can’t have him! Sue Greenway was always a TBC, and she can’t, so in their places we have booked a) another great friend of Hedsor Jazz who has been playing for us since the days of jazz in Cookham’s “Railway Tavern”! That great booting tenor saxophonist Al Nicholls is coming, and b) bringing with him another part of “Blue Harlem” trumpeter Titch Walker. So watch out for some great Harlem style swinging jazz.

 

A revised poster is below, please copy and print off and place somewhere where the public can see it!

 

My photos for last week are below. Last week Duncan Lamont Jr brought with him a big  band trumpeter in the shape of John Hinch, and between the music and the informative introductions from Duncan we all learnt more about tunes like “Once I Had a Secret Love”, “Georgia”, “The Days of Wine and Roses”, and we finished the evening with “Bernie’s Tune”! They say Variety is the Spice of Life. For “Spice of Life” just substitute “Hedsor Jazz”.

 

Do that and I’ll see you all on Thursday!

 

 

 Another week has flown by, and yet again we have a week with 2 great local jazz evenings for us to enjoy. 

TONIGHT Marlow jazz has Nigel Price Plus: see their advert below.

 
Hedsor Jazz has had 3 of these 4 play before, and we have had gypsy guitar music evenings with 2 of those3 before!!

HEDSOR JAZZ this THURSDAY (November 14^th) has that great friend of Hedsor jazz saxophonist Duncan Lamont Jr. 

When he is invited to bring a partner to play alongside him he always introduces us to someone wonderful.

This time we have a trumpeter new to us, John Hinch.

His background is:-

John Hinch – Trumpet

Graduate of Leeds College of Music and Postgraduate Jazz Scholarship Trinity College of Music, London. John is an experienced freelance trumpet player, working in all areas of the profession. Artistes and organisations worked for include Shirley Bassey, Petula Clark, Nancy Wilson, The Drifters, BBC, Eurojazz and West End Theatre.

Which I nicked from The Groove Merchants synopsis

 

I’m sure it will be another entertaining evening for all you Hedsor Jazzers. Just as last weeks Hedsor Jazz was!!

Week after week we are getting some superb performances at Hedsor Jazz, and although our audience is small, it is perfectly formed! Having  more listeners would only benefit themselves by coming to hear what Hedsor jazz has to offer.

Last week (my photos are below) I heard mentioned more than once that it was thought to have been that listener’s best night ever at Hedsor! It was a very good night! Pete Rudeforth heard the comment and was visibly embarrassed (but pleased) and promised he would come again.

 

Dont forget, our poster art for both November and December is available, so please copy and place it before the general public.

 

 

 After reading todays Blog You have 50 days until Christmas!!

BUT TONIGHT November 5^th, you could go and see “In The Pocket” at The Bourne End Community Centre

With Alam Nathoo and Mike Jeffries, both stars of Hedsor Jazz with Jezz Cook, who has played Hedsor many time.

8pm start £8 entry

 But what has Hedsor Jazz itself got to offer you this Thursday, November 7^th? 

We have a return visit of that very experienced trumpet player Pete Rudeforth, who will be kept company at the front by Mark Aston on various saxophones. 

No, Mark isn’t a new permanent member of Hedsor Jazz, but this week it will be 3 in a row for him. He has been a great friend of Hedsor Jazz for many years and we must thank him for helping us out this Autumn. Some of the invitees for this Autumn were unable to be with us and Mark has gallantly led his way to Hedsor’s front line. Many thanks, and we look forward to future appearances from him in the weeks to come.

Last week Mark led a session alongside guitarist Alex Corlett, a very talented musician and composer. This was a very enjoyable session which included a performance of one of Alex’s own compositions “Minor Declaration”. 

My photos from last week are below.

 

But last week I did take some more photos!!

On our way home Tracy and I, as we crossed Cookham Bridge, could see a barge well on fire, and as there was no evidence of the fire brigade that we could see, we went to investigate in case no one had called them. By the time we had walked to the site of the blaze 3 other people were there from the next boat moored nearby and they said that they had called the fire brigade. Once it was established that the fire brigade were in charge we went back to move the car out of their way. Sadly this residential barge was completely gutted by the fire and subsequently sank as can be seen from the photos I took next morning.

I have no news at all of who has suffered the loss of their home. I believed the barge to have been empty at the time.

 

Lets hope future journeys home prove vastly less exciting in the future, 

and lest hope for a better future for those people who seem to have lost all in the boat fire.