Another blog, 3 in a week!!

Over the lockdown and then the unlock periods I have established a link to Maidenheads Norden Farm. I know that some of you go to their jazz evenings, and this week they have offered us the following:-

We would also like to offer your network 2 for 1 tickets for this Friday’s event John Horler – A Tribute to Bill Evans if anyone would like to join us. John returns to Norden Farm with Alec Dankworth. This time in classic jazz trio format, celebrating the music of Bill Evans. They are joined by drummer Ronnie Jones, to mark the 60th anniversary of the release of seminal Bill Evans album Portrait in Jazz.

Buy one, get one free tickets can be booked online here https://norden.farm/events/john-horler-a-tribute-to-bill-evans - using the code JAZZ241 or by calling the Box Office on 01628 788997.

Many thanks to Norden Farms Alex Vander Borght for this. If you are free, do avail yourselves of this special deal.

 I noticed when looking at the issued blog that the Vasilis poster for Thursday says you need to pre book. 

THIS IS NO LONGER A REQUIREMENT

I did the poster some weeks ago!

Also Marlow Jazz Club has just issued its forthcoming program, do take a look.

A short blog today just to encourage you all to come out for our special event on Thursday.

Vasilis Xenopoulos and Nigel Price, together with Ken McCarthy on keyboard, Andy Crowdy on bass and of course Martin Hart on drums ( and occasional microphone)!

The highest class of jazz coming to you at The Hedsor Club. All for £10 a head, with free parking.

Just compare that with going to see Vasilis and Nigel at Ronnie Scott’s! You would pay your entry fee at Hedsor for one drink at Ronnie’s!

If you have access to facebook do check out https://www.facebook.com/vasilisjazz/videos/1044355002981551/

Strangely, last weeks session had exactly the same mix of instruments. The front liners of Al Nicholls and Max Britain provided a wonderful mix of tunes and harmonies, and I am sure this Thursday’s session will do the same, but it won’t sound the same. The styles will be different that’s all. So nothing too boring then! 

My recording of last weeks session will be available via DropBox later in the week.

My photos are below.

Now you see the braces!

NO, not musical mops, just spilt beer!

Our opening evening for October will have

October 7^th    Sue Greenway reeds + Mike Wills reeds+ Ken McCarthy keyboard + Terry Davis bass + Martin Hart drums

Two reed players! For us it will be a welcome return to have Mike with us again. We were so used to seeing him every week alongside Clive, but as everyone’s circumstances have changed it will be great to welcome him back. Sue, like Mike is also from Oxford, and is well used to playing with Mike in that local circuit. It should be a harmonious evening.

I told you this blog would be short, but one final thing.

One of my favourite pianists is Scot Brian Kellock, who is often associated with saxophonist Tommy Smith. He is also known for accompanying singers, Catherine Legardh for example.(Check out “Love Still Wears a Smile”).

Recently he has released on a self released, self financed basis a CD of solo piano. He has amazing technique, and I would recommend you listen to it. It's all just wonderful imaginative, exciting piano playing. Strands of music are literally woven into different shapes.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bidin-My-Time-Brian-Kellock/dp/B07WJB6S7F

Check out what The London Jazz News Review has to say about it at

https://londonjazznews.com/2019/08/17/brian-kellock-bidin-my-time/

Don’t forget to keep live jazz alive, the musicians need an audience, and so do the venues!

A slightly late and also a bit brief, the blog this week does concentrate the mind on what we have coming up this week and next week too, and a recapitulation on what we had last week as well!

So, to be perverse last week first!

Our session with Stuart Henderson and Anatoliy Vyacheslavov was first class modern and exciting jazz. It was good to have both musician with us again, but particularly so to have “Tolly” back with us as he is quite hard to get hold of. A hard and exciting modern bop player with a big tone, he combined well with Stuart. His own solo’s within each tune were innovative and hard driving. The evening did get recorded, and it is available to download from my DropBox over the next month, just follow the link above the image of the cd cover.

dropbox 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/55mxedkn8pmflvj/AAD_F5X_jl82Vy0cK1FavzNja?dl=0

This coming Thursday we have a different sort of tenor player, but none the less an excellent one. We are pairing Al Nicholls with guitarist Max Britain, so the evenings sound might not be quite so hard driven as last week, but it will be interesting and full toned and full of invention. That’s this Thursday, September 23^rd from 8.30pm so do come along.

As you may have heard me say in the recent past we could do with more in the Hedsor audience. What Hedsor Jazz is putting on week by week is jazz music of a very high quality. We do have the funds to keep going, BUT unless we get a bigger audience I fear we will not be able to encourage the musicians we have so regularly had in the past to come out and play for us. It is just as important for the musicians to enjoy playing as it is for the audience to enjoy their music. If those musicians feel underappreciated, and we loose them, then I don’t see a future for jazz at Hedsor. We need an audience.

Don’t forget we have a very special evening coming up for the end of the month.

On September 30^th we will have Vasilis Xenopoulos and Nigel Price coming to play for us at Hedsor. We have been privileged to have them at Hedsor many times in the past.

Last week they were at Ronnie Scott’s! Please ensure they have an audience to play for at Hedsor by coming to see them, and by encouraging others to come too. It will only cost you £10 to get in, the car parking is free, and the drinks are very reasonably priced! You cannot say any of that for Ronnie Scott’s!

I do understand that there are still risks attached to going out and socialising. There is ample space at Hedsor to double our usual audience and still not to be crammed together and if you take the usual covid precautions you will probably be safer coming to sit and listen to Jazz at Hedsor than you would be shopping in the supermarket of your choice!

One young man came for the first time last week, a rock guitarist, who also happens to be the lead singer of “The Small Fakers”, yes a tribute band! Do look them up!  http://www.smallfakers.co.uk/

A short blog today, but it is coming out on the correct day of the week this time!

We have been a little short on numbers recently, and I want to stress that if you would like to come to ANY Hedsor Jazz session now, you don’t need to pre book with Tracy, but when you pay her on entry do be prepared to give her your contact details for covid 19 tracing.

It was pointed out that maybe people who thought they would like to come at the last minute might be put off because they hadn’t email Tracy, our money launderer (that’s cash to jazz!), and therefore didn’t come. Well, we don’t want anyone to miss the exciting evenings we get at Hedsor Jazz, and I can assure you all that our live jazz is better than your broadest band TV!!

And this week is pretty special! Thursday 16^th September we have Stuart Henderson on trumpet and flugel horn and Anatoliy Vyacheslavov on tenor sax as our front line guests.

Last week saw another excellent evening with Kelvin Christian doing his Roland Kirk impersonation on “Blue Rol” and trumpeter Andy Gibson blowing some high notes on Clifford Brown’s “Joy Spring”.

Sadly my Tascam recorder decided it had run out of memory in the second set, but if you missed both the above, they can be found via the DropBox links put out yesterday.

My photos of the evening are below.

 Coming soon is our evening with Vasilis Xenopoulos and Nigel Price on September 30^th. We won’t be allowed to fill the room, but we are anticipating double our usual number. Do tell your friends, your neighbours, and you can always bring your mum. Let’s welcome these guys to Hedsor. They have gained fame if not fortune since the days when they played in the bar! As I said last week, the musicians play better to a supportive audience.

Have any of you caught up with a CD released recently by Tony Coe?

Called “Dancing in the Dark” it was released last month on Gearbox GB1567CD. It has Tony playing alongside pianist John Horler back in 2007 in St Michaels Church, Appleby. Just the two of them with Tony on clarinet all the time. It is a wonderful showcase for one of the UK’s most innovative jazz musicians. No matter what reed instrument he plays on he has an identifiable sound, almost dribbling out some of his notes but always making perfect and exciting sense within the context of the tune being played. Tony has been one of the jazz musicians I have tried to get to see whenever possible ever since he joined the Humphrey Lyttleton Band at the age of 18. He replaced another of Britain’s great reed innovators, Bruce Turner!

"Some other Autumn" is a tune Tony wrote back in the 1970’s and appears on this latest release but is also on a CD in the HEP catalogue (HEP CD 2037). It was originally released on the Doug Dobell 77 Records Label around 1971!

That's it for now folks, stay safe.

HEDSOR JAZZ RECORDINGS

As promised last blog, below is a list of links to my recordings from Hedsor Jazz now in DropBox

The titles are as they appear in DropBox. Please feel free to download and enjoy

Hedsor Jazz 5 8 21 Lester and Frank           https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1q9drjb86t8tnu8/AABDQvKe0SUUFuObUf5S2J7ha?dl=0

Hedsor Jazz 12 8 21 Lester and Kelvin     https://www.dropbox.com/sh/494jsakl1dh6i1g/AADyaXif1P-Zx9irVZwf5B5Ea?dl=0

Hedsor Jazz 26 8 21 Lester and Mark https://www.dropbox.com/sh/571n5z374hcy2jd/AAAQ3LBwCqv8RTgTAgPdRmp4a?dl=0

Hedsor Jazz Al Nicholls Lester 2 9 21 https://www.dropbox.com/sh/kqnr33ik3nio4e6/AAAfpfjjgeP8mXtDghLOYDQCa?dl=0

Hedsor Jazz Duncan L and Mike 19 8 21 https://www.dropbox.com/sh/zr3ld0vr7olamew/AAD-wWmCXkA6iHVBEOmWQvUga?dl=0

Hedsor Jazz Kelvin C Andy G 9 9 21 https://www.dropbox.com/sh/qx8ejnnpan7p08s/AABy0vXsZyXXb3JjwYOKcREKa?dl=0

 

Late again I’m afraid, but with news of almost 2 months of glorious jazz for you to look forward to.

Below you will find our listings up until the end of October. Please do try and come to as many as you can, we hope to continue the program, but only

a) if we are allowed to. (the covid infection rate is currently 383 in 100,000 in RBWM) and

b) if enough of you come out to listen to the marvellous music that Hedsor Jazz is currently providing. This is not just a financial consideration. Musicians like to play to an audience!

Last weeks session with Lester and Al Nicholls was truly wonderful. One regular attendee said Al was his favourite sax player of all time, and made a nice donation as well as paying his entry fee. Well, Mr Anonymous, you will see AL Nicholls will be with us again in a couple of week time!

Photos of the night are below, I will put my recording of it into DropBox later in the week and let you all have the download link later.

 

Our program for the next few weeks

 HEDSOR JAZZ GIG LIST

September/October 2021

All the gigs start at 8.30pm with a ½ hour break between 9.30 and 10pm. Entry fee is £10. Please make sure that Tracy (tracy.georgiades@gmail.com) knows you are coming. We need to keep track of the numbers until we feel more comfortable about the numbers in the hall. The appropriate Government Covid safety measures should still adhered to.

 September

  9^th    Andy Gibson tpt + Kelvin Christian reeds + Ken McCarthy keyboard + Peter Hughes bass + Martin Hart drums

16^th    Stuart Henderson tpt + Tolly* sax Ken McCarthy keyboard + Terry Davis bass + Martin Hart drums

*Tollys actual name is Anatoliy Vyacheslavov

23^rd    Al Nicholls reeds + Max Brittain guitar + Ken McCarthy keyboard + Peter Hughes bass + Martin Hart drums

30^th    Vasilis Xenopoulos reeds + Nigel Price gtr + Ken McCarthy keyboard + Andy Crowdy bass + Martin Hart drums

October

  7^th    Sue Greenway reeds + Mike Wills reeds+ Ken McCarthy keyboard + Terry Davis bass + Martin Hart drums

14^th   Lester Brown tpt + ALAN GRAHAM vibes and percussion + Ken McCarthy keyboard + Peter Hughes bass + Martin Hart drums

This will be a party night to celebrate with a few of Alan’s friends his 94^th birthday, which took place earlier in the year. There will be a buffet included in the normal entry price.

21^st   Stuart Henderson tpt + Frank Walden sax + Ken McCarthy keyboard +Terry Davis bass + Martin Hart drums

28^th   Lester Brown tpt + Mark Aston reeds + Ken McCarthy keyboard + Mike Jeffries drums. Bass to be arranged

ADVANCED NOTICE

Our Christmas Party will be on December 23^rd. One of our guests will be the renowned singer TINA MAY (with thanks to our anonymous sponsors!).

Please Note, ALL these gigs take place in 

The HEDSOR CLUB which can be found in Hedsor Rd, Bourne End, Buckinghamshire SL8 5ES

 

 

 First, no apology for a Wednesday blog?

I had a bank holiday too!

    I’m not taking a week off though, because it is important for you to know that tomorrows Hedsor Jazz gig has been modified. 

In place of Mike Wills, who is unavoidably detained, we have the greatest of pleasures in welcoming back Al Nicholls, that well known tenor sax player and the musician behind (or even in front of) "Blue Harlem" to play alongside Lester Brown. That’s tomorrow, September 2^nd, at Hedsor Club.

Last week Lester was beside another saxophonist, Mark Aston, and didn’t they do well. I think it was the best I had heard them play together. The arrangements were crisp and harmonious, and the individual improvisation was excellent. AND you can still hear it all, because you can download it from my DropBox file by using the link below:-

DB Link    https://www.dropbox.com/sh/571n5z374hcy2jd/AAAQ3LBwCqv8RTgTAgPdRmp4a?dl=0

Listen out for the very good “behind solo’s” riffing that goes on. The choice of tune was also innovative and great to hear.

Here are my photos from the evening:-

Below you will find our gig list for September. Please consider coming, we do now have space for you, all you need to do is to let Tracy know you are coming. email tracy.georgiades@gmail.com

That includes our VERY special gig on September 30th. Just let us know you are coming and pay at the door.

SEPTEMBER AT HEDSOR JAZZ

Sept  2^nd     Lester Brown tpt + Al Nicholls sax+

          Ken McCarthy keyboard + Terry Davis bass + Martin Hart drums

          9^th      Andy Gibson tpt +  Kelvin Christian reeds +

           Ken McCarthy keyboard + Peter Hughes bass + Martin Hart drums

         16^th    Stuart Henderson tpt + Tolly* sax  

            Ken McCarthy keyboard + Terry Davis bass + Martin Hart drums

         23^rd    Al Nicholls reeds + Max Brittain guitar +    

            Ken McCarthy keyboard + Peter Hughes bass + Martin Hart drums

        30^th    Vasilis Xenopoulos  reeds + Nigel Price gtr +

             Ken McCarthy keyboard  + Andy Crowdy bass + Martin Hart drums

 

*Tolly’s full name is Anatoliy Vyacheslavov

I do have artwork for a poster for September 30^th, see below:-

 If you would like the pdf file in order for you to print and put up near you please see the 

DropBox link  https://www.dropbox.com/s/syek9gahdydl64m/vasilis%20poster%20v1.pdf?dl=0

That's about it for now, I have probably forgotten something, after all I was born in 1938 

Please consider not only coming yourself to a Hedsor Jazz gig, but bringing a friend. 

Without an audience we wont be able to keep the musicians amused! 

And no amused musicians means NO LIVE JAZZ!

  

Good Morning Jazz Fans.

I have a good excuse why this is a day late, and why it will be brief. BUT IT IS INFORMATIVE!!

Below you will find not only my photos of last week’s session with Duncan Lamont Jr and Mike Innes, but also a link to my DropBox files from which you can download all of the music and chat from the evening.

Those of you who were in the audience will remember that it started fairly soon after a power cut and during a torrential down pouring of rain. One of the tunes they didn’t play was “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today”, but when power was restored the next tune they did play was “I’m Beginning to See The Light”!

The evening was, despite the unfortunate start, one of superb jazz music. One of our regulars emailed me thus:-

“Hi Geoff, I’m sending this email to tell you how much I enjoyed last Thursdays jazz. Duncan Lamont and Mike Innes were superb. The combination of sounds, harmonies and beautiful arrangements were just sublime. I hope to have the pleasure of hearing them again in the not too distant future. A great night of jazz. Thanks Geoff”.

You missed it? What can I say? Jazz at Hedsor on a Thursday Night can sometimes be, as my emailer suggested, “sublime”!

DropBox  link here:-

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/zr3ld0vr7olamew/AAD-wWmCXkA6iHVBEOmWQvUga?dl=0

Tomorrow (Thursday August 26^th) we have “our” regular trumpet player Lester Brown coming to play alongside multi reed man Mark Aston, backed by our regular trio led by Martin Hart.

For September I only have at the moment the listings for the beginning and the end of the month! 

September 2^nd The Clive Burton Celebration Quintet which of course mean we will have a return of Mike Wills as our multi reed player, again with Lester on trumpet. 

But for the end of the month, September 30^th we have a very special evening for you! 

On tenor sax VASILS XENOPOULOS

On guitar NIGEL PRICE

On keyboard KEN McCARTHY

On bass ANDY CROWDY

On drums MARTIN HART

This will be at our usual start time of 8.30pm and our usual admittance charge of £10. I do have the artwork for a poster, so if anyone would like a PDF of it to print and display let me know (Octogeoff@outlook.com).

For any of our gigs do let Tracy know you are coming (tracy.georgiades@gmail.com). Don’t forget you will be expected to abide by whatever covid hygiene rules apply at the time.

A late again blog that today will look back with nostalgia and forward with anticipation!

Looking back only as far as last week our concert at Hedsor Jazz was remarkable in that at the end of the evening many people remarked on it and asked if I had recorded it. The tunes played and the empathy for those tunes between Kelvin Christian, our guest for the evening, and Lester Brown, our regular trumpet player, was richly rewarding. Improvised harmony and good tunes made for a great evening out. A few of my photos from the evening are below, but I DID record it, and you can download the files from my DropBox account by following the link :-

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/494jsakl1dh6i1g/AADyaXif1P-Zx9irVZwf5B5Ea?dl=0

I think at this point I would mention that live jazz like that deserves more live fans! AND Hedsor Jazz does have the capacity to seat more people. Still with the ability to keep safe, government restrictions are being relaxed, and I’m sure that if you can make the journey to Hedsor Jazz on a Thursday you will be rewarded with a very enjoyable musical experience. BUT it will be JAZZ.

Tomorrow, Thursday August 19^th, we have two fine musicians coming to play in our front line,(with some equally fine musicians behind them!). Duncan Lamont Jnr on reeds and Mike Innes on trombone will be backed by Ken McCarthy on keyboard, Peter Hughes on bass and guest drummer,(but a regular Hedsor Jazz fan) Mike Jeffries on, yes, you have guessed it DRUMS! 8.30 start £10 entry fee.

 

I am honour bound to mention that there are other jazz venues now open in our area. Hedsor was the first to “unlock” and Marlow Jazz is now open for business again. Do take a look at

https://www.marlowjazz.co.uk/Jazzaug21events.pdf

for their forthcoming events.

Frank Giffith on a previous Hedsor visit

One of the great saxophonists who used to visit us a few times a year and share his great playing and awful jokes with us has now moved further North. He can still be heard via a local radio show and has emailed to promote this, so I am pasting his message below;-

My weekly radio show, "Grifftides", this week on www.mykindamusic24.com will have new releases from the likes of John Hart, Karen Sharp, Georgia Mancio, Tina May, Mike Tracy, Rob Schepps, Scott Reeves and Ed Puddick. Thursday night at 9PM, UK time. Dig the sounds...-- 

Frank Griffith

23 Heathfield Road

Liverpool

L15 9EU

0151 903 3444

07976 313224

frank@frankgriffith.co.uk

www.facebook.com/frankgriffithsax

www.facebook.com/frankgriffithjazz 

Check out my weekly jazz radio show, "Grifftides",Thursday's at 9PM on 

www.mykindamusic24.com

Nostalgia 

Some weeks ago I noticed that one of my blog posts had had a comment posted to it. This is unusual, so I followed it up and discovered someone who used to listen to Century Jazz in both The Fifield Inn and the Cookham Tavern back in the last century!! I have been in contact with him, sharing memories of both places and of the music. He has been kind enough to send a cheque to me as a donation for Cancer Research UK. He now lives in Somerset, and doesn’t yet have any live jazz near bye to supplement his CD collection. You may remember him, because he can genuinely sign his emails 007!

Well that’s about it for today. Next week we will have more news for you of future special events. In the meantime do consider our weekly jazz sessions at Hedsor to be special anyway! 

A Short Essay today, (as I think my A level assessment has passed me as B+ )!!

I have managed to do one new thing this week though, and I have self assessed myself as A+ for doing it.

For my recent birthday I was given an Echo Dot.

Now that is a device that I had never thought of putting on my present list (which I don’t have anyway). I was pleased with myself when I managed to get it to work, and to get it to link to my tablet and for it then to play Scala Radio for me. I then considered getting it to play through my Hi Fi, so I sorted out the appropriate cabling, plugged it together and LOW, Scala Radio through the Hi Fi. I would mention that the Echo Dot, by itself, doesn’t produce very good sound for listening to music .

Then I wondered if I could link Eco to my Bluetooth device, already connect to my Hi Fi for playing music from off of my phone. And Lo and behold, the two linked (I think the correct terminology is “paired”) and so with no visible means of connection Alexa could obtain Scala Radio and I could hear it, wire free, through my Hi Fi, and all by asking "Alexa, play Scala Radio"

Considering the number associated with that last birthday, I was very pleased with myself. Alexa did however get a bit confused when I asked “her” to play me some music by Sandy Brown. After assuring her that I didn’t want to sign up for some subscription music channel, she did play me some jazz, and eventually, Sandy Brown was in the mix, but before then I'd had some Acker Bilk, Chris Barber, Ken Colyer etc!! 

I think she and I still have a lot to learn!

If when you arrive at Hedsor Jazz this coming Thursday (which as this blog is now a day late will be tomorrow, Thursday August 12^th) you ask to hear Lester Brown, Kelvin Christian, Ken McCarthy, Terry Davis and Martin Hart, you will be given an A+ as well, because Hedsor Jazz will be able to oblige!

Maybe it’s Hedsor Jazz that gets the A+!!

Last week we heard at Hedsor for the first time a young saxophonist, Frank Walden, and what a great player he is. SO until Tom Jones next international tour begins, we will be able to invite him back to Hedsor (Frank is in the touring orchestra backing Tom Jones). I did record the evening, and in due time I will remaster the recording and that of the past two Hedsor Jazz sessions and put them out on DropBox for you to download, but until then, my photos of the evening are below.

Next week (August 19th), our Thursday Jazz evening will have a wonderful pairing (I knew that was the right verb after all!), of two great musicians, Duncan Lamont jnr on saxophone and Mike Innes on trombone, They will be backed by our regular rhythm section led by Martin Hart.

"OK, play the Loony tune, its time for coffee."

Sadly Alexa doesn’t actually make coffee!