Tag Archives: Jason Downes
"YOU CAN GO AS FAR AS YOU LIKE WITH ME": STILL MORE FROM A VISIT TO CHAMBERSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: JULY 22, 2015 — JOSH DUFFEE'S GRAYSTONE MONARCHS (ANDY SCHUMM, MIKE DAVIS, JIM FRYER, MICHAEL McQUAID, JASON DOWNES, JAY RATTMAN, TOM ROBERTS, JOHN SCURRY, LEIGH BARKER, JOSH DUFFEE)
This post is part three of three. I wish it were part three of ten, but one can't be greedy. Here's part one, and part two. And here is the 1927 Oldsmobile.
And now . . . . four classic performances that we all associate with Jean Goldkette, Bill Challis, Bix Beiderbecke, and Frank Trumbauer, music conceived in 1927 and revisited for enthusiasm, style, and expertise in 2015.
I'M COMIN' VIRGINIA:
IN MY MERRY OLDSMOBILE (the 4 / 4 version), with Mike Davis blowing a scorching chorus where the vocal once was:
CLEMENTINE (From New Orleans), the last side this band recorded for Victor:
MY PRETTY GIRL:
It was an honor to be there, and it is a privilege to share these dozen performances with you. Blessings on the musicians, on Chauncey Morehouse's friends and family, and, as before, this post is dedicated to Susan Anne Atherton.
Posted in "Thanks A Million", Bliss!, Generosities, Hotter Than That, Ideal Places, It's All True, Jazz Titans, Pay Attention!, SURPRISE!, Swing You Cats!, That Was Fun!, The Heroes Among Us, The Real Thing, The Things We Love, Wow!
Tagged Andy Schumm, Bill Challis, Bix Beiderbecke, Capitol Theater, Chambersburg, Chauncey Morehouse, CLEMENTINE (From New Orleans), Frank Trumbauer, Graystone Monarchs, I'M COMIN' VIRGINIA, IN MY MERRY OLDSMOBILE, Jason Downes, Jay Rattman, Jazz Lives, Jean Goldkette, Jim Fryer, John Scurry, Josh Duffee, Leigh Barker, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, Mike Davis, MY PRETTY GIRL, Tom Roberts
"IDOLIZING": MORE FROM A VISIT TO CHAMBERSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: JULY 22, 2015 — JOSH DUFFEE'S GRAYSTONE MONARCHS (ANDY SCHUMM, MIKE DAVIS, JIM FRYER, MICHAEL McQUAID, JASON DOWNES, JAY RATTMAN, TOM ROBERTS, JOHN SCURRY, LEIGH BARKER, JOSH DUFFEE)
Here's the first part of my trip to the Capitol Theater in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania — Chauncey Morehouse's home town — including performances of I'M GONNA MEET MY SWEETIE NOW, SLOW RIVER, DINAH, and MIDNIGHT OIL by Josh Duffee's Graystone Monarchs, a wonderful orchestra of musicians from New York, Iowa, and Australia. And, yes, that gun is loaded.
Here are the next four delightful performances.
THE PANIC (a musical satire on the unwise rush to get married):
CONGOLAND, a Morehouse composition, whose title Josh explains:
And back to the Goldkette book, with the ODJB's OSTRICH WALK:
And the hot-romantic IDOLIZING (which is all that seems worthwhile):
This post, as are the others in this series, is dedicated to Susan Anne Atherton.
Tagged Andy Schumm, Bix Beiderbecke, Capitol Theater, Chambersburg, Chauncey Morehouse, Graystone Monarchs, Jason Downes, Jay Rattman, Jazz Lives, Jean Goldkette. Leigh Barker, Jim Fryer, John Scurry, Josh Duffee, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, Mike Davis, Tom Roberts
A VISIT TO CHAMBERSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA (Part One): JULY 22, 2015 — JOSH DUFFEE'S GRAYSTONE MONARCHS (ANDY SCHUMM, MIKE DAVIS, JIM FRYER, MICHAEL McQUAID, JASON DOWNES, JAY RATTMAN, TOM ROBERTS, JOHN SCURRY, LEIGH BARKER, JOSH DUFFEE)
I hadn't heard of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania before the summer of 2015, when drummer-percussionist-archivist Josh Duffee announced his intention of giving a concert with his ten-piece Graystone Monarchs to celebrate the appearance of the Jean Goldkette Orchestra at the Capitol Theater on May 4, 1927, which was a triumphant evening, made even more so because Chambersburg was legendary drummer Chauncey Morehouse's home town.
As you will see, the modern evening was triumphant also. And a fact that says something about Josh's devotion to the jazz heritage — the 2015 concert was free to the public (I am sure the 1927 one wasn't).
Of course, I asked Josh if he needed a videographer, and he did, so you can see highlights of that concert here. The band — expert and hot — was Josh on drums; Leigh Barker, string bass; John Scurry, banjo / guitar; Tom Roberts, piano; Jason Downes, Michael McQuaid, Jay Rattman, reeds; Jim Fryer, trombone; Andy Schumm, Mike Davis, trumpets.
Twelve performances from this evening have been approved for you to enjoy, and I have taken the perhaps unusual step in presenting them in three portions, as if you'd bought two new records from the local Victor dealer and would have weeks or more to savor them. But eight more performances will follow.
An exuberant start:
SLOW RIVER, arranged by Bill Challis, who told Phil Schaap he hated the limp melody and tried to bury and sabotage it:
DINAH, harking back to the 1926 version featuring Steve Brown:
And the fourth "side," from Chauncey's days with the 1935 Russ Morgan orchestra:
More lovely music to come.
Tagged Andy Schumm, Bill Challis, Bix Beiderbecke, Chambersburg, Chauncey Morehouse, Frank Trumbauer, Graystone Monarchs, Jason Downes, Jay Rattman, Jazz Lives, Jean Goldkette, Jim Fryer, John Scurry, Josh Duffee, Leigh Barker, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, Mike Davis, Phil Schaap, Steve Brown, Tom Roberts
A HALLEY'S COMET OF HOT (July 20, 2015: Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola)
I know that even the most devoted jazz fans get complacent. "Oh, we have to go to my sister-in-law's that night. We can always see that band." Or "She'll be coming back to [insert your city or favorite jazz club] in a few months. I'm tired. I have a headache. It's raining." I've done it myself. But I think — in what I admit is a rather gloomy way — what if someone had said, "Oh, we can always hear Bix / Charlie Christian / Jimmie Blanton / Sidney Catlett / Clifford Brown," and then woke up to the newspapers a few days later.
Now, here is a band portrait. Each of these gentlemen has many decades to go, to spread joy, to fill the air with beautiful sounds. So I am not writing a morbid post.
If you don't recognize them, they are known as THE HOT JAZZ ALLIANCE, which is an accurate name.
BUT. This band — an Australian-US conglomeration of the highest order — is not a group that you can see every Monday and Thursday, wherever you live. Two of its members, Andy Schumm, cornet and miscellaneous instruments; Josh Duffee, drums, come from the United States. Yes, I've seen them in the UK, but not as part of this group. The other four luminaries hail from Australia, and although I've met Michael McQuaid, reeds; Jason Downes, reeds, and John Scurry, banjo / guitar, also in the UK (I apologize to Leigh Barker, string and brass bass, for not having bowed low before him. Yet.) this group took a good amount of will-power and diligence to assemble.
So they are playing three shows in the United States, unless my information is faulty. One is Josh's July 22 tribute to Chauncey Morehouse in PoPa's home town of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania — details here — I wonder how many Hot devotees in the tri-state New York area have plans to attend the HJA's delicious two-show offering at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola? One night, July 20. Two shows, at 7:30 and 9:30. You can read about the event here and you can purchase tickets (which I suggest you do while they are still available) here.
Now, it is possible that someone reading this post is already impatient. "What? Does Michael think I am made of money? The kids need braces; Mama needs to finish her post-doc in Spenser, and our ancient Toyota is falling apart as I sit here." I apologize. I have a mortgage and an ancient car, and the orthodonture my parents paid for in my childhood has not stayed where it was put. I understand other people's bills. But this is a once-in-a-who-knows-how-long event.
I'll be at Dizzy's . . . but without video camera. Draw whatever conclusions you like, but if you are depending on me to be the Frank Buck of Hot (you could look it up) it won't happen. My apologies.
On another note. "Michael, why should I go to hear a band I don't know, when I can hear the Elastic Snappers any time I want?" Good question. Valid objection. But take an aural sniff of this:
Frank Melrose's FORTY AND TIGHT:
CHICAGO RHYTHM:
TEXAS MOANER BLUES:
What I hear here is intense, passionate, "clean" and dirty all at once, expert and casual. The HJA harks back to the beloved Ancestors but they aren't in the business of reproducing old discs right in front of us. They enliven and cheer.
And — just for a thrill — here is the cover photo, the gents all spiffy! — of their debut CD. I've heard it and the glasses in the kitchen cabinet are still rocking. The CD will be on sale at Dizzy's too, so you can take home a souvenir.
Enough loving bullying for one post, one month, perhaps for ever.
But I think of a line from a late-Forties Mildred Bailey blues: "If you miss me / you'll be missing that Acme Fast Freight." I am not a connoisseur of Forties freight shipping . . . but obviously the AFF was something special, perhaps the FedEx of 1947:
I quietly suggest that the HJA is even more special, its New York appearance even more a rarity . . . who cares if there is not yet a special Hot Jazz Alliance matchbook?
I hope to see you at Dizzy's!
Tagged Acme Fast Frieght, Andy Schumm, Bix Beiderbecke, Chambersburg, Charlie Christian, Chauncey Morehouse, Clifford Brown, Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Frank Buck, Frank Melrose, Halley's Comet, hot, Hot Jazz Alliance, Jason Downes, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Jazz Lives, Jimmie Blanton, John Scurry, Josh Duffee, Leigh Barker, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman
GET ON THE BUS! (July 22, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania; July 20, New York City)
It's a familiar sight. But now it's re-emerged for an even more exciting reason. Josh Duffee, drummer and bandleader who loves the hot / dance music of this period, especially admires drummer multi-instrumentalist Chauncey Morehouse. And rightly so.
Josh's dreams are substantial, and he energetically makes them take shape. His newest venture will please up to 800 people on the evening of Wednesday, July 22, 2015, at the Capitol Theater in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
Chambersburg isn't one of the most famous stops on the Official Jazz History tour, but it was the home town of Chauncey and of Jean Goldkette trumpeter Fuzzy Farrar. In 1927, the Goldkette orchestra played a concert in this beautiful theatre; on July 22, a reconstituted tentet of some of the finest hot musicians worldwide will honor Chauncey and his music. And it's free.
You can find out much more about the concert here and, should you be so inclined, you can make a donation to cover the expenses.
I asked Josh for more details about the music and the musicians. First off, this ten-piece band will be primarily made up of the brilliant Hot Jazz Alliance, a sextet that is four-sixths Australian and two-sixths North American and six-sixths brilliant: From Oz, Michael McQuaid, reeds; Jason Downes, reeds; John Scurry, banjo / guitar; Leigh Barker, string bass. From the US: Andy Schumm, cornet; Josh Duffee, drums. Joining them for this concert will be Jay Rattman, reeds; Mike Davis, trumpet; David Sager, trombone; Tom Roberts, piano.
If you've heard nothing of the Hot Jazz Alliance, feast your ears here:
GIVE ME YOUR TELEPHONE NUMBER:
MILENBURG JOYS:
The second performance is particularly significant because it comes from the HJA's debut CD — which is now issued, in gorgeous sound, ready for the eager multitudes.
But back to the Capitol Theatre concert.
The tentet will be playing a variety of songs that Chauncey played throughout his career. Josh says, "We'll play the closest Goldkette recording to the date they played in 1927, Slow River. We'll also be playing Congoland, which Chauncey co-wrote with Frank Guarente when they were with the Paul Specht Orchestra. Audience members will hear music from the bands Chauncey played in throughout his career, like Paul Specht, Jean Goldkette, Russ Morgan, Frank Trumbauer, Bix Beiderbecke, Howard Lanin's Benjamin Franklin Dance Orchestra, Irving Mills' Hotsy-Totsy Gang, and others. This will be the very first time this music will have been heard in this acoustic form in this theatre! Here are some of the songs we'll be playing: Slow River; Harvey; My Pretty Girl; Midnight Oil; Clarinet Marmalade; Don't Wake Me Up, Let Me Dream; Stampede; Dinah; Idolizing; Three Blind Mice; Congoland;
Singin' The Blues . . . ."
I don't like being in the car for more than ninety minutes at a time, but I'm driving out to Chambersburg for this one.
And two days earlier / closer to home in New York City, the Hot Jazz Alliance will be performing two shows on Monday, July 20, at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola in Jazz at Lincoln Center: details here.
As I write these words, it is ninety degrees and humid both inside and out. But even more Hot — of the best sort — is coming.
Posted in "Thanks A Million", Bliss!, Generosities, Hotter Than That, Ideal Places, Irreplaceable, It's All True, Jazz Titans, Jazz Worth Reading, Pay Attention!, Swing You Cats!, The Heroes Among Us, The Real Thing, The Things We Love, Wow!
Tagged Andy Schumm, Bix Beiderbecke, Capitol Theater, Chauncey Morehouse, David Sager, Frank Guarente, Frank Trumbauer, Fuzzy Farrar, GoFundMe, Hoagy Carmichael, hot jazz, Hot Jazz Alliance, Howard Lanin's Benjamin Franklin Dance Orchestra, Irving Mills' Hotsy-Totsy Gang, Jason Downes, Jay Rattman, Jazz Lives, Jean Goldkette, John Scurry, Josh Duffee, Leigh Barker, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, Mike Davis, Paul Specht, Russ Morgan, Steve Brown, Tom Roberts
"I'D LOVE IT": WHITLEY BAY JOYS — 2011, 2012, 2013 . . . !
I've attended the Whitley Bay Classic Jazz Party for the last few years . . . and always had an extraordinary experience . . . meeting and hearing players who don't often make it to the United States, including Jean-Francois Bonnel, Bent Persson, Frans Sjostrom, Michel Bastide, Nick Ward, Norman Field, Spats Langham, Michael McQuaid, John Scurry, Jason Downes, Matthias Seuffert, Enrico Tomasso, Jacob Ullberger, and two dozen other luminaries — even musicians from the US I don't encounter often enough, such as Andy Schumm, Josh Duffee, and Jeff Barnhart.
The 2012 Jazz Party is sold out, but if you want a portable audio sampling of the 2011 Party, I urge you to snap up a copy of this limited edition CD . . . only 100 copies were produced.
The CD was recorded live at the 2011 Party by Torstein Kubban, and features this stellar assortment of players: Michel Bastide, Mike Durham, Bent Persson, Andy Schumm, Enrico Tomasso, Andy Woon, Alistair Allan, Kristoffer Kompen, Paul Munnery, David Sager, Steve Andrews, Bernard Anetherieu, Michel Bescont, Jean-Francois Bonnel, Norman Field, Mauro Porro, Matthias Seuffert, Paul Asaro, Jon Penn, Keith Nichols, Martin Seck, Jean-Pierre Dubois, Phillippe Guignier, Keith Stephen, Martin Wheatley, Roly Veitch, Christian LeFevre,Henry Lemaire, Bruce Rollo, Phil Rutherford, Debbie Arthurs, Josh Duffee, Richard Pite, Nick Ward, Raymond Grasier, Mike Piggott, Frans Sjostrom, Caroline Irwin, Cecile McLorin Salvant.
And the songs? Nothing "psychological," as Ruby Braff once said. I'D LOVE IT / I GOT RHYTHM / SWEET SUE / I DON'T KNOW IF I'M COMIN' OR GOIN' / COTTON CLUB STOMP / WOLVERINE BLUES / VIPER'S DRAG / SINGIN' THE BLUES / THANKS A MILLION / STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER / WHEN YOU LEAVE ME ALONE TO PINE / SOUTH / SNOWY MORNING BLUES / BLUE AND SENTIMENTAL / ALLIGATOR CRAWL / FRONT AND CENTER / OH, BABY! / WILDFLOWER RAG / CORNFED / BUGLE CALL RAG — a nice mix of small bands, big bands, three-tenor extravaganzas, vocals, novelty showcases . . . not a dull minute in the seventy-eight contained on the CD.
You can purchase a copy of the souvenir CD by visiting here. Your purchase helps fund future Classic Jazz Parties, but the price of the disc isn't prohibitive.
On to the future. The 2013 CJP will run from November 1-3, and the following musicians are being considered . . . which will give us all something to dream about:
Trumpets: Bent Persson (Sweden), Enrico Tomasso (UK), Andy Schumm (USA), Ben Cummings (UK), Andy Woon (UK)
Trombones: Kristoffer Kompen (Norway), Alistair Allan (UK)
Reeds: Aurélie Tropez (France), Stéphane Gillot (France), Claus Jacobi (Germany) , Norman Field (UK), Matthias Seuffert (Germany), Lars Frank (Norway), Mauro Porro (Italy)
Piano: Keith Nichols (UK), Jeff Barnhart (USA), Morten Gunnar Larssen (Norway), Martin Seck (Germany)
Banjo/Guitar: Spats Langham (UK), Henry Lemaire (France), Martin Wheatley (UK), Jacob Ullberger (Sweden), Keith Stephen (UK)
String Bass: Richard Pite (UK), Henry Lemaire (France), Malcolm Sked (UK)
Brass Bass: Phil Rutherford (UK), Jean-Philippe Palma (France)
Drums: Josh Duffee (USA), Richard Pite (UK), Julien Richard (France), Nick Ward (UK)
Bass Sax: Frans Sjöström (Sweden)
Violin: Mike Piggott (UK)
Vocals: Daryl Sherman (USA), Caroline Irwin (UK), Spats Langham (UK)
and you can visit here to see the "themes" being mulled over for 2013 — because, as you may already know, the CJP is remarkable in its intense focus. Some jazz parties get wonderful results by merely putting a group of musicians onstage and saying, in effect, "You have 45 minutes to do whatever you'd like." The CJP arranges its musicians thematically — so there might be a Jelly Roll Morton trio, a Lionel Hampton small-group session, a recreated McKinney's Cotton Pickers, the Rhythmakers come again, and so on. It's not a dry historical lesson — more like a pageant of jazz history, alive and exuberant.
So, I encourage you to do "all of the above" if possible. You'll love it. Or them.
Tagged Alistair Allan, Andy Schumm, Andy Woon, Bent Persson, Bernard Anetherieu, Bruce Rollo, Caroline Irwin, Cecile McLorin Salvant, Christian LeFevre, David Sager, Debbie Arthurs, Enrico Tomasso, Frans Sjostrom, Henry Lemaire, Jacob Ullberger, Jason Downes, Jazz Lives, Jean-Francois Bonnel, Jean-Pierre Dubois, John Scurry, Jon Penn, Josh Duffee, Keith Nichols, Keith Stephen, Kristoffer Kompen, Martin Seck, Martin Wheatley, Matthias Seuffert, Mauro Porro, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, Michel Bastide, Michel Bescont, Mike Durham, Mike Piggott, Nick Ward, Norman Field, Paul Asaro, Paul Munnery, Phil Rutherford, Phillippe Guignier, Raymond Grasier, Rene Hagmann, Richard Pite, Roly Veitch, Spats Langham, Steve Andrews
THE HOT JAZZ ALLIANCE SWINGS OUT (April 20, 2011)
Posted on May 9, 2011 | 1 comment
When my learned and hot Australian friend Michael McQuaid (clarinet, alto sax, cornet, and leader of the Late Hour Boys) told me sometime last year about a tour he and his colleagues intended to do, I badly wanted to join them as an aging roadie, carrying the cases and music stands, finding places to recharge my video camera's batteries, recording every second for posterity. I would have worn a cap and held the door open.
My idea was one whose time had not yet come. But thanks to fellow reed wizard Jason Downes, we now have eighteen video performances to thrill us. Michael and Jason on their own are — to quote the late Pee Wee Erwin, "hotter than a depot stove" (you could look it up) . . . and here they are joined by guitarist / banjoist John Scurry, bassist Leigh Barker, and two Americans whose names will be familiar to JAZZ LIVES: Andy Schumm on cornet and Josh Duffee on drums. The results are nearly incendiary, and would be so even if the surroundings didn't suggest Hades reborn as a speakeasy in color and decor.
I think I am performing a public service by alerting my readers of these clips. See if you don't agree. And I can't wait for the double CD-DVD set. (Yes, one of the titles below is DON'T WAKE ME UP, LET ME DREAM, but any causal connection here is incidental, of course.)
Wow! As we say in the States.
This session was recorded on April 20, 2011, in Club Cursley, Near Cobargo, NSW, Australia. I was told that this lavish interior is inside a generous host's country house . . . one with its own stage. Some people know how to live.
How about a searing WILD MAN BLUES, styled after Johnny Dodds' Black Bottom Stompers — and hear young Mister Schumm get into his 1927 Louis-regalia in the most convincing way:
Here is the aforementioned request (or command?), DON'T WAKE ME UP, LET ME DREAM (which has a chorus-ending tag that sounds like a thousand other tunes — I thought of WHY COULDN'T IT BE POOR LITTLE ME and GOOD LITTLE, BAD LITTLE YOU but might be mistaken in both counts). From the title, I would have expected a snoozy sweet composition, so this romper is a delightful surprise. The closing chorus is superheated:
And a slow-drag, almost melancholy BABY, WON'T YOU PLEASE COME HOME? (in keeping with the yearning lyrics):
And a nearly ominous reading of BLACK SNAKE BLUES:
I have purposely left the remaining fourteen videos unposted: visit "jasondownes" on YouTube and enjoy yourselves. If you are measured in your enjoyment, that's two weeks of joy at breakfast. I still wish with all my heart that I had been along on this tour — maybe next year if I buy a cap that has THE HOT JAZZ ALLIANCE embroidered on it in gold braid, the fellows will make room for me in the band bus?
Tagged Andy Schumm, Australia, Bix Beiderbecke, Black Bottom Stompers, Jason Downes, Jazz Lives, John Scurry, Johnny Dodds, Josh Duffee, Leigh Barker, live jazz, Louis Armstrong, Michael McQuaid, Michael McQuaid's Late Hour Boys, Michael Steinman, NSW, Pee Wee Erwin, The Hot Jazz Alliance
JOHN SCURRY'S "REVERSE SWING"
One of the most gratifying things about being a jazz listener is the possibility of meeting one's heroes in the flesh. I could lament that I never saw Django or Charlie Christian or Teddy Bunn, but I'm happy and proud to be able to write, "I've met John Scurry."
I first heard John — guitarist, banjoist, composer, and not incidentally an artist — on several NifNuf CDs that came out of Bob Barnard's Jazz Parties (a glorious series of celebrations running for a decade).
I would put the CD into the player, most often in my car, and just listen, not knowing who the players were aside from Bob and one or two others. But when I got to my destination or at a stoplight, I would look at the personnel to see exactly who that most impressive (unidentified) player was. Sometimes it was Fred Parkes, other times Chris Taperell or George Washingmachine.
But I came to know John Scurry's work quickly: his ringing lines that didn't go in familiar paths, his solid rhythm, his interesting voicings. I then heard him on CDs with Allan Browne and Judy Carmichael and continued to be impressed.
And it would have stayed that way except for this summer's trip to England and the long thrilling jazz weekend at the 2010 Whitley Bay International Jazz Festival.
One night before the festival actually began, there was a concert devoted to the great British dance bands of the Thirties. After we found seats on the little bus that was to take us to the hall, I recognized some people I'd met at the previous year's festival — the multi-instrumentalist Michael McQuaid and his sweetheart Anna Lyttle. . . then Michael introduced me quickly to his colleagues, "there's Jason, and John, and Ian." I'm not terribly good with names the first time I'm introduced, so I let the new bits of data wash over me. (Eventually I came to meet and admire Jason Downes and Ian Smith.)
Later on, though, someone pointed out "John" and gave him his full title . . . and I went up to him and said, "You're John Scurry? I've been admiring your work for a long time . . . " and on. When he played with Michael's Late Hour Boys, he was even better in person. (I've posted a number of clips on YouTube that will bear me out.)
I've been listening John's winding, curious compositions on some other CDs with Allan Browne recently. I regret that he hasn't yet had the opportunity to make a solo or duo CD. In a world full of guitarists, he surely stands out.
I was both delighted and a bit puzzled by the portrait top left — even though I could understand that it is summer in Australia while we are worrying about the effects of the first frost on the plants . . . so I asked John to explain:
The band is a drumless quartet with Eugene Ball trumpet, Mike McQuaid
reeds, Leigh Barker bass, and myself on guitar. We are unrehearsed and
playing standards, some of my so called originals and whatever comes
to mind in the balmy summer eve atmosphere of the lovely interior
spanish mission style courtyard of the Mission to Seafarers in
Melbourne, and old circa 1910 building. The painting is by Antoine Watteau and I think it may be in the Met. Jed Perl who writes for The New Republic did an article on it a few years back. The painting if I remember correctly was recently rediscovered: I downloaded the image from his article, which was called 'A Big Surprise". A very beautiful work, don't you think? Sort of
encopasses everything really.
As to "reverse swing". It's a cricketing term, wherein the ball when
bowled swings the other way unexpectantly and contrary to Mr. Isaac
Newton's expectations. I like the name, I'm left-handed and happen to
play cricket…and I'm a bowler. At this stage up until Christmas the gig is only for three weeks, however as with all things we live in hope and joyful anticipation that more music may be had from the seafarers in the New Year.
I did this gig last year with Mike and Leigh, it's a lot of fun
working with an acoustically based group without drums……it's good
to find one's voice for better or worse without certain aural
encumbrances.
I only wish that New York was closer to Australia, or the reverse. Perhaps someone will record REVERSE SWING with a video camera and share the results with us? It won't be the same, but it will tamp down my "Something wonderful is happening far away and I can't get to it."
May John Scurry and his friends — not only in the Australian summer — prosper.
Tagged Allan Browne, Anna Lyttle, Charlie Christian, Chris Taperell, cricket, Django Reinhardt, Eugene Ball, Fred Parkes, George Washingmachine, guitar, Ian Smith, Jason Downes, Jazz Lives, Jed Perl, John Scurry, Judy Carmichael, Leigh Barker, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, reverse swing, Teddy Bunn, THE NEW REPUBLIC, Watteau, Whitley Bay International Jazz Festival
JAMMIN' AT WHITLEY BAY (July 9, 2010)
Jazz musicians know that great truth: if you stay up late, you can always sleep tomorrow.
Although the players at a jazz party might seem to have an exhausting schedule, many of them are fueled by the encounters with their peers and heroes — thus, an after-hours jam session often happens. I was lucky enough to be awake for this one and have a fully-charged video camera. The session took place at the "Victory Pub" in the Village Hotel Newcastle, the comfortable home base for the Whitley Bay International Jazz Party.
Of course the seating arrangement scattered musicians here and there, and several flat-screen televisions remained on through the session, but the music was the focus here.
The musicians who began the session were an organized band — a great one: Michael McQuaid's Late Hour Boys: Michael and Jason Downes on reeds, John Scurry on guitar, Mark Elton on drums, Ian Smith on drums and washboard. Then they were joined by Graham Hughes (from London) on trombone, and other gifted jammers.
FORTY AND TIGHT comes from the Johnny Dodds book, and its title is a slang expression for something (or someone) who is splendidly gratifying. How naughty the coinage is I don't know; talk among yourselves:
MAMA INEZ certainly has a rocking, irresistible beat:
Then, they were joined by a friend from the land of Oz — the fine trumpet player and singer Geoff Bull, who nudged them into SOME OF THESE DAYS:
Thinking of Louis, Jeff Barnhart unsheathed the keyboard and sang ROCKIN' CHAIR:
But that might have been too mournful for a jubilant occasion, so they swung into another Louis-Hoagy connection, JUBILEE, which certainly did make the rafters ring / up to Heaven:
Bassist Henri Lamaire and drummer Josh Duffee joined the festivities and Geoff suggested the pretty THANKS A MILLION, again reaching back to the Thirties Louis book (or perhaps as homage to Dick Powell, who introduced the song in "the film of the same name"):
And the session concluded with a romping JUNE NIGHT, with pianist Martin Seck and a host of other musicians joining in (again, I'll happily credit them by name if informed). My hat's off to Geoff Bull, who certainly knows how to get everyone going in the right direction with inspiring riffs. And the wonderful solos are surely sparked by Josh's exuberant drumming:
And here's a very musical solo from Josh to wrap things up in a swinging way:
If you weren't already convinced, I think this session is further proof that good things happen in the dark.
Tagged Dick Powell, Geoff Bull, Hanri Lamaire, Ian Smith, jam session, Jason Downes, jazz blog, Jazz Lives, Jeff Barnhart, John Scurry, Johnny Dodds, Josh Duffee, Louis Armstrong, Mark Elton, Michael McQuaid, Michael McQuaid's Late Hour Boys, Michael Steinman, Victory Pub, Whitley Bay International Jazz Festival
MICHAEL McQUAID'S LATE HOUR BOYS at WHITLEY BAY (July 9, 2010)
At my first Whitley Bay International Jazz Festival last year, I met and instantly liked the young Australian jazz virtuoso Michael McQuaid — he plays alto saxophone, clarinet, and cornet — but didn't get to hear him in his natural settings. This year the fates were kinder: I saw Michael and the little hot band he leads, the Late Hour Boys, in two sets.
After the first one, someone asked me what I thought. Without thinking for a second, I replied, "Scalding!" I think you will see that I wasn't being hyperbolic.
The Late Hour Boys take their name, some of their repertoire, and their joyous attitude from the late Ade Monsborough, who named his group this way not because they favored midnight performances, but because he assembled his personnels at the last minute. Michael McQuaid's LHB summon up the kind of hot improvisation I associate with Spanier and Bechet, with a bare-knickle version of Soprano Summit in its closing choruses.
You'll hear evocations of Johnny Dodds and Pete Brown, of Teddy Bunn and Milt Hinton and Zutty Singleton. It's a two-man all reed front line, with Michael and the peerless wit Jason Downes switching off on clarinet and alto; the rhythm is taken care of by the splendid John Scurry on banjo and guitar and Mark (the Eel) Elton on bass. Ian Smith, who also played cornet with Ade some years back, is a driving homespun drummer and washboardist who sings with great effectiveness — tenderly on a ballad, raucously on a jump tune. And this band jumps for sure.
Here's a rollicking CANDY LIPS (I'm STUCK ON YOU) from the Clarence Williams book:
Here's a wartime composition by Monsborough, SORRY TO BE LEAVING:
PUT 'EM DOWN BLUES is not the usual homage to Louis and the Hot Five. It has its own romping momentum. Although I don't quite understand the emotional / romantic nuances of the lyric, I believe anything that Ian sings:
RAIN is a pretty tune that no one else seems to remember; Ian is in the moment on his sweet vocal:
EUROA, a Monsborough composition, honors a place that Michael suggests is improved by the song:
MELANCHOLY, which harks back to the glory days of 1927 Chicago with Johnny Dodds and Louis Armstrong:
BLAME IT ON THE BLUES, which I associate with Sidney Bechet and Albert Nicholas, intertwining:
Michael and the Late Hour Boys also have a new CD out which entirely captures the exuberance of these video performances. Listening to it is also a much more focused experience, since you don't have a running-shoes-for-sale poster in the background. It is a limited edition, so I don't know if this posting is too late, but I hope not!
Check it out at http://www.jasondownes.com/lhbcd.
Tagged Ade Monsborough, Albert Nicholas, Australia, Ian Smith, Jason Downes, jazz blog, Jazz Lives, John Scurry, Johnny Dodds, Late Hour Boys, Louis Armstrong, Mark Elton, Michael McQuaid, Michael Steinman, Milt Hinton, Muggsy Spanier, Pete Brown, Sidney Bechet, Soprano Summit, Teddy Bunn, Whitley Bay International Jazz Festival, YouTube, Zutty Singleton