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Sunday at Titley Jazz, 31/07/2011.


by Ian Mann

August 04, 2011

A second highly successful festival. Titley Jazz looks like becoming a fixture on the UK jazz calendar.

Sunday at Titley Jazz, 31/07/2011

The Rodd Farm Estate, Titley, Herefordshire.


DAVID NEWTON/MICK HUTTON DUO

Another 11.00 am start saw pianist Dave Newton collaborating with bassist Mick Hutton, the latter making his Titley d?but despite having been something of a regular at Appleby. The early time slot suggested that the duo might have been intended to get the day off to a gentle start, so often this type of instrumental configuration is used as mere background or “lounge” music.

However musicians of Newton’s and Hutton’s calibre weren’t having any of that. The pair produced a series of intense but good natured musical conversations over the course of a single hour long set, drawing on a range of jazz styles for their source material.

Newton’s talents are well known but for me it was Hutton who was the revelation. A mainstay of the UK jazz scene for many years Hutton always seemed to be the epitome of the solid, dependable bass player and was hugely in demand as a sideman right across the jazz spectrum, from Humphrey Lyttleton to Bill Bruford’s Earthworks. However at one point in the early years of the current century it looked as if Hutton’s musical career might be over. A hand ligament injury prevented him from playing the double bass but the resourceful Hutton effected a switch to bass guitar and also proved himself to be mean exponent of the steel pans with his group The Boat Rockers.

Mercifully Hutton is now back playing the double bass again and on this evidence he’s sounding better than ever. I was hugely impressed by his sheer musicality and creativity in this series of captivating exchanges with the ever inventive and resourceful Newton. Using an amended technique Hutton did much of his highly melodic solo work close to the bridge of the instrument but as his performance with Mark Nightingale’s twin trombone group later in the day proved he can still lay down a good solid bass groove as part of an orthodox rhythm section.

There was a real sense of an interactive chemistry between Newton and Hutton as they thrillingly traded musical ideas. This is not a regular working pairing but there was a palpable sense of empathy between the duo and both Newton and Hutton made it clear that for them this was a scintillating musical conversation with a degree of risk taking and a strong element of “serious fun”. The performance shared many characteristics with that of the Liane Carroll Trio who had rounded off Saturday’s proceedings. Newton and Hutton followed on very nicely.

For the record the tunes played were “Our Love Is Here To Stay”, “So Dance The Samba”, Jobim’s “Meditation”, the ballad “You’ve Changed”, “There Is No greater Love” and finally a delightful version of “Honeysuckle Rose”. This last item saw the duo having enormous fun varying the tempos, constantly speeding up and slowing down and with Newton throwing a few Thelonious Monk quotes into the mix. It was a thrilling way to end an excellent set, the quality of which was a most pleasant surprise and one that comfortably exceeded expectations. A knowledgeable Sunday morning crowd gave them a great reception and rightly so. This was one of the weekend’s unexpected highlights.


JAZZ GROOVE

As last year Clark Tracey led a group of his own at the festival. This time round it was a quintet featuring Bruce Adams on trumpet, Sammy Mayne on saxophones , Steve Melling on piano and another fresh face to Titley, bassist Simon Thorpe. Much influenced by the late Art Blakey Clark always leads hard hitting, swinging ensembles but there’s also a sometimes deceptive degree of subtlety about his own writing and arrangements.

Jazz Groove largely stuck to arrangements of classic jazz and bebop standards but delivered them in a forthright, swinging manner with plenty of fine soloing from all five participants. They waded straight in with a version of the old Tubby Hayes warhorse ” A Pint Of Bitter”, an appropriate choice given the wide variety of ales available in the beer tent staffed by volunteer members of the Herefordshire Branch of the Campaign For Real Ale. Sammy Mayne is best known as an alto saxophonist but here he stepped up to the plate with some powerful Tubby style tenor. Bruce Adams on trumpet more than matched him for intensity with Steve Melling also soloing feverishly at the piano. Simon Thorpe cut his Titley teeth with a well articulated bass solo.

Miles Davis’ “So What” has become one of the most familiar items in the jazz repertoire but it’s always good to hear it. This version featured Thorpe’s opening bass riff and later solo plus features for Mayne, still on tenor, Adams on Miles style muted trumpet and leading the solos off Melling at the piano.

“The Jeep Is Jumping”, originally Duke Ellington’s vehicle for altoist Johnny Hodges, featured plenty of fiery soloing from Adams on growling, plunger muted trumpet, Mayne on tenor, Melling at the piano and Clark Tracey on a series of whiplash drum breaks. 

Mayne left the stand for Bruce Adams’ ballad feature as the big Scot showed his gentler side with a velvety flugel horn meditation on Johnny Mercer’s ” I Remember You”, ably supported by Melling at the piano plus a suitably sympathetic rhythm section.

Mayne returned, this time on alto, as the quintet concluded their first set by romping through Clifford Brown’s “Joyspring” with solos from Mayne, Adams, Melling and Thorpe. Dizzy Gillespie’s “The Champ” got the second set off to an equally invigorating start with solos from Adams on trumpet, Mayne on tenor, Melling and Thorpe.

Ray Henderson’s “Bye Bye Blackbird” is a tune indelibly associated with Miles Davis, to whom Tracey dedicated the piece.  Adams’ second Davis styled muted trumpet solo established a lyrical mood later sustained by Melling at the piano and Thorpe at the bass.

Mayne’s individual ballad feature, an alto reading of “God Bless The Child” maintained the lyrical mood before Tracey brought back the fireworks with a volcanic drum intro to a sparky “A Night In Tunisia” with fiery solos coming from Adams on trumpet and Mayne on alto and with Melling joyously exploring the Cuban elements of composer Dizzy Gillespie’s writing.

As last year Clark had delivered a fine set, swinging ferociously on the faster numbers but showing a commendable degree of subtlety on the ballads. I’ve always enjoyed listening to Clark’s groups and this line up was no exception.

TRIBUTE TO JAY & KAY


This set was a tribute to the great trombone duo of the American J.J. Johnson (1921-2001) and the Danish born Kai Winding (1934-83). Mark Nightingale is Britain’s leading modern mainstream trombonist and he was joined in the front line by the younger trombonist Alistair White with pianist Dave Newton, bassist Mick Hutton and drummer Steve Brown forming the obligatory all star rhythm section.
Now, I’ll be the first to admit that the trombone isn’t exactly my favourite instrument. There are some players I like, notably Dennis Rollins and the affable Welshman Gareth Roberts, but in general it’s very much a case of “take it or leave it”. However I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this show. With Nightingale handling the announcements the quintet adopted a similar approach to yesterday’s Trumpet Summit by giving us an entertaining “potted history” of the instrument but this time with a particular emphasis on the works of Johnson and Winding.“This Could be The Start Of Something Big” introduced the band with each member featuring as a soloist.

Kai Winding was also a talented composer and his composition “Corriente” followed. This was originally played by the composer in a twin trombone line up featuring Curtis Fuller, the latter a veteran of many a Blue Note session. White led the solos here, followed by Newton, Nightingale and Hutton.

Next came a jazz waltz, the Clare Fischer tune “We’ll be Together Again” in an arrangement by the late British drummer Allan Ganley. The warmth and fluency of Nightingale’s solo was hugely impressive with pianist Dave Newton also making a significant contribution.

Cole Porter’s “It’s Alright with Me” was strongly associated with Johnson and Winding and something of a hit for the pair. This bustling version featured admirably agile solos from both Nightingale and White plus Newton at the piano.

“On The Side”, a blues by the Swiss jazz composer George Robert, featured White’s use of the plunger mute to obtain a highly effective vocalised growl, contrasting nicely with Nightingale’s own low register soloing. Dave Newton featured twice, once in a solo piano introduction and later on with a more conventional jazz solo and we were also reminded of Mick Hutton’s soloing abilities on the bass.

The first set closed with a tune made famous by another trombone duo, that of the Americans Bill Watrous and Carl Fontana. Jerome Kern’s “Dearly Beloved” here incorporated features for Nightingale and Newton.

The second set began with another example of Kai Winding’s writing skills. “Love For Rent”, as the title suggests, is based on Cole Porter’s “Love for Sale” but is an effective composition in its own right. Solos from White, Newton, Nightingale and Hutton were followed by a series of drum breaks from timekeeper Brown.

Allan Ganley’s own composition “June Time”, an elegant ballad written for his wife, featured mellifluous solos from both trombonists plus suitably lyrical cameos from both Newton and Hutton.

Another tune associated with Johnson and Winding, “This Can’t Be Love” was largely a feature for Nightingale and Newton. Nightingale was clearly the senior partner of the trombone axis but White’s contribution shouldn’t be overlooked.

Winding’s own “Sweetness” developed an easy loping swing framing solos from Nightingale, Newton, White and Hutton. Interestingly the quintet moved away from the trombone repertoire for their final number, baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan’s “Limelight”. The two trombones in tandem approximated the rasp of Mulligan’s baritone before White embarked on his solo closely followed by Nightingale. Newton indulged his propensity for quotes during his solo (“Ain’t She Sweet?” this time) ad Hutton signed off for the day with another excellent bass solo.

Well played and well presented this slide driven feast was another of the festival’s unexpected highlights.

SWEET CHORUS

John Etheridge’s group played an enjoyable show at the Assembly Rooms in nearby Presteigne last Autumn but this was to be even better with Etheridge keeping his verbal ramblings to a minimum and with Alan Barnes making a guest appearance on clarinet.

There was one change from the Presteigne line up with Pete Kubryk Townsend replacing Andy Crowdy on double bass (and occasional vocal!). Etheridge on lead guitar, Chris Garrick on violin and rhythm guitarist Dave Kelbie are the group’s regulars and they, plus Townsend were in great form here. I recently reviewed the group’s latest album “Small Hotel” but the best place to appreciate this band’s skills is in a live context. Sweet Chorus take the music of Django Reinhardt as a starting point but put their own singular twist on it. All are superb technicians and there’s a real sense of fun and mischief and a high degree of group interaction about their music making.

Garrick’s violin gave the opener “When You’re Smiling” a folk/country tinge, “Tiger Rag” raced along at a furious rhythmic pace with dazzling solos from Garrick and Etheridge. By way of contrast “I’ll Be Seeing You” was slowed right down, an example of rhythm guitarist Kelbie’s ability to keep perfect time in any tempo. Etheridge’s solo was suitably languid only for Garrick to subvert everything with a final violin flourish. Musical humour is an important part of Sweet Chorus’ music as Garrick and Etheridge demonstrated on a quirky arrangement of Reinhardt’s “Swing ‘39”.

Kubryk Townsend’s singing on “When I Grow Too Old To Dream” was a radical departure from the group’s normal repertoire. His grainy bowed bass matched his low register singing on a tune that is patently his “party piece”. Great fun though.

Etheridge’s own “Places Between” was an appealing piece in the Reinhardt tradition with solos from himself and Garrick. Reinhardt’s own “Blue Drag”, the gypsy guitarist’s unique take on the blues, was hugely entertaining featuring as it did some implausibly creepy single hair violin effects from Garrick.

Guest Alan Barnes joined the band on stage for the last number, bantering with Etheridge before the now quintet romped through a version of “Airmail special” with solos from Barnes, Etheridge and Garrick. Barnes fitted in well, his was an appropriate presence in the light of Reinhardt’s deployment of clarinettists such as Barney Bigard. A more modern reference point would be clarinettist Evan Christopher’s Django A La Creole group, a project also involving rhythm guitarist Dave Kelbie. 

Etheridge had hitherto played acoustic guitar but he emerged for the second half armed with his electric. In a format similar to the Presteigne show he performed a solo version of an Abdullah Ibrahim tune, albeit one with an unpronounceable South African title! It sounded like one of Ibrahim’s early tunes with a gorgeous melody that Etheridge sculpted and layered using the technology of live looping-definitely a first for Titley! Garrick then joined him for a duo version of Peter Gabriel’s song “Mercy Street” from the pair’s 2010 album “Men On Wire” (reviewed elsewhere on this site). Garrick’s violin added a folklike air of melancholy to Gabriel’s melody. This may have been unfamiliar fare for many of the audience but it was very well received.

Kelbie, Townsend and Barnes returned to the stage for the group’s version of Charlie Christian’s “Seven Come Eleven”. Sweet Chorus like to explore Christian’s bebop legacy and the tune featured solos from Barnes on clarinet, Etheridge, still on electric and Garrick on violin plus a thrilling three way dialogue between the soloists.

The core quartet then tackled “Chasing The Shadows” followed by a fast and furious “Limehouse Blues” with solos from Etheridge on acoustic, Townsend and Garrick. Etheridge added an air of eastern exoticism to to “Nuages”, Django Reinhardt’s best known tune and the set concluded with Barnes returning to the stage for a joyous run through “After You’ve Gone” with solos from Barnes, Etheridge and Garrick. Sweet Chorus were rewarded with the biggest reception of the weekend and they were the only band to be granted an encore, a good natured take on the tune “Pennies From Heaven” with Barnes returning to the stage with the rest of the group. Significantly different from pretty much everything else we’d heard the enthusiastic reaction to the group was a full vindication of David Masters’ decision to broaden the festival’s musical policy.

ALAN BARNES OCTET

As in 2010 the festival ended with a performance by Alan Barnes’ Octet. The line up was the same as last year but the choice of repertoire was significantly different. Joining Barnes were Art Themen and Sammy Mayne on saxophones, Guy Barker on trumpet, Mark Nightingale on trombone and the Newton/Cleyndert/Brown rhythm team.

The five man horn section made a turbo charged sound on the opening blues “Cousins”, A Barnes original. Solos came from Nightingale, Mayne on alto, Barker, Barnes also on alto complete with slap tonguing effects and Themen on tenor. Dave Newton also contributed a stunning solo including an unaccompanied piano interlude.

Gil Evans’ arrangement of “Summertime” was a feature for Barker on immaculately controlled muted trumpet with the sumptuous textures augmented by Barnes’ clarinet and Mayne’s flute.

“A Cowhide Kicking Fool”, originally an affectionate reference to drummer Gene Krupa , acted as a feature for drummer Steve Brown who began and ended the number punctuated by solos from Barnes (alto), Nightingale, Barker, Cleyndert and Newton.

Next came a couple of items that also appeared last year. Barnes’ “One For Dick Morrissey”, a tribute to the late, great British saxophonist contained appropriate features from Themen and Mayne, both on tenor, plus pianist Dave Newton.

Barnes’ rasping baritone then fuelled a powerful take on Charles Mingus’ “Fables Of Faubus” with an element of wilful dissonance flavouring the solos of Barnes, Nightingale, Barker, Themen and Newton. This was a rousing way to end an enjoyable first set.

Set two picked up where the octet had left off with an unannounced piece featuring Barnes on baritone, Nightingale and Barker plus yet another terrific solo from Newton full of boogie woogie stylings. 

Barnes dedicated “The Orange Square Dance” from his “Marbella Suite” to Bruce Adams whose inebriated activities had originally inspired the piece. Barnes featured on clarinet alongside Themen on tenor, Barker, Nightingale, Mayne and Newton.

Horace Silver’s “Senor Blues” kept the pot bubbling powered by Cleyndert’s insistent bass riff and featuring solos by Mayne on alto, Nightingale on trombone, Newton on piano and with an enjoyable dialogue between the twin tenors of Barnes and Themen.

Barnes’ “One For Freddie Green”, a tribute to Count Basie’s stalwart rhythm guitarist closed the 2011 Titley Jazz Festival with more instrument swappage seeing solos from Themen, Barnes on alto, Mayne on tenor, Barker and Newton. The perennially popular Barnes was an apt choice to round off another hugely successful event and Titley Jazz will be back, albeit a week earlier, to avoid clashing with the Olympic Games, in 2012. 

OVERVIEW

Titley Jazz 2011 was another hugely successful event with a good turnout enjoying some good quality jazz. The decision to diversify the programme succeeded brilliantly with every act being very well received.

Although less atmospheric than Titley Junction the new site was far more practical and essentially safer and more user friendly. I felt that it worked very well although prolonged or heavy rain could have presented a problem, particularly with regard to car parking.

One definite plus this year was the range, quality and quantity of the beer. Before Titley Jazz took over his life David Masters was treasurer of his local CAMRA branch and his CAMRA buddies turned out in force to man a well stocked bar offering a wide variety of mainly local beers. It was a bit like a mini beer festival with fans and musicians both enjoying the ales and cider. Chris Garrick in particular is a serious beer enthusiast, even fitting in a trip to Hobson’s brewery in neighbouring Shropshire during a recent tour! Cask beer was available right into Sunday evening this year, the bar ran out embarrassingly early in 2010. So well done all you CAMRA guys and girls.

David’s only disappointment was a lack of T shirt sales. The price was very reasonable but the choice of colour, a rather washed out yellow proved to be less than popular. I reckon that if the punter’s T shirts had been the same shade of blue as those worn by the volunteers (stewards, bar staff etc) sales would have been far healthier.. A thought for next year perhaps.

Overall though congratulations should go to David Masters for a second highly successful festival. Titley Jazz looks like becoming a fixture on the UK jazz calendar.   

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