Jim Rattigan

“When”

(Three Worlds Records TWR0005)

Jim Rattigan – French horn, Nikki Iles – piano, Michael Janisch – double bass, James Maddren – drums

with the Tear Quartet
Julian Tear – violin, Alison Gordon – violin, Nicholas Barr – viola, Nicholas Cooper – cello

In his role as the UK’s best known jazz French horn player Jim Rattigan has appeared on the Jazzmann web pages on numerous occasions, most notably as the leader of his own twelve piece jazz ensemble Pavillon,

Named for the French word for the bell of the french horn Pavillon features some of the UK’s leading jazz musicians and the band can be heard on the album “Strong Tea”, originally recorded in 2011 but re-launched in 2016. Review here;
http://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/jim-rattigan-pavillon-strong-tea/

The re-launch of “Strong Tea” also prompted a number of live appearances and I was fortunate enough to enjoy an excellent performance by the Pavillon band at a lunchtime session at the Pizza Express Jazz Club in Soho as part of the 2017 EFG London Jazz Festival.

In 2019 a second Pavillon album appeared, the excellent “The Freedom of Movement”, which featured a number of the pieces that had been performed at the ‘Pizza’. My review of that recording can be read here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/jim-rattigans-pavillon-the-freedom-of-movement

In his capacity as a jazz musician Rattigan has also issued a number of albums under his own name including “Unfamiliar Guise” (2000), “Jazz French Horn” (2004), and “Shuzzed” (2010), the latter  recorded by a quartet featuring guitarist Phil Robson, bassist Phil Donkin and drummer Gene Calderazzo.

In 2014 I reviewed his excellent trio set “Triplicity” which teamed him with the classical violinist Thomas Gould and the acclaimed jazz pianist Liam Noble. This was a chamber jazz recording that combined moments of pure beauty with an admirable improvisational rigour.
The full review can be read here;
http://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/jim-rattigan-thomas-gould-liam-noble-triplicity/

I first became aware of Rattigan’s playing through his involvement with a number of large ensembles conducted by the celebrated jazz composer Mike Gibbs. It was his work with Gibbs that first inspired Rattigan to form Pavillon.

Rattigan has also worked with other jazz composers, among them Hans Koller, Mark Lockheart, Carla Bley,  McCoy Tyner,  Django Bates, Kenny Wheeler, Brad Mehldau Guy Barker, Simon Purcell, Percy Pursglove, Julian Arguelles and the late, great Charlie Haden. And as he proved with Pursglove’s “Far Reaching Dreams of Mortal Souls” ensemble Rattigan is also a skilled accordionist.

Rattigan is a remarkably busy musician who is the first call on his instrument across a variety of genres including jazz, folk, pop, classical and film and TV soundtracks. The latter include the James Bond and Lord of the Rings film series.

His list of credits is mind boggling, far too lengthy to list in full here, but includes six years with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and other classical ensembles plus session work with some of the biggest names in rock and pop, among them Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, Barry Manilow, Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach, Josh Stone, Rick Astley, George Michael, Pulp, Damon Albarn, Adele, Paloma Faith and Tony Bennett.
He has also worked with folk singer June Tabor, blues singer Michael O’Callaghan and genre defying violinist Nigel Kennedy.

The Kennedy connection is an interesting one as this latest recording sees the similarly genre hopping Rattigan consciously attempting to bring two strands of music together. “When” teams a slightly unorthodox jazz quartet with a rather more conventional string quartet, with Rattigan’s horn acting as the “bridge” that holds it all together, as he explains in his album liner notes;

“Having had a career in classical music and now playing jazz, I thought that I would write some music that would combine the two worlds. This is not crossover music but a juxtaposition – the two styles are working side by side. I worked with Julian in the Academy of St. Martin’s chamber orchestra and asked him to record the music with his quartet. The quartet becomes a quintet when I call on the double bass to play ‘arco’  (with the bow) and the french horn is a bridge between, or to, the two genres”.

On his Facebook page he expands further;
“I wrote most of the tunes for ‘When’ about 4 or 5 years ago. They seemed a little sad and reflective at the time so I put them in a folder and forgot about them. Somehow, they seem apt now… “

Opener “Now and Then” establishes the ensemble sound with the lushly mellifluous sounds of the strings combining with the smoothly rounded sounds of the french horn during the course of an extended introduction featuring the ‘classical’ elements of the ensemble. The ‘jazz’ musicians subsequently take over with a gently swinging performance,, albeit with the strings providing extra splashes of colour and texture. Rattigan’s fluent soloing on the french horn has something of a flugel like quality about it. His credentials as a jazz soloist have already been made clear on previous recordings and his agility and virtuosity on his chosen instrument is unquestionable.

The presence of Iles on any recording is always a huge plus (the same can be said for Janisch and Maddren) and it’s her unaccompanied piano that introduces “River of Dreams”, subsequently joined by the leader’s french horn. The pair then engage in an understated,  slightly melancholy, but undeniably beautiful duet. Apparently Rattigan was dissatisfied with the ensemble version of this tune, but was persuaded by Tear to re-record it as a duet with the always impressive Iles.

The full ensemble returns for “Patrick’s Song”, which features a flowingly lyrical piano solo from Iles, underpinned by the subtle drum colourations of the highly creative Maddren. Rattigan follows, admirably creative and mobile on horn, as the strings again provide texture and colour, contrasting effectively with the gentle urgency of the jazz rhythms. The piece was written for Rattigan’s son, who was born on St. Patrick’s day, and an earlier version of the tune appeared on the “Triplicity” album.

Hitherto there’s been a tendency to think of the jazz and classical components as separate entities, but Rattigan achieves a greater degree of synergy on “Fool”, with the leader’s horn acting as both focal point and bridge as well as fulfilling the role of opening soloist, followed by the always creative Iles at the piano.

Ushered in by the sounds of strings and french horn “Saudade” also adds a dash of Latin exoticism to the music, courtesy of Maddren’s colourful but understated drum performance. Again the classical and jazz contingents work closely together, but with room found for compellingly lyrical solos from Janisch on pizzicato double bass, the leader on french horn and Iles at the piano.

The lush sound of strings, presumably with Janisch on arco bass, introduces the achingly lovely “It’s Not Quite The Same”. The jazz contingent then take over, with Iles soloing in lyrical, straight-ahead fashion, accompanied by Janisch’s pizzicato bass and Maddren’s brushed drums. Rattigan then takes over, displaying an astonishing warmth and fluency on french horn. Besides my earlier flugel reference his sound has also been likened to that of a valve trombonist, another pertinent and wholly appropriate comparison.

The strings also introduce the title track, which provides a showcase for Janisch’s melodic pizzicato bass playing, followed by Iles’ luminous pianism, all complemented by Maddren’s subtle, delicate and wonderfully apposite brush work. There’s a lyrical melancholy about Rattigan’s horn solo, again accompanied by double bass, brushed drums and Iles’ delicate piano colourations, with the strings returning to provide additional colour and texture towards the close.

“The Commute” is perhaps the most forceful item on the album, with the whole ensemble combining to replicate the hurly burly of the rush hour. It’s still a polite kind of frenzy, with the jaggedly bowed rhythms of the strings combining with bass and drums as Rattigan’s french horn floats woozily over the top. Iles eventually joins to probe searchingly on piano above Maddren’s increasingly sophisticated and colourful drum commentary. Overall it represents one of the most integrated performances on the entire album.

“Solace” is a beautiful ballad, distinguished by the sounds of lush, melancholic strings, limpid piano, Rattigan’s delicious mellow french horn tones and Maddren’s sympathetic brushed drum accompaniment.  Janisch is featured with a richly melodic pizzicato bass solo, followed by Iles at her most lyrical and Rattigan at his most sumptuous and trombone like.

The album concludes with “Wistful Thinking”, which is introduced by Maddren at the drums, playing with the same combination of skill, restraint and delicacy that he demonstrates throughout the entire album. Thereafter he subtly underpins the lush sounds of strings and french horn, plus Iles’ softly luminous piano solo. The leader then stretches out more expansively on french horn, his wonderfully fluent playing cushioned by the sound of strings, piano, jazz double bass and those delicately nuanced drums.

As an album “When” has been widely praised for its beauty and it represents an enjoyable and engaging listen. There’s certainly much to enjoy here and the quality of the playing, by eight exceptional musicians, is enhanced by a production team featuring Rattigan and Tear plus engineers Alex Bonney and Peter Beckmann.

However approaching the album from the point of view of a jazz listener I sometimes found the whole thing a little bloodless. With the exception of the taut, angular “The Commute” the mood is largely very laid back and pastoral, and a broader range of moods and dynamics would have been appreciated. Also the ‘jazz’ and ‘classical’ elements within the overall ensemble often seem to be working independently of one another, with total integration only truly happening intermittently.

That said any album featuring the talents of Iles, Janisch, Maddren and Rattigan himself is going to be worth hearing, and there are many excellent moments here.

Rattigan is to be praised for his ambition in attempting to bring the two strands of music that are obviously the most important to him together. It’s something that he does with considerable skill and imagination.

However, from the point of view of a jazz listener the sounds of the string quartet can sometimes become a little cloying, and I personally find myself drawn towards Rattigan’s more obviously ‘jazz’ recordings, and particularly the two Pavillon discs.

 

 

 

 

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