The indefatigable Michael Janisch has become one of the UK jazz scene’s best hustlers. The bassist is not only a phenomenal player he’s also a great organiser, a mover and shaker, the kind of guy who makes things happen.

Tonight was the third time I’d seen Janisch in little more than six months. First I saw his all star “Purpose Built” band, a UK/US aggregation convened for a lengthy tour to support his excellent début solo album of the same name. Next was the Transatlantic Collective a similarly impressive quintet featuring top quality European and American players and then tonight’s band, yet another US/UK collaboration. Both previous shows, at Fishguard and Cardiff respectively, are reviewed elsewhere on this site.

A native of Wisconsin but now based in London Janisch is the catalyst that allows all this ocean hopping to take place. He’s become a hugely important figure on the UK scene since moving to Britain a few years ago and his tireless work in promoting these transcontinental alliances has been a real force for good in the music.

Janisch’s Saxophone Summit is more mainstream than either the “Purpose Built” or “Transatlantic Collective” bands. It features a three saxophone front line and a conventional rhythm section. Once again the group teams American and British musicians, with tenor saxophonist Joel Frahm flying in from New York, luckily just in time to beat the ash cloud from the Icelandic volcano. Joining Frahm in the front line are UK saxophonists Alex Garnett (tenor) and Nigel Hitchcock (alto). The peerless rhythm section teams Janisch with the accomplished and experienced drummer Steve Brown and the excellent young keyboard player Ross Stanley, here featuring on piano.

The group’s date at Sebastopol Social Club, the HQ of Torfaen Jazz Society was the second date of an extensive UK tour. TJS meet at the upstairs room of the club, a small but intimate venue that made for a great atmosphere with about 40-50 jazz loving listeners present. A very welcome bonus was the availability of a good range of real ales, all in good condition, served by friendly staff and retailing at bargain club prices.

The material played by the group over the course of two sets was a mix of standards plus a smattering of originals including a couple of tunes rearranged from Janisch’s “Purpose Built” album. They kicked off in typical blowing session style with a take on Tom Harrell’s “Upswing” arranged by the versatile Garnett. The piece served to introduce the voices of the band with Frahm taking the first solo followed by Hitchcock and Garnett. Stanley impressed on the club’s upright and Brown was featured on a series of breaks towards the close of the piece.

So far, so predictable but I wasn’t expecting a version of “Lost Creek” from the “Purpose Built” album. Garnett’s arrangement lowered the temperature and it quickly became obvious that the group weren’t prepared to just desultorily blow their way through a set of tired standards in the head/solos/head format. The piece was largely a feature for the excellent Stanley but the composer also featured extensively with a brilliant bass solo combining the Janisch trademarks of a huge sound and an incredible dexterity.

Also from “Purpose Built” and arranged by Garnett for the Saxophone Summit was a magnificent version of Billy Strayhorn’s “Blood Count”.Brooding arco bass introduced the piece as Stanley reached into the piano’s innards and Brown added to the atmosphere with the gentle rolling thunder sound generated by the use of soft head sticks. The three reeds fluttered and cajoled before Hitchcock took off to deliver a wonderfully soaring alto solo. Magnificent.

Brown took over the arranger’s mantle for the group’s energetic romp through Joe Henderson’s blues “Step Lightly”. Frahm soloed first followed by Janisch, Hitchcock, Garnett and Stanley. Janisch was clearly enjoying himself hugely, beaming at his band mates from the back of the stage. It was immediately obvious that on this, only their second gig together as a unit that the musicians were clearly enjoying each other’s playing. Some relationships in the band however are more established. The ebullient Janisch, whose exuberant announcing style added greatly to the atmosphere, revealed that he and Garnett are the closest of friends, the saxophonist having acted as Janisch’s best man at the bassist’s recent wedding.

The first half closed with a Garnett original “Serpent” described as “a slippery little tune” by Janisch. It proved to be an accurate summation as the three reeds tackled the tricky theme backed by Brown’s driving drums. This provided the jumping off point for fiery solos from Hitchcock, Frahm Garnett and Stanley before Brown’s talents were highlighted in an extended drum feature. This high energy work out was enthusiastically received by the TJS crowd as the players took a well deserved break. They’d certainly been cooking most of the time but “Lost Creek” and “Blood Count” proved that they were capable of considerable subtlety too.

The second set commenced with a version of Janisch’s tricky bebop inspired original “Beep” from his “Purpose Built” album. Hitchcock led off the soloing followed by the giant Frahm who delivered his best solo of the night. The big man possesses a surprising lightness and purity of tone on the tenor but he can blow hot when required as he demonstrated here. Garnett, son of tenor playing Willie is a hugely versatile player, comfortable right across the jazz spectrum from mainstream to free. Tonight he proved himself to be a superbly capable soloist with a warm tone interspersed by occasional r’n'b inflections. “Beep” also included another inspired solo from Stanley plus a drum feature for Brown, roaming around his kit to the accompaniment of bass and piano comping.

Trombonist J.J. Johnson’s ballad “Enigma” was a surprise inclusion and featured Stanley and Frahm at their most lyrical with Brown showing his sensitive side with some immaculate work with the brushes.

To close the second set the group tackled David Hazeltine’s remarkable arrangement of Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini’s “Moon River” here transcribed by Alex Garnett. Hazeltine’s way of breaking up the theme was intriguing and demanded great precision from the three saxes. Garnett and Hitchcock led off the soloing before Frahm topped them both with an incredible solo that at first only had Janisch’s bass for company. The gentle giant excelled in this exposed situation and visibly became increasingly animated as Stanley and Brown kicked in.

It was inevitable that an encore would follow given the response from the small but hugely enthusiastic audience. This came in the form of a good natured romp through Dizzy Gillespie’s “Dizzy Atmosphere”. After the three saxes breezed their way through the theme Stanley featured briefly followed by Frahm. Next there was a friendly duel between Garnett and Hitchcock which acted as the launching pad for their individual solos with Garnett going first. Over the course of the evening it was probably Hitchcock’s playing that impressed me most. His alto playing varied from the blistering to the lyrical but it always seemed effortless and full of ideas. He’s a supremely gifted musician who is equally adept on the tenor and his abilities have ensured that he’s constantly in demand for session work in the rock and pop fields. Hitchcock sees these engagements as a way to funding his jazz habit. He clearly enjoyed himself tonight and after the gig he was happy to pass on some tips to a group of students from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama who had formed part of the enthusiastic audience. It was good to see so many young people there and quite clearly loving the music.

Although less innovative and contemporary than his other projects Janisch’s Saxophone Summit is a great band packed with players at the peak of their powers. There may not have been too many surprises here but this was jazz at it’s swinging, unpretentious best with some brilliant playing all round. This is a band that will delight a good many listeners over the course of it’s current tour. See http://www.michaeljanisch.com for details of further dates.