Had the pleasure of going to a couple of great Jazz gigs recently…
First up the fine, mellow, and melodic Alison Rayner Quintet aka ARQ. Alison on double bass, Steve Lodder piano, Buster Birch on drums, Diane McLoughlin on saxophone, Deirdre Cartwright on guitar.
These guys are all superb and have got playing together with feeling cracked. A joy to watch.
I’ve also enjoyed following Alison, Deirdre and Diane in various configurations with other great women musicians over the years. Top notch night out guaranteed.
Next up at the complete opposite end of the spectrum, totally frenetic and also fabulous Louis Moholo-Moholo:Five Blokes.
If I have as much energy as this guy when I’m 75+ (or let’s face it even 21) I’ll be more than happy!
Alexander Hawkins on piano and Louis himself on drums, Jason Yarde and Shabaka Hutchings on saxophones and John Edwards on Double Bass.
These guys played at a jaw droppingly high intensity, non stop for an hour, had a quick break and carried on solidly for the best part of another hour. They would happily have gone on for longer too if the audience had as much stamina as the band… Awesome
And…breathe…
If I had an nth of the talent any one of either set of musicians my day job would probably be very different…