'Standard Miles' with Simon Spillett and Henry Lowther at the Red Lion, Isleworth.

I got very excited on Monday for a special night at The Red Lion, Isleworth.

Trevor Tomkins (drums), Simon Spillett (sax), Henry Lowther (trumpet), John Critchinson (keys) and Dave Green (bass) appear occasionally as "Standard Miles"; 

Putting together a collection of Jazz Standards that were very much a part of Miles Davis's programme and play them in that style.

It's very much not a tribute act, just jazz played in the style of another era and played very well.

there was a lot of mute trumpet, which I really like and Simon Spillett was something special on sax;

I must admit I wasn't particularly well and the bad news just keeps on coming but it was a very nice evening of special music.

Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)
Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

Monday, Monday.

I've got a particularly nasty hospital appointment today so last night we weren't going to miss an evening of Jazz at the Red Lion, Isleworth.

Don Weller couldn't make it, he was ill. We all sent good wishes to him and were lucky enough to have Bruce Adams on trumpet and flugelhorn - hitting aome very high notes indeed;

Simon Spillett was in excellent form on saxophone and the pair played some very fine duets together too;

John Donaldson was on keyboards, Andrew Cleyndert on bass and, of course, Trevor Tompkins on drums.

It was a good evening spent with friends and a having achat with Trevor at the interval.

Tomorrow?

Well I have a good idea how that's going to turn out but wish me luck anyway!

Neil Harris

(a don't stop till you drop production)

Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

Simon Spillett and Roger Beaujolais at The Red Lion.

After our draining Monday we went to our Jazz Club at The Red Lion, Isleworth armed with a Christmas Stollen to say thank you to the friends who helped us in the morning.

As it turned out, one of them doesn't eat sweet things?!

But I was in for a real treat - just about my favourite line up.

Trevor Tomkins as ever provided some immaculate drums.

This is Simon Spillett looking immaculate in his MOD suit and a narrow tie straight out of the 1960's.

Now who do I know who dresses like that?

I love his playing and the choice of music was very much in my Thelonius Monk and Charlie Parker world.

Next to him is Roger Beaujolais on Vibes - we even got a Milt Jackson solo from him;

On the back row you can see Alec Dankworth playing Bass and John Critchinson on keyboards;

But both Robyn and me were shattered after our day, lets hope it worked out OK.

But Monday night?

That was magical.

Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)

Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

Simon Spillet and Roger Beaujolais at The Red Lion.

This is the fabulous line up at The Red Lion, Isleworth Jazz club; it's Simon Spillet looking very cool on Saxophone and Roger Beaujolais sounding pretty cool on the Vibraphone.

I love Jazz Vibraphone and it's been a while since I've heard them; especially on Milt Jackson's ' Heartstrings'.....made for the vibes, obviously.

Simon Spillet is a very fine Sax player - I really enjoyed Wayne Shorter's 'Tom Thumb' at the end of the first set. 

I also liked Joabim's 'Favela', a sound of Brazil on a cold night.

Trevor Tomkins was great on drums as usual, and Robin Aspland covered keyboards, Simon Thorpe on bass.

It was one of those evenings that just flew away, it was that good.

Simon Spillet also had with him his new book; The Long Shadow of the Little Giant';




                                       


It's his biography of the legendary Tubby Hayes, one of a handful of brilliant, British Bebop pioneers - he played with everybody - both sides of the Atlantic.

Simon Spillett is not only an accomplished saxophonist, he is also an expert exponent of the music of Tubby Hayes, so it's natural that he should write a biography of him.

It's a real labour of love, I think it took him 12 years to write it.

I haven't seen a copy yet but if you are interested, the reviews are good.

Neil Harris
(a don't stop till you drop production)

Home:  helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com
Contact me:  neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com


Equinox

Standard Miles.

Monday night saw us back at our Jazz Club for an all-star evening; 'Standard Miles'. I'd been looking forward to it for some time.
It's a quintet that appears at venues like Ronnie Scott's or the summer festivals to play the standards that were part of Miles Davies's concert's in the late 1950's/early 1960's.

They aren't pretending top be Miles - how could you? It's just a glorious recreation of Modern Jazz in the second and probably last golden period.

In these pictures you can see Dave Green on Bass. Somewhere in the background is Trevor Tomkins on Drums while John Critchinson plays piano.

John Horler, here playing muted trumpet beautifully, told us a story about meeting Miles Davies while he was touring in Los Angeles. Mind you, John Critchinson played with Ronnie Scott for many years - he probably has a tale or two of his own to tell.

 

 

As the evening went on I found it harder and harder to sit on the pub's stool - my back was agony and I had to get up and stand at the front (the only space left) getting in everybody's way.

 

It did get me a good picture of Simon Spillett on Saxophone though.

 

It's an exceptional quintet - quality jazz played with feeling.

 

Neil Harris

(a don't stop till you drop production)

 

Home: helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com

contact me: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

 

 

Straight, no chaser.

Monday night and that’s jaaaaazzzzz.

I made it back to the Red Lion, Isleworth for a special night made just for me (as is next week).

Unfortunately, it seems it was made for just about everybody else too – it was packed and I ended up at the front.

 I could get used to that. Up at the back, I never realised they have fingers and noses and things;

 

This is Nigel Price, a jazz guitarist who actually understands how the instrument works in Jazz.

And this is the great Simon Spillett on Sax;

 

Trevor Tomkins on drums, the world famous John Critchinson (of Ronnie Scott’s band) on keyboards and Tim Wells on bass.

It was a night of standards but with just enough Bop, every now and again to keep me alive.

Long breathy sax notes and then a little walk on the wild side. Just every now and again.

Miles Davis’s Donna Lee, Charlie Parker and where would I be without Thelonious Monk’s ‘Straight no chaser’?

Oh, and welcome back from Ocean Drive, Robyn!

Neil Harris

(a don’t stop till you drop production)

Home:  helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com

Contact: neilwithpromisestokeep@gmail.com

 Harry Potter says

  C

    Helpmesortoutstpeters.blogspot.com

 All it takes is a little magic!

The Coolest place to be.

I wasn’t even going to go out, I was going to stay in and have a rest ready for New Years Eve. That’s what I should have done (not been so well blahdeeblah) and in the morning do the food shopping, spend the afternoon at hospital and the evening ….well, we were going to see what happened.

Instead I went to The Red Lion for a night of jazz, so thats the end of the shopping.

 I always knew it would be a good night but I didn't realise it was going to be a really good night and that I had to be there. I wasn’t the only one either – it was packed out.

 

 Simon Spillet was magnificent on the saxophone while Nigel Price on jazz guitar complemented him perfectly. They were all up for it, I think having several days away from jazz had them desperate to get back in – that’s what it sounded like. John Critchinson couldn’t stop smiling and Tim Wells on bass was thwacking out the rythym.

Best of all was ‘Alfies Theme’ by Sonny Rollins; you know it, really you do. It’s from the 1960's film. It’s cool…really cool.

The joint was jumping.

And for this one night that packed pub was the only place in the whole of London to be.

Now it's New Year's Eve and I got up late (there goes the shopping - frozen leftovers for me). This time last year I wrote that 2012 was the worst year of my life but that I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Well I can tell you that 2013 was ten times worse than that and I still wouldn't have missed it for anything.

2014? Bring it on.

Neil Harris

(a don’t stop till you drop production)  

The Usual Suspects

British modern Jazz has a tough time getting by, surviving. Really it’s one big collective. Someone gets a booking and it’s a ring round to find a group of musicians who are free. ‘Groups’, just can’t make it.

So, when Simon Spillett (coolish dude in a suit with a sax) formed ‘Standard Miles’, to play standards in the style of Miles Davis, that was quite something. Especially as this is the style of the 1960’s, the Herbie Hancock period.

 

 The five (round up the usual suspects) had certainly gone to extraordinary lengths to look like the Davies band of that era. Spillett introduced Henry Lowther (Trumpet and Flugelhorn) “I chose him for his uncanny resemblance to the great Miles Davies”. Lowther is short, a little plump, white haired and (how can I put this) very white.

You’ll get the idea that this wasn’t a tribute band or a band of looky-likey’s. They weren’t playing the Miles Davies Greatest Hits. It was just five great musicians playing a bunch of standards they know, in a style they love. A hand in an old glove.

So, Henry Lowther used a mute a heck of a lot and that short staccato stabbing sound, but the mask often slipped a little – did Davies ever play the flugel? He was in good form. There was John Critchinson delicate on piano and Dave Green on Bass. We had a rare treat of a trio – Piano, Drums and Bass on their own.

Trevor Tomkins was really something tonight. When the French government banned Absinthe, the distillers produced a new aniseed flavoured drink that carried a hint of what it replaced but was something new. It was called ‘Pastis’, because it was a pastiche of what went before. TT really took his drums to 1963 tonight and gave everything a certain flavour, a memory of something very familiar but irreplaceable, without pretending to copy what can’t be copied.

There was a taste of it all - urban sax, short and stabby sax and trumpet, fast and furious and very slow and thoughtful.

Even though these five play together a lot, know each other well, there’s nothing like being a group to take it up a gear. A thoughtful night and lots of cheers and whistles too.

Neil Harris

( a don’t stop till you drop production)