Jazz Cabaret in Hampstead

Come along on Sunday 5th July at to The Marigold Session, a jazz-infused cabaret hosted by Anoushka Cowan and Elijah Lifton, with special guests, actor Christopher Biggins, and writer Richard Bean (One Man, Two Guvnors).

Jazz, songs, duologues, comedy, discussion.

Two shows at the Circle & Star Theatre, Hampstead, NW3

Ray Gelato and his Giants - Review

Pizza Express, Dean Street, London

****

A packed Dean Street Pizza Express enjoyed Ray Gelato and his Giants perform a two-hour set that criss-crossed the Atlantic with its content in a glorious celebration of the power of music to entertain. An old-school bandleader, Gelato led from the front switching effortlessly between vocals and sax throughout the gig with his six fellow musicians (three on wind, a bass, piano-player and drums) delivering classy support.

The energy fizzed from the moment Gelato opened proceedings with a speeded up When You’re Smiling. Up tempo and uplifting, feet tapped and faces grinned as the band delivered immaculately rehearsed takes on American Songbook classics that ranged from Louis Jourdan to the Rat Pack. Memorable moments from the evening included Gelato’s saxophone take on Sinatra’s Angel Eyes and his outstanding lead in Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Elsewhere, drummer Ed Richardson’s sensational three-minute (!) riff in Nat King Cole’s L-O-V-E had to be seen to be believed.

A witty songwriter himself, it was a joy to hear Gelato’s self-penned gems Bar Italia and My Last Meatball played live - maybe next time he’ll treat us to some gangsta with Who Stole Ronnie’s Pickle?

This is London music as it should be. On for two more sold-out evenings, but well worth trying for returns.

Performing until 14th June

John G Smith Trio - Review

***

John G Smith

The John G Smith Trio are a relatively new addition (albeit comprised of some fabulously experienced talent) to London’s jazz and cabaret circuit and it was a full Crazy Coqs that welcomed their debut late night gig.

With Smith on piano and occasional vocals. James Graydon on guitar and singing too and Zoltan Dekany on acoustic bass, the evening was billed as a humorous rediscovery of songs by Billy Joel, Paul Simon and others. Whilst Joel’s tunes were given a sometimes intelligent re-working, with an opening mash up of And So It Goes with The Longest Time that will have tickled the eardrums of the star’s cognoscenti in the audience, some of the jazz work missed its mark. Joel’s gorgeous number from his Turnstiles collection, New York State Of Mind was not only re-arranged, its tempo was brutally speeded up too. In so doing, much of the song’s delicate beauty  was lost. 

Also, Smith had decided to eschew all of Joel’s lyrics. On reflection this was probably a wise call, given that the words would no longer have scanned to fit the revised beats that Smith had imposed. But even more intriguingly, the pianist had then decided to include the lyrics of a handful of songs that he and Graydon had composed and which were dedicated to / inspired by their respective loving partners. Great idea, but the homegrown words proved as cheesy as they were sincere. If you’re going to strip out Joel’s poetry from your set list, then it’s a tad disingenuous to subject a captive audience to your own scribblings, anodyne in comparison to Joel’s balladeer-ing brilliance. 

That being said – there were moments of genius on the night. All three musicians were a joy to behold, with Dekany’s fabulous fingerwork in Horace Silver’s Sister Sadie defining the purest of talents. When they were joined, sadly for one number only, by jazz violinist Michael Keelan who had hot-footed it over from the Drury Lane orchestra pit, the passionate Chick Corea inspired collaboration set the room alight. 

The two-act set makes for some charming entertainment – but it needs work. The Billy Joel compositions deserve more than the current re-engineering into muzak and if the band are going to hint at humour on the flyer, then they need to deliver on the night. Though, with a musical craftsmanship (and pedigree) that cannot be faulted, The John G Smith Trio have every chance of developing into a vibrant feature of the capital’s jazz scene.

The Jay Rayner Quartet: Hungry Jazz

Crazy Coqs, London

****

Jay Rayner

In reviewing Jay Rayner's Quartet at the Crazy Coqs, I need to declare an interest. My family and the Rayners go back a very long way, whilst Jay and myself overlapped secondary education for a good few years in Elstree. This review also daunts for another reason: Not only is Rayner a talented jazz pianist, he earns a respected and respectable crust as one of the nation's leading food critics. His pith-meistery is professional, whereas my punditry is purely promoted by passion. No pressure then, here we go.

A packed venue saw the relaxed Rayner take his audience through an evening of gastro-jazz and flowing bon-mots in an evening of mellow music infused with references and recollections of growing up as the youngest child of the country's favourite agony aunt (the late Claire Rayner), alongside tastefully placed nods to the culinary world. He confessed to having earned pocket money as his mother's 10yo letter-opener - sagely adding that most songs in the jazz canon sound as though they may have been letters written to an agony aunt, with the tale about the wooden cock (Coq?) sent to his mother in the mail, proving of particular fascination.

With no lack of modesty, the floppy haired pianist declared himself the best jazz pianist amongst the UKs food critics. He's probably not wrong, though the self-deprecation is undeserved. As confident and fluent at the (grand piano) keyboard as at a QWERTY work-station his whirl, mostly through the American songbook was a selection of choice morsels.

The evening's vocals came from Pat Gordon-Smith in a performance that was never less than assured and beautifully pitched with her interpretation of familiar numbers proving an utter delight. Her (almost) a capella Blue Skies, with just the merest hint of accompaniment from the talented Rob Rickenberg on bass was sensational. Dave Lewis' accomplished contribution on sax completed the quartet.

For a foodie to present a gig, one expects the links to be nothing less than cheesy and Rayner didn't disappoint. His patter on the subject of chocolate led naturally into That Old Black Magic, an intro that would have had Messrs. Mercer, Arlen and Rowntree smiling down benignly, whilst his closing number served up with a reference to a good steak, could only be Love Me Tender. The audience groaned.

Enchantingly corny? Perhaps. But unremittingly excellent? Unquestionably. Promoter Ruth Leon has unearthed another treasure here, with Rayner and his quartet proving a welcome addition to the capital's jazz scene.