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JJ 10/94: Gail Thompson – Gail Force

Thirty years ago Barry McRae heard noteworthy British jazzers including Andy Macintosh, Martin Shaw, Jim Mullen and Dave O'Higgins play on well-written if slightly commercial material. First published in Jazz Journal October 1994

Gail Thompson has assembled a very useful big band and together with Andy Macintosh provided some good tunes for it to play. The fortunate thing is that it plays them well and has sidemen who show their all-round commitment by taking solos that complement the material.

Be Bop Juice is more boogaloo than bebop and the backbeat of Thomas’s heavy-handed drumming is obtrusive on Sixteen. These are minor blemishes, however, and with Fayyaz Virji providing the pick of the arrangements, everything else fits the bill.

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Shaw’s flugel on the excellent Elegy, Lockheart’s fluent tenor on S.F.I., and Macintosh’s crest-of-beat alto on Mallard are particu­larly impressive. Presencer’s solo on Mallard is also noteworthy and O’Higgins stars on his Maybe feature, enjoying healthy ensem­ble support and easily outriding Thomas’s stiff drumming.

No one would claim that this fine release did not have its eye on commer­cial realities but it does not repre­sent a musical sell-out and deserves to be widely heard.

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Discography
(1) The Big Picture; (2) Elegy; (1) Be Bop Juice; S.F.I. (Song For Isambard); Sixteen And Ready; (3) Maybe It’s Me; (1) Mallard; The Big Picture (Edit); Be Bop Juice (Edit) (66.50)
(1) Thompson (cond); Gerard Presencer (t, fth); Martin Shaw (t, flh); Winston Rollins (tb); Andy Macintosh (as, ss, f); Scott Garland (ts); Mark Lockheart (ts, ss); Adrian York (kyb); Jim Mullen (elg); Laurence Cottle (b); Gary Hammond (pc); Ian Thomas (d). London, January 10 & 11, 1994. (2) as (1) plus Ian Shaw (v). (3) as (1) plus Dave O’Higgins (ts).
EFZ 1005

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