Blue skies and sunny weather greeted this year’s Cheltenham Jazz Festival, held from 30 April to 6 May. The Big Top and Jazz Arena in Montpellier Gardens and Cheltenham Town Hall down the road hosted most of the acts. Other locations around town included the Grade II listed Parabola Arts Centre, Dunkertons Tap Room and the Hotel du Vin.
Katie Melua, one of the UK’s highest-selling female recording artists, opened the festival on Wednesday night in the Big Top. With her brand new quartet led by jazz pianist Gabriel Piers-Mantell this was a classy performance, highly appreciated by the capacity audience.
You couldn’t have a sharper contrast to Melua’s polished, nice-as-pie delivery than the gritstone of in-yer-face, rock & blues singer Alice Armstrong, who followed on Thursday. In full Janis Joplin mode, Armstrong had the standing-only Arena crowd positively reeling. It was proving to be every rock and blues fan’s lucky day as next on stage was a chanteuse from a similar stable – husky-voiced, rock, blues and roots singer Elles Bailey, in a set delivering numbers from her album, Beneath The Neon Glow. Bailey’s fans were out in force and were clearly delighted by her commanding stage presence and powerful performance.
Thursday night closed in the Big Top with Lulu reprising her hit records in a sparkling set. The crowd loved it. Her single Shout hit the top 10 in 1964 when she was only 15. She won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1969 with Boom Bang-a-Bang and in 1974 sang the title song in the James Bond film, The Man With The Golden Gun. Lulu told the audience that she’s been working on a new autobiography and with photos of various artists projected on a background screen said she’d be divulging anecdotes about her life with artists such as Lennon and McCartney, Neil Diamond and Elton John. She confided that she’s really a shy person at heart – who’d have believed it?
The Soul Jazz Summit in the Big Top on Friday had the BBC Concert Orchestra and Guy Barker’s Big Band celebrating the cascade of jazz and soul that emanated from the late 50s and early 60s. Special guests included Vanessa Haynes, Lulu, Emeli Sandé, Curtis Stigers, Lucy-Anne Daniels, Tommy Blaize, Lisa Stansfield and Damian Lewis. Then, over at the Town Hall, London’s Afrobeat collective, Kokoroko, led by trumpeter Sheila Maurice-Grey and trombonist Anoushka Nanguy, delivered their dynamic and driving mix of jazz, soul and funk.
Lisa Stansfield came to public attention after winning ITV’s singing competition Search For A Star at the age of 14. It’s hard to believe she’s now approaching 60. She closed Friday night in the Big Top to an army of longstanding fans with a spectactular concert of soul, dance and pop numbers from her back catalogue.
Mexican singer Lucia is a former winner of the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. Accompanied by Venezuelian pianist Antonio Mazzei, she combined Latin, pop and jazz standards for lunchtime diners at the Hotel du Vin on Saturday. Meanwhile, another duo with an international flavour were preparing for their later concert at the Parabola with pianist Alexander Hawkins accompanying Swedish experimental singer Sofia Jernberg. Born in Ethiopia, Jernberg specialises in the outer edges of vocal technique such as split tone, pitchless and distorted singing. The outcome wasn’t exactly my cup of tea but others clearly enjoyed the novelty of the performance.
Powerhouse fusion drummer Billy Cobham, now 80, played with Miles Davis and Mahavishnu Orchestra before he became a bandleader in his own right. He brought a first-rate band to the Town Hall on Saturday afternoon with Antonio Baldini on trumpet, Bjorn Arko tenor sax, Andrea Andreoli trombone, Gary Husband piano, Rocco Zifarelli guitar and Victor Cisternas on bass. Their set comprised classic fusion numbers from Cobham’s early albums including Stratus from Spectrum (1973) and the title track from his 1974 album Total Eclipse. It was well received by the highly appreciative crowd.
The day continued with Grammy-winning singer Corinne Bailey Rae and Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra in the Big Top, Curtis Stigers at the Town Hall and Daniel Casimir’s Big Band at the Parabola. Along with Casamir on electric and double bass, his band featured amongst others Freddie Gavita and Andy Davies on trumpets, Donovan Haffner & Camilla George alto saxes, Flo Redmond & Chelsea Carmichael tenors, Kieran McLeod and Richard Foote trombones, Joe Beck piano and Jamie Murray drums. They played numbers from Casimir’s recent album, Balance, including I’ll Take My Chances, Music Not Numbers and You Know. Ria Moran supplied the vocals on the last two. It was a splendid performance.
The New-York-based James Brandon Lewis Trio opened Sunday at the Arena with Lewis on tenor sax, Josh Werner electric bass and Gerald Cleaver drums. They melded jazz with hip-hop, funk and free jazz in tracks from their recent album Apple Cores. This was an energetic and at times thoughtful set. Later on, Claire Martin wowed the audience at the Town Hall with her concert celebrating the music of George Gershwin. She was supported by the excellent quartet of Rob Barron on piano, James Copus trumpet, Karen Sharp tenor sax, Jeremy Brown double bass and Mark Taylor drums.
Another visiting American, the versatile trumpeter Keyon Harrold, played the Arena late afternoon with a top band comprising Rashon Murph on keys, Jermaine Paul bass and Charles Haynes on drums. Combining free-form jazz, rap and R&B, they performed tracks from Harrold’s recent Foreverland album. When Harrold sang, his voice wasn’t bad either.
Later on, singer and guitarist David Gray closed the night at the Big Top with an emotive set blending earlier songs with those from his latest album, Dear Life. They included Babylon, Say Hello and Please Forgive Me. His fans, there in numbers, were duly elated.
In terms of audience impact though, the stand-out set on Sunday, if not the festival, was Dutty Moonshine Big Band. This 12-strong electro-swing dance band, who’d performed at the Arena with a seven-piece high-octane horn section, powerhouse drums, synths and electrifying vocalists, delivered a pulsating, non-stop bombardment of jazz, bass music and hip-hop. Every time the whole band danced in energetic synchrony with front-line singer Maria (which was often) the audience followed suit loudly and ecstatically. The joint was jumping – it was an experience like no other.
The Buena Vista All Stars opened Monday in the Big Top with 13 Cuban musicians including three members from the original Buena Vista Social Club – trumpeter Manuel Machado, laúd player Barbarito Torres and trombonist Demetrio Muniz, who directed the band. This was Cuban music at its finest.
The Neil Cowley Trio got together 20 years ago but for the last seven have been noticeably absent from the jazz scene. They’ve just reunited and were on stage in the Arena. With Cowley on piano, Rex Horan on double bass and Evan Jenkins on drums they sounded just like they’d never been away. Along with a couple of earlier classics the performance focused on their recent album, Entity. As always, it was music that requires attention in order to appreciate the moments of brilliance. Note to self – must get the CD.
Macy Gray followed in the Big Top with a series of her R&B and soul hits including The Way, Thinking Of You, Relating To A Psychopath and, of course, I Try. Gray appeared a tad distracted at times but her highly energetic set was well received by the crowd. Later in the Arena, talented saxophonist, singer and songwriter Kim Cypher blended swing, funk and Latin jazz. This was bright and glitzy music with moments of reflection. Former Loose Tubes trombonist Ashley Slater featured in the band, as did her drummer husband Mike Cypher. In a joke directed his way she informed us that a happy wife means a happy life. For a taste you can try her catchy composition Uniquely The Same.
Roger Daltrey closed Monday in the Big Top with a series of Who and Daltry power-pop and rock numbers. These included Giving It All Away, Who Are You, Days Of Light and The Kids Are Alright. The Parka-wearing former mods and Who fans in the audience lapped it all up.
Throughout the week, the Family Tent in Montpellier Gardens, with its programme of musical exploration, was very popular with children and parents. The festival’s Free Stage hosted numerous artists and bands from across the country (it was a nice surprise to come across Swing From Paris there, whose gypsy jazz album I Love Paris I reviewed not long ago), and many other musicians played at fringe venues throughout the town. Across the board, this year’s Cheltenham Jazz Festival was a great success.
