Jazz musician Chris Ingham and folk musician Chris Wilbraham cast their expert eyes over the local music scene
JAZZ with Chris Ingham: cjr.ingham@outlook.com/www.chrisingham.co.uk
Friday, November 1
ELECTRIC ALCHEMY (St Peter’s By the Waterfront, Ipswich, 7.30pm, £17.30/£14.50, stpetersbythewaterfront. com) A dynamic fusion of classical, jazz, Indian and gypsy music with Marianne Olyver (acoustic & electric violin), Oliver Steggles (electric guitar), Tristan Stocks (vocals), Jeffery Wilson (saxophone), John Human (piano/keyboard), Jonathan Woolston (bass) and Sirishkumar Manj (table).
Thursday, November 7
LIZZIE BLISSETT/SIMON BROWN (The Last Wine Bar, Norwich, 7.30pm, thelastnorwich.co.uk) Restaurant jazz in the centre of Norwich with pianist Simon Brown doing a solo set 7.30pm-8.45pm, joined by singer Lizzie Blissett at 9pm for an after-dinner set.
Friday-Sunday, November 8-24
CAMBRIDGE JAZZ FESTIVAL (Various venues in Cambridge, cambridgejazzfestival.info) Concerts, workshops, hangs, jams and more, for over two weeks. Highlights include Pat Metheny, Tim Garland’s Lighthouse Trio & Britten Sinfonia and Dennis Rollins with the Cambridge University Jazz Orchestra.
FOR THE DIARY
Sunday, November 10
PETE LONG SALUTES BENNY GOODMAN (Venue 16, Ipswich, 2.30pm, £15, ipswichjazzandblues.com) An electrifying romp through the classic Benny Goodman small group repertoire of the 1930s and early 40s, plus an opening set from FNY with Yula Andrews (vocal), Felix Serrano (guitar) and Neil Bateman (sax).
THE RONNIE SCOTT’S STORY (Cambridge Arts Theatre, 7.30pm, £25/£30) A blend of narration, rare archive photos, video footage and live jazz with the Ronnie Scott’s All Stars led by pianist James Pearson.
Wednesday, November 13
SIMON SPILLETT QUARTET (Stoke By Nayland Golf Club, 8pm, £20, fleecejazz.org.uk, 01787 211865) Reliably exciting hard bop from author/saxophonist Spillett with Rob Barron (piano), Alec Dankworth (bass) and Pete Cater (drums).
Saturday, November 16
ARBENZ X (Hidden Rooms, Cambridge, 2pm, £15 & £20, cambridgejazz.org, 01223 514777) An exhilarating, hand-picked multi-generational combo fronted by drummer Florian Arbenz and featuring Immy Churchill (voice), Nick Smart (trumpet/flugelhorn), Ivo Neame (keyboards), Jim Hart (vibes/perc) and Szymon Mika (guitar).
Sunday, November 17
PAT METHENY (Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden, 7pm, from £39, saffronhall.com) Guitar legend in his first ever solo tour in a 50-year playing career.
Tuesday, November 19
MARTIN HALLMARK’S Q3 ((Maddermarket Theatre Bar, Norwich, 7.30pm, £16/£8, norwichjazzclub.co.uk) Original contemporary jazz with Martin Hallmark (piano), Kevin Flanagan (tenor), Tiago Coimbra (bass) and Derek Scurll (drums).
Friday, November 22
ALAN BARNES (Hunter Club Arts Centre, Bury, 7.30pm, £18, headhunterslive.org, 07799 650009) Multi award-winning multi-reedsman Barnes joins Chris Ingham (piano), Malcolm Creese (bass) and George Double (drums) for high-end modern swing and droll anecdote.
Wednesday, November 27
ART THEMEN ORGAN TRIO (Stoke By Nayland Golf Club, 8pm, £20, fleecejazz.org.uk, 01787 211865) Part of the Art Themen at 85: Live in Soho tour, the indestructible Themen leads this groovy trio with mischief and aplomb, strikingly supported by Pete Whittaker (organ) and George Double (drums).
Friday, December 6
A SWINGING CHRISTMAS (Diss Corn Hall, 7.30pm, £21, thecornhall.co.uk, 01379 652241) Festive fun with the Chris Ingham Quintet, featuring singer Joanna Eden (aka Jazz at the Movies) plus Mark Crooks (clarinet/saxophone), Geoff Gascoyne (bass) and George Double (drums).
FOLK with Chris Wilbraham: chris.wilbraham@tinyonline.co.uk
Last weekend I visited Edinburgh staying in Leith, a short tram ride from the city centre. Inevitably for a man of my age, thoughts turned to The Proclaimers’ Sunshine on Leith, a song that never fails to move me. I thought I might explore why it connects so well, especially, though not exclusively, north of Hadrian’s Wall. I think a factor is its humility. The opening line is “My heart was broken”. It is repeated four times in the first verse, as is the word “sorrow”.
Then comes the line: “You saw it, you claimed it, you touched it you saved it.”
In the next verse “My heart was broken” is replaced with “My tears are drying” and “thankyou” replaces “sorrow”, finishing with “Your beauty and kindness made tears clear my blindness”.
The chorus is a humble declaration of the singer’s intent in response to the love they have received:
“While I’m worth
My room on this earth
I will be with you
While the chief
Puts sunshine on Leith
I’ll thank Him for His work
And your birth, and my birth.”
That’s pretty much the whole song. The second half is a musical interlude then the first verse repeated and a chorus.
The music is simple with subtle variations as the lines repeat, creating interest and suspense in the listener. It allows the words expressing the humanity of someone’s gratitude at their salvation from despair to shine, as they at the same time recognise their appreciation of their existence and that of those they love. All things that are easy to forget in our darkest moments. I think mention of Sunshine on Leith beautifully represents the passing of that darkness.
The appeal of this song is universal, but there are reasons why it and The Proclaimers, twin brothers Craig and Charlie Reid, are even more loved around Leith, the place of their birth. When they broke into public consciousness in 1987, with a performance of Letter from America on Channel 4’s The Tube, a song protesting the effect of government policy on Scottish towns, the music scene was awash with acts sporting haircuts and clothing that have not passed the test of time, often singing inane songs to pre-recorded electronic backing tracks. The integrity of two lads playing acoustic guitar, singing passionately in their native Scottish accents, sporting regular clothes and thick-lensed spectacles was an impressive contrast, generating pride in those that share their homeland.
The love grew to new levels in Leith when the brothers supported Hibernian Football Club in person and financially when it faced a hostile buy out from the owner of Edinburgh rivals Hearts of Midlothian in 1990. The brothers headlined a show at the club’s Easter Road stadium, and at a later meeting the crowd virtually spontaneously sang Sunshine on Leith. It has been adopted by the fans as the clubs anthem. Seeing them sing on YouTube videos is emotional as they express their devotion for their home club while acknowledging the heartbreak that can go with football supporting. It is a fine piece of art.
Here is this week’s gig list:
Friday, November 1
Risbygate Sports Club, Bury St Edmunds, 8pm, The Milkmaid Folk Club, Tom McConville, support from David Black. £12.
Hadleigh Folk Club, Ansell Centre, 8pm, Hunter Muskett, support from Gwendal Moele. £8.
Monday, November 4
Colchester Arts Centre, 8pm, Coracle, support from Phil Lyons. £14.50.
Cambridge Junction, 8pm, Hannah Sanders and Ben Savage, support from Bailey and Keeley. £15.
Wednesday, November 6
Risbygate Sports Club, Bury St Edmunds. 8pm. Contemporary Folk. £3.
John Peel Centre, Stowmarket, 7.30pm, Sunny Sweeney, support from Virginia Dirt. £20.
Friday, November 8
Wingfield Barns, 7.30pm, Megson. £16.
The Golden Hind, Cambridge, 8pm, Cambridge Folk Club: Anthony John Clarke, support from Vic Lennard. £12.
