Ronnie’s 60th sells out Royal Albert Hall, packs Frith Street and curates exclusive Jazzwise CD

The 60th anniversary celebrations for iconic London jazz club Ronnie Scott’s kicked off in serious style with their inaugural street party on Saturday 20 July, which drew thousands of people to a day of free gigs on a stage erected outside the venue on Frith Street, Soho. Performers included saxophonists Pee Wee Ellis and Nubya Garcia (below right), with crowds stretching back to nearby Soho Square and the surrounding area.

first played with the jazz legend aged 17. The club’s resident pianist and MD, James Pearson, will lead the Ronnie Scott’s All Stars, while bandleader Pete Long will direct the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra.

Look out for October’s issue of Jazzwise, which will include an exclusive Ronnie Scott’s covermount CD telling the story of the club through exclusive audio interviews and music associated with the venue. For more info visit www.ronniescotts.co.uk special, and already sold out, charity concert at the Royal Albert Hall on 30 October. The starry line-up includes Van Morrison (pictured right), Imelda May, Madeline Bell, Kurt Elling, Georgie

The celebrations continue next month at a special, and already sold out, charity concert at the Royal Albert Hall on 30 October. The starry line-up includes Van Morrison (pictured right), Imelda May, Madeline Bell, Kurt Elling, Georgie Fame, Pee Wee Ellis and Courtney Pine. Ronnie’s regulars also appearing include acclaimed singers Natalie Williams, Ian Shaw and Liane Carroll, plus leading trumpeter/ arranger Guy Barker, whose association with the venue goes back to his teenage years and an early encounter with Dizzy Gillespie, when he arranger Guy Barker, whose association with the

Ronnie Scott’s at 60

A journey through the last 60 years of the club

Featuring memories from artists including Georgie Fame, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Ronnie Scott, and the music of John McLaughlin, Yusef Lateef, Sarah Vaughan and more.

Editor’s Note

A sense of community can be a powerful thing. It’s what underpins the life and work of this month’s featured artists, be it in the form of bassist and label boss Michael Janisch’s transatlantic bridge-building to unite US and UK scenes, or the extended family of Brit jazz musicians that rallied around to support much-cherished guitarist Jim Mullen in his hour of musical need. It can also be seen in the communal nature of Nérija’s close-knit creative process when recording their superb debut album, Blume, and it’s a like-minded sense of mission that’s enabled Jan Bang’s PUNKT festival to last 15 years and draw in leading experimental musicians from around the world. And it can certainly be found at your local jazz jam session where instant connections are formed in the space of a few bars of music. Stylistically, jazz is becoming an increasingly broad church, but its intrinsic message remains universal, a creative conduit for togetherness and cooperation. Mike Flynn Editor, Jazzwise

Cherise Adams-Burnett

Nominees announced for Parliamentary Jazz Awards The names have been revealed for this year’s Parliamentary Jazz Awards, with the winners to be announced at an awards ceremony at PizzaExpress Live, Holborn, on 3 December. The shortlists of names, initially chosen through an online public vote, has been selected by a panel of jazz experts and professionals with a wide knowledge of, and passion for, the music. The winners will be chosen by the judging members of the All Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group (APPJAG), which is comprised of 80 members from the House of Commons and House of Lords across all political parties. Reflecting the diversity and depth of the current British jazz scene across nine categories, the nominees are: Jazz Vocalist of the Year: Claire Martin, Georgia Mancio, Cherise Adams-Burnett and Zoe Gilby. Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year: Brian Kellock, Nikki Iles, Jason Rebello and Josephine Davies. Jazz Album of the Year: Sons of Kemet – Your Queen Is A Reptile; Adrian Cox – Profoundly Blue; Fergus McCreadie – Turas, and Jean Toussaint –Brother Ray. Jazz Ensemble of the Year: Ezra Collective, London Vocal Project and Gareth Lockrane Big Band. Jazz Newcomer of the Year: Xhosa Cole; Fergus McCreadie and Luca Manning. Jazz Venue of the Year: Marsden Jazz Festival, Bebop Club (Bristol), Watermill Jazz Club (Dorking) and Verdict Jazz Club (Brighton). Jazz Media Award: Jazzwise, Kevin Le Gendre and Ian Mann (Jazzmann website). Jazz Education Award: Pete Churchill, Jamil Sheriff and Nikki Iles. Services to Jazz Award: Henry Lowther, John Fordham and Cleo Laine. For more info visit www.pizzaexpresslive.com/parliamentary-jazz-awards scene across nine categories, the nominees are: Claire Martin, Georgia Mancio, Cherise Adams-Burnett and Zoe Gilby. Nikki Iles, Jason Rebello and Josephine Davies. Adrian Cox – Year Fergus McCreadie and Luca Manning. Jazz Club (Dorking) and Verdict Jazz Club (Brighton). (Jazzmann website). Henry Lowther, John Fordham and Cleo Laine. For more info visit www.pizzaexpresslive.com/parliamentary-jazz-awards

Fergus McCreadia

Jim Mullen, Partisans and Liane Carroll skip to Scarborough

The 17th annual Scarborough Jazz Festival takes place from 20 to 22 September at its longstanding home of the town’s Victoria Spa Grand Hall with a strong selection of leading Brit-jazz names and exciting newcomers. Chief among the opening night headliners are award-winning vocalist Liane Carroll and versatile multi-reedist Alan Barnes, while Saturday’s top names include pianist/singer Jeremy Sassoon’s crowd-pleasing 17-piece Ray Charles Project, who appear fresh from their storming set at Love Supreme in July. The final night closes in emphatic style with the garrulous jazz-rock of Julian Siegel and Phil Robson’s group Partisans, and a finale featuring revered jazz guitar man Jim Mullen (pictured) and his all-star Volunteers big band (see this month’s feature p24). New names to look out for include Jasmine, a quintet led by northern alto-sax talent Jasmine Whalley; young saxophonist Sam Rapley and his band, Fabled, and fusion-into-folk sounds from trombonist Rory Ingham’s Bonsai. The full line-up is as follows: Friday 20 September: Jasmine, Wild Card, John Law’s Re-Creations, Freddie Gavita Quartet, Liane Carroll and Alan Barnes + 11. Saturday 21 September: Sam Rapley’s Fabled, Kate Peters Big Band, Tony Kofi & The Organisation, Clark Tracey Quintet, Dave Newton and Jeremy Sassoon’s Ray Charles Project. Sunday 22 September: Bonsai, Alec Dankworth’s Spanish Accents, New Jazz Extempore, Partisans and Jim Mullen’s Volunteers. For full details and tickets visit www.scarboroughspa.co.uk

Jazzwise September 2019 5