What live music are you going to see tonight?

[adh1907]

On 11/13/2023 at 12:19 PM, sidewinder said:

So hard to pick out specific highlights as everyone played so well. There was a very well deserved standing ovation at Cadogan Hall.

I have to pick out Cecil McBee though, who was truly astonishing for an 88 year old. Such efficient note placement and big sound.

Billy Hart - what can you say? The guy remains a human dynamo, gave it 200%

A great pleasure too to hear again the lovely trumpet tone and attack of Eddie Henderson. His lip was spot on right to the end.

George Cables - first time I've seen him but what a player and not letting mobility issues stop him. Got a huge applause.

Billy Harper - some telling and probing solos, nice to hear him on his own 'Croquet Ballet'.

Last time I saw The Cookers was around 2012 with our late friend JohnS. They remain, thankfully, a vital presence in jazz.

 

Met my brother in law last night who was at this concert and claimed there was a lot of tension in the air, particularly around Billy Hart not being introduced and then playing really loud. Any truth in this? He may have misread the situation.

[sidewinder]

16 minutes ago, adh1907 said:

Met my brother in law last night who was at this concert and claimed there was a lot of tension in the air, particularly around Billy Hart not being introduced and then playing really loud. Any truth in this? He may have misread the situation.

There was a point in the performance where Billy was introduced as 'the drummer' on a feature for him, after someone in the audience shouted 'what about the drummer?'  after the intros at the end of a previous tune. My perception at the time is that it was a simple slip up taken in good spirit. There didn't seem to be any obvious tension that I could see. Billy played pretty loud from the start but I thought that this well suited the performance.

Edited November 19, 2023 by sidewinder

[adh1907]

9 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

There was a point in the performance where Billy was introduced as 'the drummer' on a feature for him, after someone in the audience shouted 'what about the drummer?'  after the intros at the end of a previous tune. My perception at the time is that it was a simple slip up taken in good spirit. There didn't seem to be any obvious tension that I could see. Billy played pretty loud from the start but I thought that this well suited the performance.

Ah OK. He said people were shouting re Billy Hart when the ‘drummer’ was introduced ‘what’s his name?’

[sidewinder]

5 minutes ago, adh1907 said:

Ah OK. He said people were shouting re Billy Hart when the ‘drummer’ was introduced ‘what’s his name?’

Yeah, that rings a bell. It did seem a bit strange that Billy wasn't named at that intro but things quickly moved on.

Maybe fellow board member and Lead Cooker David W. might comment but there was mention at the start of the concert that the band had had a very long day.

Edited November 19, 2023 by sidewinder

[adh1907]

6 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

Yeah, that rings a bell. It did seem a bit strange that Billy wasn't named at that intro but things quickly moved on.

Maybe fellow board member and Lead Cooker David W. might comment but there was mention at the start of the concert that the band had had a very long day.

Yes, flight delays or something along those lines. My brother in law said they came on looking hacked off!

Spike Wells and the QOW trio Monday night at jazz at the Oxford (Parrakeet) London NW5. Seem to be channelling Sonny Rollins at the Vanguard.

[sidewinder]

Just now, adh1907 said:

Yes, flight delays or something along those lines. My brother in law said they came on looking hacked off!

I recall mention of a 6am start so not surprising really. Given that and the ages of most of the band members, I thought they did brilliantly.

[mjazzg]

The Necks at Kings Place. 

If you know the Necks you already know what it was like. No deviation from their compellingly hypnotic modus operandi

[sidewinder]

20 hours ago, adh1907 said:

Met my brother in law last night who was at this concert and claimed there was a lot of tension in the air, particularly around Billy Hart not being introduced and then playing really loud. Any truth in this? He may have misread the situation.

Just to mention that London Jazz News today has some comments about this performance - in-house sound being compromised and Billy Hart's volume set too loud. I was in the 3rd row and expected a bit of a loud, muddy sound so this didn't register too much.

The article makes special mention of Cecil McBee and Eddie Henderson's playing, which aligns with my impressions on the night.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

Billy Hart often plays very loud. He's the loudest drummer I've seen in recent years and not just with The Cookers. I think it's his style.

[tranemonk]

On 11/19/2023 at 11:15 AM, mjazzg said:

Really, I wasn't aware. Thank you. Do you know the label? I can't find any reference online.

I heard it on Apple Music. Artwork Records.  I enjoyed it except for the last two tracks. I don't like too much self-promotion of new "geniuses."

https://www.amazon.com/Solo-Game-Sullivan-Fortner/dp/B0CJK4T6Z2

3 hours ago, bresna said:

Billy Hart often plays very loud. He's the loudest drummer I've seen in recent years and not just with The Cookers. I think it's his style.

I agree 100%. I can't see him live for that reason. Even when I saw Simon Phillips (who had a massive drum kit) with Hiromi's trio, he wasn't as loud as Billy Hart. It's kinda ridiculous, especially in a small club.

[mjazzg]

40 minutes ago, tranemonk said:

I heard it on Apple Music. Artwork Records.  I enjoyed it except for the last two tracks. I don't like too much self-promotion of new "geniuses."

https://www.amazon.com/Solo-Game-Sullivan-Fortner/dp/B0CJK4T6Z2

 

Thanks but we're discussing Tyshawn Sorey not Sullivan Fortner whoever he is.

[jlhoots]

16 minutes ago, mjazzg said:

Thanks but we're discussing Tyshawn Sorey not Sullivan Fortner whoever he is.

Nothing wrong with Sullivan Fortner (even though it wasn't what the discussion was about).

[david weiss]

Always interesting to see this sort of feedback.

I can answer the following from what was mentioned above.....

No one in the band heard the introduction of the band so we had no idea a name was omitted in the introductions. 

I assume he was also the one who mentioned our travel day. I didn't hear it though and did not mention it myself on stage but yes, it was a long travel day. We did leave Szeged, Hungary at 7:00 am (so yes, I guess we were up at 6:00) and drove around 3 hours to Belgrade, Serbia to fly to London. Getting through customs and such meant we had to go straight to the venue from the airport and right to sound check. We had a full sound check. We never hear how things sound in the house but we could hear each other well on stage. We had some food bought to us so we could quickly eat and do our best to pull clothes out of our luggage and change for the concert. 

I don't think anyone was angry but perhaps we had our game faces on. I guess we take this stuff seriously and try to do our best. If Billy Hart was too loud in a concert hall, this to me is more of a balance issue. Billy definitely plays with a wide range of dynamics but he is accompanying the soloists and bringing the energy usually required for doing this. If you can't hear the horns in a big venue, then they needed to be bought up. Billy's drums were mic'ed but once the sound engineers heard the group, those mics should not have been on. They were definitely not needed. 

I do remember an audience member calling out something like who is the drummer or give the drummer some and a little,  when I announced Biily's name before his drum feature, I did deliberately turn in the direction of the person who had shouted out earlier when I announced Billy's name. This is how things are usually announced and over 16 years, no one has taken issue with this so there is nothing to read into this.

I thought it was a nice night. If anyone was tired, they didn't show it at all as is the norm with these guys. I thought the audience was wonderful and very receptive. To me, this is a special band playing music in a way that is rarely heard these days and I, at the very least, cherish the experience. 

 

Edited November 21, 2023 by david weiss

[Gheorghe]

7 hours ago, david weiss said:

Always interesting to see this sort of feedback.

I can answer the following from what was mentioned above.....

No one in the band heard the introduction of the band so we had no idea a name was omitted in the introductions. 

I assume he was also the one who mentioned our travel day. I didn't hear it though and did not mention it myself on stage but yes, it was a long travel day. We did leave Szeged, Hungary at 7:00 am (so yes, I guess we were up at 6:00) and drove around 3 hours to Belgrade, Serbia to fly to London. Getting through customs and such meant we had to go straight to the venue from the airport and right to sound check. We had a full sound check. We never hear how things sound in the house but we could hear each other well on stage. We had some food bought to us so we could quickly eat and do our best to pull clothes out of our luggage and change for the concert. 

I don't think anyone was angry but perhaps we had our game faces on. I guess we take this stuff seriously and try to do our best. If Billy Hart was too loud in a concert hall, this to me is more of a balance issue. Billy definitely plays with a wide range of dynamics but he is accompanying the soloists and bringing the energy usually required for doing this. If you can't hear the horns in a big venue, then they needed to be bought up. Billy's drums were mic'ed but once the sound engineers heard the group, those mics should not have been on. They were definitely not needed. 

I do remember an audience member calling out something like who is the drummer or give the drummer some and a little,  when I announced Biily's name before his drum feature, I did deliberately turn in the direction of the person who had shouted out earlier when I announced Billy's name. This is how things are usually announced and over 16 years, no one has taken issue with this so there is nothing to read into this.

I thought it was a nice night. If anyone was tired, they didn't show it at all as is the norm with these guys. I thought the audience was wonderful and very receptive. To me, this is a special band playing music in a way that is rarely heard these days and I, at the very least, cherish the experience. 

 

Thanks for this great input !

Szeged is a beautiful town yeah. Not far from the Romanian borderline. 

Billy Hart is a wonderful drummer and I always say I want to HEAR the drummer. And I want to hear them on studio records, where sometimes I have the feeling that I don´t hear each kit in the proper manner, especially the cymbals. 
I talked to Mr. Peter Pullman (the author of the book about Bud) when he was in Viena this year in springtime when I invited him to a jazzclub and he was quite astonished that a piano player loves more powerful drummers, which is the case. I think he mentioned that most pianists are supposed to prefer drummers that are not very loud, but in my case if I play and check out a drummer he must be a quite powerful guy. We have some very good drummers here. 

And of course Billy Hart is one of my favourites. 

[sidewinder]

8 hours ago, david weiss said:

Always interesting to see this sort of feedback.

I can answer the following from what was mentioned above.....

No one in the band heard the introduction of the band so we had no idea a name was omitted in the introductions. 

I assume he was also the one who mentioned our travel day. I didn't hear it though and did not mention it myself on stage but yes, it was a long travel day. We did leave Szeged, Hungary at 7:00 am (so yes, I guess we were up at 6:00) and drove around 3 hours to Belgrade, Serbia to fly to London. Getting through customs and such meant we had to go straight to the venue from the airport and right to sound check. We had a full sound check. We never hear how things sound in the house but we could hear each other well on stage. We had some food bought to us so we could quickly eat and do our best to pull clothes out of our luggage and change for the concert. 

I don't think anyone was angry but perhaps we had our game faces on. I guess we take this stuff seriously and try to do our best. If Billy Hart was too loud in a concert hall, this to me is more of a balance issue. Billy definitely plays with a wide range of dynamics but he is accompanying the soloists and bringing the energy usually required for doing this. If you can't hear the horns in a big venue, then they needed to be bought up. Billy's drums were mic'ed but once the sound engineers heard the group, those mics should not have been on. They were definitely not needed. 

I do remember an audience member calling out something like who is the drummer or give the drummer some and a little,  when I announced Biily's name before his drum feature, I did deliberately turn in the direction of the person who had shouted out earlier when I announced Billy's name. This is how things are usually announced and over 16 years, no one has taken issue with this so there is nothing to read into this.

I thought it was a nice night. If anyone was tired, they didn't show it at all as is the norm with these guys. I thought the audience was wonderful and very receptive. To me, this is a special band playing music in a way that is rarely heard these days and I, at the very least, cherish the experience. 

 

Thanks for those thoughts, David. It was indeed a really nice night and the standing ovation well earned for a band which, as you say, is pretty special. Yes, the guy doing the intro mentioned the 6am bit.

Sounds like one heck of a day to get to the gig - respect and thanks to you all. Hope you come back over here to tour again soon. Hopefully also beyond London !

Edited November 21, 2023 by sidewinder

[paulfromcamden]

Just to add my impressions. This was the fourth time I've seen The Cookers play over the past few years and quite possibly the best I've heard them.

Can't comment on the sound balance as we were front row and mostly hearing stage sound with the piano reinforced through the fill speakers on the front of the stage. From where we were sitting the sound was superb and Billy's drums were in no way overpowering.

I didn't pick up on any tension in the band. There was a lot of interaction with the audience and a great moment when Donald took a seat after one of his solos and Eddie turned and congratulated him. The whole evening had a really nice vibe.

The introduction at the start struck me as weird and kinda disrespectful "please welcome x who has played with y and z etc etc.." No one ever introduced Bill Evans as "here's a guy who once played with Miles..." This is a band consisting of absolute legends. Surely everyone in the room knows who they're about to see.

Everyone played superbly but the revelation for me was Donald Harrison who absolutely killed it. I walked past him in the street afterwards and wish now I'd gone up to him and told him how much I'd enjoyed his playing.

Thanks for playing David - we cherish the experience too. Come back soon!

Edited November 21, 2023 by paulfromcamden

[Kevin Bresnahan]

I've seen The Cookers more times than I can remember at this point & I never left feeling like I didn't see a great performance by such a killer band.

11 hours ago, david weiss said:

I don't think anyone was angry but perhaps we had our game faces on. I guess we take this stuff seriously and try to do our best. If Billy Hart was too loud in a concert hall, this to me is more of a balance issue. Billy definitely plays with a wide range of dynamics but he is accompanying the soloists and bringing the energy usually required for doing this. If you can't hear the horns in a big venue, then they needed to be bought up. Billy's drums were mic'ed but once the sound engineers heard the group, those mics should not have been on. They were definitely not needed.

You really got me to laugh here... I've never seen/heard Billy perform where he needed microphones!

[adh1907]

Good for David Weiss to comment at length on the Cadogan Hall concert. Sounds a challenging travel schedule! I did enjoy last year’s concert at the Church of Sound. Craig Taborn replaced Donald Harrison. Now there is a venue where it must be difficult to get a good balanced sound. High ceilinged Victorian church. 

[kh1958]

46 minutes ago, adh1907 said:

Good for David Weiss to comment at length on the Cadogan Hall concert. Sounds a challenging travel schedule! I did enjoy last year’s concert at the Church of Sound. Craig Taborn replaced Donald Harrison. Now there is a venue where it must be difficult to get a good balanced sound. High ceilinged Victorian church. 

Craig Handy?

[adh1907]

Whoops, yes you are right. Sorry. Craig Handy! 

[ejp626]

I saw the Cowboy Junkies last night at the Danforth Music Hall.  Last night of the tour, but they'll be back in the road in Feb.  This was a rescheduled show, as 3 of the band members came down with COVID in Oct.  Glad that they seemed back in good form.  Not a huge, huge fan, but they are more or less a local group, and I thought I should check them out.  I actually saw them in 1989 or 1990 when they were just coming up the charts and they just tore it up back then.  They generally are a bit more raucous live than on their albums...

I think I saw Scofield is coming back to Toronto soon, but I was pretty underwhelmed the last time I saw him, so I will likely pass.

Pat LaBarbera has been coming through The Rex fairly regularly lately.  Neil Swainson is supposed to be in the group in mid-Dec., and I'll make an effort to get out to see them at least once.

[tranemonk]

This past weekend went back to the Regattabar (Cambridge MA) and saw Immanuel Wilkins and his quartet. The place reopened a few months ago. I forgot how outstanding the acoustics were there. He was outstanding. Very spiritual and understated. Highly recommended.

[jlhoots]

42 minutes ago, tranemonk said:

This past weekend went back to the Regattabar (Cambridge MA) and saw Immanuel Wilkins and his quartet. The place reopened a few months ago. I forgot how outstanding the acoustics were there. He was outstanding. Very spiritual and understated. Highly recommended.

I heard him in person earlier this year in Albuquerque. He & his quartet were excellent.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

1 hour ago, tranemonk said:

This past weekend went back to the Regattabar (Cambridge MA) and saw Immanuel Wilkins and his quartet. The place reopened a few months ago. I forgot how outstanding the acoustics were there. He was outstanding. Very spiritual and understated. Highly recommended.

It was closed for a long time. Did they renovate the club at all? Maybe put in some comfortable seats?

My first show isn't until next March 9th (Danilo Perez).

[tranemonk]

23 hours ago, bresna said:

It was closed for a long time. Did they renovate the club at all? Maybe put in some comfortable seats?

My first show isn't until next March 9th (Danilo Perez).

No renovation. It looks and feels the exact same... Really crowded. Some of the same waitresses even. But I still love the acoustics and the sight lines.