Chris Laurence at Lauderdale House Photo credit: Andrew Laurence

Chris Laurence Quartet

(Lauderdale House, 30 May 2019. Review by Lauren Bush)

The gathering of regular attendees at Lauderdale House in North London may or may not know just how lucky they are to have access to such a gaggle of great musicians in their little local museum and bassist Chris Laurence’s quartet was no exception to the stream of talent that crosses the threshold there.

Featured in his quartet were Martin France on drums, John Parricelli on guitar, and Frank Ricotti on the vibraphone. It’s clear they’ve all been friends for years having played in many different configurations as sidemen and session musicians, and they would have all stumbled into the same bands at one point or another, working with the likes of Kenny Wheeler, John Surman, John Taylor, etc. Having Laurence come and lead his friends playing some of their favourite songs was a real treat for all.

Frank Ricotti, Chris Laurence, Martin France and John Parricelli Photo credit: Andrew Laurence

The setlist for the night was a collaboration as well, as Laurence announced each one with a different mood, a collection of tunes they’d either played together through the years or brought from their respective other bands to try, as with Little Jump by Lars Danielsson, Mixing by Airto Moreira and even a tune by Parricelli. Kenny Wheeler’s compositions filled most of the rest of the night and rightly so; a throwback for these guys, having all played with him through the years, the familiarity of relationships and the music were felt throughout the room and they were obviously having a ball. Many of the tunes had odd meters, which Laurence was kind enough to share with the audience, noting that some people find it hard to tap their toe to a tune that floats between 9/8 and 6/8 time!

Each piece allowed for each musician to improvise but the routine did not feel repetitious. As an audience member, it felt as though we’d been let into the studio during a top notch recording and we’d all been witness to the joy and exhilaration that these masters share.

LINK: Jazz In The House at Lauderdale House