Guitarist/composer Billy Marrows recorded his debut album with the 12-piece chamber-jazz ensemble A Grande Família in the summer of 2023 as a surprise for his mother Penny during her struggle with pancreatic cancer. The album was released in her memory at the end of January 2024. All proceeds from the album are going to World Child Cancer. The launch concert is at Pizza Express Jazz Club on 13 May 2024. Interview by Sam Norris.

LondonJazz News: ‘A Grande Familia’, means means ‘a big family’ in Portuguese. There are some of your family in the band, is that right?

Billy Marrows: Yes- the bass player is my cousin Jonas (Mbanu) and he is one of my earliest musical influences. Even when I first started guitar aged 12 he would come round my house and play great music, like John McLaughlin. He’s seven years older than me and he has an amazing knowledge of jazz and jazz fusion- stuff like Steve Coleman. I remember he made me a big folder of CDs with albums by Steve Coleman, Allan Holdsworth, Weather Report and Wayne Krantz. His solo at the start of the title track is one of my favourite moments- the feel is so nice and he crafts such melodic phrases through difficult harmonies.

His niece Dijan Mbanu, who had just done her GCSEs at the time of recording, is also featured on flute, as is my girlfriend Teresa Macedo Ferreira on viola. The reason it’s such a family affair is because in April last year, about three weeks after my mum got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, my aunt’s children decided they were going to organise for their families to come and stay in my parents’ village in North Yorkshire. So we all played some music for my mum on Easter Sunday- I wrote one tune and we played a Hermeto Pascoal tune. That’s when I had the idea to record more music for my mum.

LJN: Is Hermeto Pascoal a big influence on your composing?

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BM: I wouldn’t say he’s my number one influence, but definitely quite a big one. I love Brazilian music but also his melodies are incredible. I like things that have quirky, catchy little melodies. I remember feeling that my melodies were sometimes a bit square- I once looked at some of the tunes I’d written for my quartet and I realised that a lot of them had melodies that started on beat one! So with this larger ensemble I was consciously trying to make things a bit asymmetrical without making it weird for the sake of it. A lot of the melodies I wrote for this album started with me singing or improvising, so coming from more of an intuitive emotional place rather than thinking about it too hard.

LJN: The record feels totally coherent. Are there common musical ideas which run through it?

BM: I had a setlist in mind before recording the album, so some of the tunes are written to lead into each other. Certain tunes I almost thought of as ‘siblings’ because they have similar thematic material but have different feels. I was inspired by Darcy James Argue’s Brooklyn Babylon, which has a lot of themes which arc over the whole album. Six of the tunes were recorded in one session, and my mum was able to hear them. They were the three large ensemble pieces (‘Nights are Drawing In’, ‘A Grande Familia’ and ‘L’Heroïsme’), the trio with Gustavo and Angus (‘Lambs’), the duo piece with me and Teresa (‘February [Anjo]) and a solo guitar piece, ‘Shenandoah’.

LJN: That solo piece is a really intimate moment.

BM: We did that in one take. It was right at the end of the session and we didn’t really have time, so I just had to play something, because I really wanted that song on the album. But for me it’s not really about every minute detail being perfect. I’ve enjoyed embracing the human aspect of it, particularly for this album because we did it all in one room, sat in a circle without headphones. I don’t like large ensemble records that sound too polished- there’s something I love about, say, Charlie Haden’s Liberation Orchestra, with all those strong personalities together.

LJN: One of the other guitar solo pieces, ‘Be Right Bold’, feels different in tone from some of the other tracks. A little bluesier and earthier.

BM: I purposely put that in a place where it’s a little different to the tracks around it. It comes after the duet, and it’s mastered a little louder than the rest of the album. I remember asking Alex Bonney (mix/master engineer) whether he thought it was too loud when we first listened back, but he said he thought it suited the effect of the tune. The sound works with the title, ‘Be Right Bold’, which is an expression that my grandad said to my mum to give her confidence when she was unsure about doing something. She used to say it to me too! So I really wanted to have a piece which was a bit more strident- it’s quite inspired by Wayne Krantz.

LJN: You released the first single ‘A Grande Familia’ in time for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

BM: That’s right. I was doing everything quite fast to meet that deadline. But it can help with the creative process to not have too much time. There are things which looking back I think ‘how did we get all that done in time?’, bearing in mind how long things can often take when making an album.

LJN: All the cover art- for the album and the singles- was created by your mum, is that right?

BM: My mum was a talented painter and drawer, but her work wasn’t exhibited much. It feels really nice albeit a bit sad that lots more people are seeing these artworks through the album and single covers. We actually decided on some of the pictures we were going to use when she was still alive.

LJN: All the proceeds from the record are going to World Child Cancer. What made you choose that charity?

BM: When my mum was ill, she felt really grateful for all the services she had access to. The local doctor and nurses came round a lot to help her to manage her pain and the occupational therapist helped her get a downstairs shower installed for free. It got my mum thinking how many people around the world with cancer are less fortunate, so I thought about donating the money we made from selling the record to a cancer charity. I heard about World Child Cancer on the radio and their appeal was really moving- I learned that only 10% of children who get cancer in developing countries are cured, compared with 80% in developed countries. Their cause seemed so necessary and they work in several countries around the world, so I thought it would be great to contact them about the album.

Sam Norris is a London-based saxophonist, composer and writer.

In memory of Penny Marrows 1951-2023

LINK: Tickets for the album launch at Pizza Express Jazz Club, Soho on 13 May / (Sold out/ Returns Only)
Penelope on Bandcamp
Billy Marrows’ website
World Child Cancer