News, reviews, features and comment from the London jazz scene and beyond

Jazz crops up in all sorts of places on the BBC. It’s great quality, but it’s unpredictable. I’m generally considered very news-hound-dog diligent, but even I simply can’t keep up with all […]

NEWS: Nick Mulvey (above) is hanging out with a new label. The Portico Quartet’s Myspace site confirms that the band has moved to WOMAD/Peter Gabriel’s Real World label. Their first album, Knee-Deep […]

Another sad departure, last Thursday, of Dayton OH- born, but iconic Californian alto saxophonist Bud Shank. He was 82. Here’s an obituary from the Washington Post, and an extended piece from Doug […]

I’ve just read a long CD review of a live recording from German band Shreefpunk (above) on Ian Mann’s Jazz Mann site, and I’m enjoying sound clips from the band’s Myspace site […]

Thoughts/quotes about music, and about fifty ways to lose your freedom, from Masekela speaking on the occasion of his 70th Birthday at the Cape Town Jazz Festival. Here’s the first bit of […]

Blogs I follow….. Just on my way to a journalists’ dinner in Oxford…..I’ve made a few new additions to my list (way down there on the right) of interesting blogs: 1) Sunday […]

A fourfold message, and a request to sign a PETITION comes from Swedish guitar legend Ulf Wakenius “Support Swedish Music!Sign the Appeal.Say no to closing down the platforms for Jazz,Folk and Classic […]

I look around for stories, but on Fridays all I seem to get is soundbites. People shorten their message to a few words. They have their say, nurdle off for the weekend, […]

Fine Canadian flugelhornist and trumpeter Ingrid Jensen is at Ronnie’s on April 10th and 11th as the support for guitarist Pat Martino. But I spy with my eagle eye that Richard Turner […]

Health warning: Eric Dolphy and Ornette fans please look away. This video is unreconstructed trad. Absolutely no altered chords, extensions or tritone substitutes were used in making it. Pete Churchill tells the […]

I was talking today to Nucleus veteran, drummer Trevor Tomkins (bottom right on the album cover above) about his free Monday night April gigs at the Coach and Horses in Isleworth, every […]

Why on earth did she used to be called Zonk (see 5) Looking at the next few weeks gigs, there is masses which can potentially catch the eye. 1) A voice and […]

Hampton…Kingston..Teddington..Richmond has its own scene. Loads of musicians live in the area.The best local listing comes from tiny kindly dynamo Janet McCunn. She sends out an email listing, and updates it. To […]

I suggest you listen to the most intelligent and honest record plug I have ever heard. A Podcast of Troyka – it’s just under 5 minutes of interesting talk and of samples […]

John Escreet/The Story at the Con Cellar Bar, Monday March 16thReview by Steve Plumb On Monday nights, the Con Cellar Bar in Camden brings rising jazz talent to an enthusiastic listening audience. […]