BEATS & PIECES BIG BAND - All In
Efpi Records FP022
Ben Cottrell : director; Anthony Brown, Sam Healey, Ben Watte : saxophones; Owen Bryce, Graham South, Nick Walters : trumpet; Ed Horsey, Simon Lodge, Rich McVeigh : trombone; Anton Hunter : guitar; Richard Jones : piano/Rhodes; Stewart Wilson : bass; Finlay Panter : drums
Recorded at Real World Studios, Wiltshire 13th-16th January 2014
I had the unexpected pleasure of seeing this band perform at the Marlborough Jazz Festival to a lunchtime crowd of 10 people back in 2010. Then as now, I couldn’t get over the enthusiasm, joy, energy and skill of this band. It seemed so sad that they were put on in a graveyard shift when this band is a true headliner.
All In is the band’s third album and is a passionate journey through the compositions of composer/bandleader Ben Cottrell. Himself an in-demand writer, this cut gives his ideas unrestricted full reign and realisation by a collective of friends and musicians.
The opening track Rocky is reminiscent of the early eighties band, the Vienna Art Orchestra coupled with the dense melodic writing of Frank Zappa. It is a combination of fanfare and wolf whistle and is an ideal opener for a gig; two minutes and fifty seconds of in-your-face music.
My favourite track Pop is up next and has such an optimistic quality in its harmonic accompaniment that it just travels forward in an outburst of happiness. It owes something to the big band versions of Pat Metheny’s music and is a wonderful vehicle for Nick Walters muted trumpet.
I have often enjoyed the music of Steve Reich and Philip Glass and wondered how it could work in a jazz context. Track 3: Rain is a piece of music that achieves its titular character through a use of repeated motifs, complex grooves, gentle harmonic inventions and a beautiful flugel melody. The first sparse orchestration of the album appears in the middle of this track and features a Patrick Hurley solo on the Fender Rhodes that is exploratory in its harmony and rhythm.
Havmann is a more acoustic affair with piano, double bass and a great deal more space for the band. The bravery of Graham South’s flugel solo is something to behold with its epic gaps between phrases. The track closes out with a Snarky Puppy style band soli dimming down to a muted brass coda.
Hendo - a new martial art or a weekend away for a bride-to-be? A latin inspired layering of grooves that moves into a 70’s detective thriller style soundtrack is primarily a vehicle for Sam Healey on soprano saxophone.
Bowie’s Let’s Dance is a trip back to the 1970’s and admirably show’s off the brass and the blending of the whole horn section. A little over production at the end adversely affects what is otherwise a good track.
Fairytale, like Cottrell's other compositions always tries to avoid the cliches such as the resolution of chords leaving a yearning quality. This track in comparison to the previous one is so under produced that you can hear just the band and nothing else. Every breath is audible and it is a real credit to the band to include a track of such honesty.
I hope this band carries on recording and performing and becomes a part of the the modern British jazz tradition. All Inrepresents a stunning collection of compositions that, on the whole achieve a great balance between composer, soloist and ensemble.
Reviewed by Andy Derrick
Efpi Records FP022
Ben Cottrell : director; Anthony Brown, Sam Healey, Ben Watte : saxophones; Owen Bryce, Graham South, Nick Walters : trumpet; Ed Horsey, Simon Lodge, Rich McVeigh : trombone; Anton Hunter : guitar; Richard Jones : piano/Rhodes; Stewart Wilson : bass; Finlay Panter : drums
Recorded at Real World Studios, Wiltshire 13th-16th January 2014
I had the unexpected pleasure of seeing this band perform at the Marlborough Jazz Festival to a lunchtime crowd of 10 people back in 2010. Then as now, I couldn’t get over the enthusiasm, joy, energy and skill of this band. It seemed so sad that they were put on in a graveyard shift when this band is a true headliner.
All In is the band’s third album and is a passionate journey through the compositions of composer/bandleader Ben Cottrell. Himself an in-demand writer, this cut gives his ideas unrestricted full reign and realisation by a collective of friends and musicians.
The opening track Rocky is reminiscent of the early eighties band, the Vienna Art Orchestra coupled with the dense melodic writing of Frank Zappa. It is a combination of fanfare and wolf whistle and is an ideal opener for a gig; two minutes and fifty seconds of in-your-face music.
My favourite track Pop is up next and has such an optimistic quality in its harmonic accompaniment that it just travels forward in an outburst of happiness. It owes something to the big band versions of Pat Metheny’s music and is a wonderful vehicle for Nick Walters muted trumpet.
I have often enjoyed the music of Steve Reich and Philip Glass and wondered how it could work in a jazz context. Track 3: Rain is a piece of music that achieves its titular character through a use of repeated motifs, complex grooves, gentle harmonic inventions and a beautiful flugel melody. The first sparse orchestration of the album appears in the middle of this track and features a Patrick Hurley solo on the Fender Rhodes that is exploratory in its harmony and rhythm.
Havmann is a more acoustic affair with piano, double bass and a great deal more space for the band. The bravery of Graham South’s flugel solo is something to behold with its epic gaps between phrases. The track closes out with a Snarky Puppy style band soli dimming down to a muted brass coda.
Hendo - a new martial art or a weekend away for a bride-to-be? A latin inspired layering of grooves that moves into a 70’s detective thriller style soundtrack is primarily a vehicle for Sam Healey on soprano saxophone.
Bowie’s Let’s Dance is a trip back to the 1970’s and admirably show’s off the brass and the blending of the whole horn section. A little over production at the end adversely affects what is otherwise a good track.
Fairytale, like Cottrell's other compositions always tries to avoid the cliches such as the resolution of chords leaving a yearning quality. This track in comparison to the previous one is so under produced that you can hear just the band and nothing else. Every breath is audible and it is a real credit to the band to include a track of such honesty.
I hope this band carries on recording and performing and becomes a part of the the modern British jazz tradition. All Inrepresents a stunning collection of compositions that, on the whole achieve a great balance between composer, soloist and ensemble.
Reviewed by Andy Derrick
