Birthday

This was Geoff's Jazz at Smiths and it was a special celebration, of the wonder of the long-standing band Wanderlust, and also the long-standing trumpeter who brought it together around 35 years ago in Sydney, Miroslav Bukovsky.  Anyone who knows Miro loves him so this was a special event.  And Wanderlust is such a perfect name for the music they play.  The tunes virtually were all by Wanderlust, often by Miro himself, and they were expansive, with only 9 tunes over two sets totalling about 2 hours.   So there was time to explore, another aspect of good travel.  But most obvious were the tunes themselves that spoke of a wide world, one samba in 3, one mambo, one from Burundi, one speaking to South Africa and Nelson Mandela, a final one just called Peace please, which speaks to all time and very much to now.  There was one cover, astonishingly called Wanderlust by Duke Ellington, a far more relaxed, luxuriant tune with nothing like the exploratory quest of this band, but still superbly lovely, as Ellington just is.  The band was superb, of course, understated, easily spoken, intriguing in harmony and melody, and settling into the most immersive grooves.  Which reminds me of a discovery I made listening to Miro's compositions, that trumpeters play melody so beautifully and thus write lovely melodies.  I guess it's related to the harmonic series that's the nature of technique on brass.  If not recorded already (surely it must be!) I reckon there's a PhD in that.  So this was all good nature, a party surrounded by admirers and friends and wonderful good will.  It's a memory for the ages from a band lasting ages.  Dry wit and so much joy.  Happy birthday for Miro's 80th and long may Wanderlust and the wanderlust remain.

Wanderlust performed at Smiths for Geoff's Jazz and Miro's 90th birthday.  Wanderlust are Miroslav Bukovsky (trumpet, flugelhorn), John Mackey (tenor), Alister Spence (piano, keyboards), Jeremy Sawkins (guitar), Fabian Hevia (percussion) and Lachlan Coventry (bass, guitar) with guest Tom Fell (baritone, soprano saxes).  They were joined by Alex Raupach (trumpet) and Richard Johnson (bass clarinet) for some final tunes.