Lights

We're in Melbourne and we seem particularly unlucky for jazz or classical music. But there's White Night. It's all the rage here, a Saturday night public light show like Canberra's Enlighten, but just one big night (7pm-7am). The roads were closed off in the centre of town, 0.6 million people or so milled around, there were stabbings at one station and a drug emergency at an associated festival, but mostly mild and reportedly well received by visitors. We didn't find too many light shows where we walked, we enjoyed and dodged big crowds and walked the middle of main streets and found a few people to chat to. As these things are, people looked mostly dazed and somewhat under-/over-whelmed. We caught a few bands, not least the John Morrison Big Band. They were playing very recognisable standards with an easy swing - nicely done if not too adventurous (think Pensylvannia 6-5000). I was standing beside the stage (it was loud out front!) and met Alexandra by asking if she played music. Yes, alto sax. How easy it is to recognise lurking musos! Alexandra plays with the Australian Youth Band (concert and big band). We both enjoyed the easy professionalism of it all. Otherwise guitarists or keys with midi, blues feels, Piazzolla, dancers. And lots of people; given the high-rise residentials popping up around town, this is no surprise.

White Night was a city-wide light show entertainment in Melbourne. The John Morrison Big Band performed amongst many others.

Caught in passing (DHJF-8)

There were several acts that I just caught for a few tunes and here they are, in jazz historical order. Firstly the older, New Orleans era bands, then into swing, modern swing and verging into world.

Tuba Skinny were authentic creole from New Orleans. Attractive music, attractive players and not a smirk amongst them. In fact, fewer smiles than your everyday New Orleans funeral march. Perhaps it was a big opportunity lost to tour the world, play Sydney, and have it rained out. Whatever, this was cool early blues and jazz if alienating. TS are Todd Winfield Newton Burdick III (tuba), Kiowa Wells (guitar, vocals), Erika Lewis (vocals), Barnabus Jones (trombone), Robin Rapuzzi (washboard), Shaye Cohn (trumpet).

Geoff Bull’s Olympia Jazz band was genuine trad and featured a visiting New Orleanean with a joyful presence. Tunes were oldies but goodies like All of me and I ain’t got nobody. Topsy Chapman was the visitor with Geoff Bull (trumpet) but I didn’t get any other names.

John Morrison’s Swing City performed with a range of singers. I caught a reappearance of Topsy Chapman and Frank Bennett and missed a string of others.

Marty Mooney played with a fairly early swing-cum-bop feel. I remember Perdido and blues but they also performed Twisted, which I know best from Joni Mitchell but which dates back to a Wardell Grey solo that was vocalised by Annie Ross. Congrats especially to Matt McMahon and Ben Waples for some excellent solos. Marty Mooney (tenor) played with Matt McMahon (piano), Ben Waples (bass) and Dave Hibbard (drums).

Craig Scott presented a classic post-bop set that swung hard with great playing by bass and all round. Craig Scott (bass) played with Warwick Alder (trumpet), Paul Cutlan (sax), Tim Fisher (piano) and I missed the drummer’s name.

George Golla is of the same era as Craig Scott and they played together with John Morrison for a trio set. Good playing and truly a blast from the ‘80s past for me. George Golla (guitar) with Craig Scott (bass) and John Morrison (drums).

Guy Strazz(ullo) was last but not least. I’d been waiting to catch him for some time. This band was just thrown together at short notice (30-mins rehearsal that morning) so the worldly originals were limited and they played a few standards. I remember the originals as gentle, flowing, latin numbers that suited the wet weather but would excel for cocktails with offended girlfriends [joke alert]. Nicely understated and lyrical. Guy Strazzullo (guitar) performed with Aaron Flowers (guitar), Cameron Undy (bass) and Andy Stewart (drums).

Floriade (Too much on, 1)

There’s been so much jazz on recently it’s impossible to hear everything. If you have broader interests (film, theatre, poetry, politics), it’s literally impossible. Yesterday I managed a visit to my luthier, then catch James Morrison at Floriade, and AFATM at Folkus, and missed John Mackey’s Saxessions at the Street Theatre due to a family booking. It’s been like that all this week and looks like continuing for some time. Blame it on Spring and our prolific Jazz School, but also on our intelligent and surprisingly prolific little city, Canberra.

James Morrison was playing for Floriade, and it was a magnificent, sunny day. Floriade is a mass of colour in people and flowers, and it’s featuring plenty of jazz through the weeks. Today was James Morrison and band with Emma Pask at Stage88. I hadn’t heard JM for decades, so I was interested. When I arrived I found a huge PA and a fabulous band comprising some of the best musos in Australia. This is not challenging music, so they seemed a bit underutilised. But it’s always good to hear this quality, even if they’re playing Bye bye blackbird or Route 66 or (I shudder) Tea for two. They even took requests at one stage. At least I liked Shadow of your smile: it really is very beautiful. Blaine Whittaker is a favourite of mine, and he played some lovely bop-influenced solos on Cherokee and elsewhere. James Muller never looks interested (even in artful contexts like Mothership Orchestra) but he was continually throwing in little blissbomb fills, as is his way. He never seems to take long solos, but you just melt when you hear his lines: lithe, smooth, inevitable, chromatic, dissonant, he’s truly international. Phil Stack is a great player, and did a wonderful job on everything, although rather tamer than the session with Zac Hurren recently at Hippo. Emma Pask sang strongly, was a pleasant character, and did some very good Ella-style scat. James Morrison was excellent of course as the multi-instrumentalist (trumpet, trombone, piano on the day) with Dizzy-ingly fast (and authentic) bop lines and high notes. John, his brother, played drums. Emma and James had a droll patter going for the masses, and it gets them good work. Overall, it was pretty soft, but wonderfully played. Just the thing for people who don’t really follow jazz. They certainly went down well on the day. So, madly professional and capable, but tame.

James Morrison wasn’t the only music in the park. On the way in, I heard Dan and Debbie playing a sugu from Mali on various African drums. Sounded great, as African drum patterns do. They were obviously enjoying their performance. Presumably, the sugu is a pretty complex rhythm to maintain, because they beamed when they finished it. I also caught that lovely Australia Fair Street Organ that appears in Canberra each year for Floriade. It’s an antique bellow-driven organ with tunes controlled by complex paper rolls very much like big pianola rolls. It’s uber-cute, and it has a fabulous repertoire of show tunes stacked away in shelves. Catch it if you can, or perhaps buy the CD! You can only fall in love with this puffy blast from the past.