Mick Collins’ Legacy Jazz Orchestra What better way to ring in the New Year than spend an evening with an all swinging big band, blowing the hottest and coolest jazz in town. In the words of Alfred Lord Tennyson the Mick Collins’ Legacy orchestra rang out wild bells, or in this case shiny brass instruments, before a highly appreciative audience at a South
Live at the Beaverwood Club It’s not often you hear the greatest band in the world playing for your delectation only a few feet away and practically on your doorstep. How could this happen and who in blazes are we talking about? Well it was the night guitarist, singer and songwriter Aynsley Lister held court with his trio at the Beaverwood Club, Chislehurst (December 3,
STILL MOTOR BIKING...SPEDDING IN THE SPOTLIGHT Iconic guitarist Chris Spedding celebrated his remarkable career in music with a splendid 50th Anniversary concert in London on June 29. He performed with a special All-Star group and also took part in a Face to Face Question and Answer session with Melody Maker’s Chris Welch in front of a large and appreciative audience. Fans had come from as
We were sad to hear of the death of Roy Carr, one of the NME’s most popular and influential writers during the 1970s and 1980s, who also contributed to the MM, Uncut and Vox. Roy, a jolly, outgoing personality, blended his enthusiasm for many strands of popular music with a sly, witty humour. He championed many newly arrived artists, notably Bruce Springsteen and Elton John
RADIO 3 JAZZ JAMS One of the best jazz record programmes on air is Geoffrey Smith's 'Jazz' on BBC Radio 3. Tune in at midnight on Saturdays to be treated to a succession of profiles of some of the finest performers from the golden age of swing to bop. Most recent was a show devoted to the recordings made by Billie Holiday and Lester Young
Wailing at the Pizza Express When Pete Lemer recorded Local Colour in 1966 he could hardly have believed it would be celebrated 52 years later with the re-release of his critically acclaimed album and a triumphant ‘live’ performance. Yet, when Peter sat at the Steinway grand on stage at the Pizza Express jazz club on a cold February night, (21/02/18) he was warmed by the
"It's getting rather monotonous to say that Jon Hiseman played the greatest drum solo of his career at Colosseum’s last gig. But the music Jon played on drums at the Lyceum, London on Sunday, was breathtaking. It may be unfair to single out the drum solo from a long concert of brilliant band playing, but Jon’s performance was unique. From the construction point of view
Sad to see the demise of the New Musical Express in its print edition, the last one appearing on March 9th 2018. By coincidence The Raver recently acquired a copy of their 10th Anniversary Souvenir Book, full of fascinating fax’n’info, as sub-editors used to proudly boast. Our diligent research reveals the first issue appeared on March 7, 1952, edited by Ray Sonin, a former Melody
The group combines the talents of former Humble Pie guitar supremo Clem Clempson, bass player and singer Mark Clarke and drummer extraordinaire Jon Hiseman. All former members of Colosseum, their debut album Heroes is released by Repertoire in April on vinyl and CD and has already been hailed by critics as ‘amazing.’ They are off on tour soon, so check out dates and details on
Drama or music? Bromley High Street used to boast a cosy venue called the Little Theatre, that earnestly put on plays by Arnold Wesker and Harold Pinter. The much grander Churchill Theatre that was its replacement, is still an important venue for theatrical productions. But apart from Dicken’s Great Expectations, most of 2018’s line up of shows are Retro music orientated. Pause for breath. They
