Celebrating the Joy of Jazz
Lemsford Jazz Club welcomed back The Stackyard Stompers on Sunday, 2nd August, for a rip roaring session of 1920’s/30’s jazz, including Clarence Williams “Candy Lips”.
Perhaps lesser known than “Baby Won’t You Please Come Home”, “Sister Kate”, “Royal Garden Blues” but easily up to “You Rascal You” standards with Christine on trombone!
Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
(Photos & YouTubes © Peter M Butler, Jazz&Jazz)
I had no sooner invited Grace McKee to paint another jazz portrait for Jazz&Jazz than she sent me this masterpiece of Wynton Marsalis. And with good reason. Her daughter Sharon has interviewed Wynton several times over the years.
“Through his amazing music, Wynton Marsalis has helped get a younger generation of fans interested in jazz. I’ve been lucky enough to see him perform Jazz At Lincoln Center numerous time. And as talented as he is, he has remained humble throughout the years.”
Sharon Carpenter
Broadcast Journalist, NY
Jazz& Jazz featured Wynton in concert with Eric Clapton on Jazz&Jazz a while back: https://www.jazzandjazz.com/?p=4436.
will star at
Ramsgate Seaside Shuffle Festival
10th, 11th & 12th July, 2015
Jazz Painting and Portrait of Annie Hawkins on Bass
My jazz portrait of Annie Hawkins depicts her guest starring with Sammy Rimington’s International Jazz Band. Thrillingly vivacious, Australian born Annie might be petite but she is a virtuoso jazz artiste. She has been described as “driving yet sensitive” and “Europe’s first lady of the double bass!” Annie moved to Britain in 1962, working with Ken Colyer in the 1970s and then with Sammy Rimington.
Not only I was thrilled to present my jazz painting and portrait to Annie at the 2011 Autumn Jazz Parade in Hemsby where she made a surprise visit to play with the Rae Brothers New Orleans Jazz Band, I was over the moon with her oh so typically effusive display of delight! Thank you, Annie, for your kind comments.
Fine art print of the jazz portrait of Annie.
Annie Hawkins on Bass
All eyes on Annie
Bass virtuoso supreme
Her resonant performance
Any Jazz fan’s dream.
Fine Art Giclée Prints of this portrait are available, with or without my descriptive poem. Simply email: [email protected] to place your order and help support jazz.
Following her portrait of Nina Simone, Grace McKee chose Ella Fitzgerald for her second equally sublime jazz painting.
Two wonderful portraits in quick succession after, having seen her work, I “challenged” Grace to paint jazz musicians. One meaning of sublime is “very great excellence of beauty” – indeed a highly appropriate description for “The First Lady of Song”!
Thank you Grace for adding female charm and beauty to Jazz&Jazz.
Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
… and especially in East Kent! After all, that’s where the adventures began all those years ago in the late 1950s and early 60s. My oldest school chum is also a keen jazz fan which is great because he lives in Kent and whenever I visit we take in local jazz. Plus I still have my spies strategically placed throughout the region who keep me posted on events.
Brian Summers is one of my chief under cover agents and when he gets scoops he sends them to me to share on Jazz&Jazz. So here is his very latest scoop – one of Kent’s favourite jazzmen, Burt Butler with his Jazz Pilgrims captured on YouTube at Faversham’s Car Classic Car Show in May!
Photo courtesy of Brian Summers. Be sure to watch Brian’s YouTube below. The musicians’ names are listed at the end.
So with no further ado, because in Kent they prefer their jazz to their ado (particularly another friend who recently moved from Gillingham to Faversham), here is Brian’s YouTube. Thank you Brian! Fee on the way when paymaster permits!
Portrait of Burt
And, as an aside, I simply couldn’t let this go without including my portrait of Burt which I painted of him when the Jazz Pilgrims played in The Duke of Cumberland in Whitstable. Nowadays they play regularly in Whitstable’s Two Brewers – sounds altogether more appropriate in more ways than one!
Peter M Butler
Spymaster & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
Jazz portrait of Hugh Masekela at The Royal Festival Hall
My jazz portrait of South African jazz musician Hugh Masekela captures him on flugelhorn at the Royal Festival Hall during the 2010 London Jazz Festival.
His powerful performance of his anti-repression composition “The Coal Train” – described as
“a rousing expression of resistance and celebration of the human spirit” – brought the house
down and inspired the acrylic portrait.
I produce Fine Art Giclée Prints of my portraits and as I tend to write poems inspired by the paintings, if preferred, I can include the poems on the Giclée prints as below.
Fine art print of jazz portrait of Hugh Masekela performing The Coal Train
Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
Years ago Dr Grace Clements came to my rescue in my crazy college days when I pitched out of a top bunk and fractured bones in my hand. She patched me up brilliantly. Just last year Grace (now surname McKee) and I caught up with each other through a College Reunion and I discovered her new found talent as an artist. I’ll let Grace tell her story.
Grace chose Nina Simone, star of jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel and pop.
“I started painting about eight years ago. In a way art is related to my former career as a cytopathologist – looking at beautifully-coloured cells down a microscope! I have always loved drawing so painting seemed to be the next step. My favourite medium is oil although I do play with watercolours as well. I enjoy painting still life, landscapes, portraits and figurative work. If what I see is beautiful I have to paint it! I am really excited about being shortlisted for the Wildlife Artist of the Year and having my bison painting exhibited at the Mall Galleries in London at the end of the month.”
Grace has since taken an interest in Alan Bateman’s and my jazz portraits featured on Jazz&Jazz. So I “challenged” her to join us and paint a jazz portrait herself.
She chose Nina Simone, singer, songwriter, pianist and star of jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel and pop. Upon seeing the portrait I suggested her next subject should be Ella Fitzgerald. She has already sent me the work in progress. It’s good!
Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
PS Congratulations, Grace, on being shortlisted for Wildlife Artist of the Year. I got very close in to a Wildlife Artist award once upon a time:
“I’ve been planning to paint Acker for a few months now and wanted to convey this particular image of him grinning whilst playing the clarinet after something has amused him,
which is how I’ll remember him.
“Acker’s concerts were always a light hearted affair and he got as much enjoyment from making the audience laugh with his dry sense of humour as he did from playing jazz. I’m particularly proud that this painting is going to Acker’s family because as you may or may not be aware, Acker, as well as being a great clarinet player, was also a superb artist.”
Alan Bateman
Thank you for allowing me to include your wonderful portrait of Acker on Jazz&Jazz, Alan. Below is one of Acker’s landscapes as featured on Ian’s moving YouTube Tribute to Acker.
Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
With kind permission of Ian and Alan Bateman
Tony Cunningham
With a waistcoat like that, just how could I resist accepting Tony Cunningham’s commission to paint his portrait on trombone. Thank you for the opportunity Tony and for the wonderful session with Jazz Revisited at Lemsford Jazz Club.
Tony Cunningham Trombonist
Waistcoat a’sparkle
Trombone ablaze
A glint in his eyes
His jazz fans amazed.
With Jazz Revisited at Lemsford Jazz Club
Sam Hall’s “Jazz Revisited” at Lemsford Jazz Club, Hertfordshire.
Sam Hall (bjo); Dave Arnold (dms); John Bayne (bass sax); Dave Marchant (tpt);
Chris Rundle (bass); Tony Cunningham (tbn); Cliff Davy (pno)
Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz
(Photos & YouTube © Peter M Butler, Jazz&Jazz)
Fine Art Giclée Prints of this portrait are available.
Simply email: [email protected]
to place your order and help support jazz.
