Early in February, 2012, I painted Esther O’Connor’s portrait. The daughter of Graeme Duffin, initially a jazz musician and later the bassist with Wet, Wet, Wet, Esther is now a singer/songwriter with the Glasgow based group Ashton Lane.

Esther emailed me about their latest album “One Kiss Later”. Ashton Lane are totally independent with their own cottage industry in Glasgow where they make all their music and handle all their promotions themselves…“no big label etc”

So the support of folks who enjoy their music is absolutely crucial and Esther contacted me to ask whether I could announce on Jazz&Jazz their special promo offer for their latest album
“One Kiss Later” for free.

Please use this link: https://ashtonlane.clickfunnels.com/freealbum

I can assure you, the album is great!

To request information about Ashton Lane’s 2017 Tour please email: [email protected]

And now my portrait of Esther

Photo © Peter M Butler, Jazz&Jazz

Link to the original Jazz& Jazz post featuring the portrait. 

A Fine Art Print of the portrait was stolen soon after I displayed it along with a number of my other portraits and landscapes. I took that as a good omen, Esther.

Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz

Simon Spillett (© Peter M Butler, Jazz&Jazz)

Award winner Simon Spillett plays fund-raiser for the
National Jazz Archive

The Simon Spillett Quartet is playing a fund-raising concert for the National Jazz Archive on the afternoon of 11 February in Loughton, Essex.

Simon Spillett is a highly respected tenor saxophonist who plays in a wide range of groups, and leads his own quartet. He has researched and written extensively about the great British tenor sax player Tubby Hayes, including a widely praised biography ‘The Long Shadow of the Little Giant’. He has recently received the British Jazz Award for ‘Services to British Jazz’.

Alec Dankworth

John Critchinson

Clark Tracey

Simon’s all-star quartet features three other wonderful musicians – John Critchinson, piano, Alec Dankworth, double bass, and Clark Tracey, drums. Both Alec and Clark were also award winners in the 2016 British Jazz Awards in their respective categories. John Critchinson has had a distinguished career playing with leading jazz groups and now leads the Ronnie Scott Legacy band.

This concert is one of a series during 2017 to raise funds to support the work of the Loughton-based National Jazz Archive.

Simon said: “It’s a pleasure to bring my quartet to play at Loughton to help raise funds for the National Jazz Archive. It’s a wonderful resource for everyone interested in the history and development of jazz in this country.”

The venue for the concert is Loughton Methodist Church, 260 High Road, Loughton, Essex IG10 1RB, close to the Archive’s home in Loughton Library, where there is extensive parking, 1 km from Loughton Station on the Central Line, and served by numerous bus routes.

The concert starts at 2.30pm and tickets cost £15.

For details and to book tickets, visit:
www.nationaljazzarchive.org.uk/events
email: [email protected]
Tel: 020 8502 4701. 

For media enquiries contact: Nick Clarke 020 8502 4701

[email protected]

National Jazz Archive, Loughton Library, Traps Hill, Loughton, Essex IG10 1HD

www.nationaljazzarchive.org.uk
www.facebook.com/nationaljazzarchive

The National Jazz Archive is a registered charity based in Loughton Library in Essex. It was founded by Digby Fairweather, and holds the UK’s finest collection of written, printed and visual material on jazz, blues and related music, from 1919 to the present day. The Archive holds more than 4000 reference books, specialist periodicals and bulletins spanning over 600 titles, archival material, artwork, ephemera and photographs. It is open on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 10am to 1pm.

The Archive received a Heritage Lottery Fund grant in 2011 that supported a
three-year access development project enabling the collection to be fully conserved and catalogued for the first time. Significant items have been digitised and are now accessible online. A second grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund was made in 2015 for an ‘Intergenerational Jazz Reminiscence’ project, and work on this 18-month project started at the beginning of 2016.

www.nationaljazzarchive.org.uk

Simon Spillett
Described by the late Humphrey Lyttelton as “formidable”, Simon Spillett is a British jazz saxophonist who leads his own quartet featuring John Critchinson (piano), Alec Dankworth (bass) and Clark Tracey (drums). He has won several awards for his music, including the tenor saxophone category of the British Jazz Awards (2011), Jazz Journal magazine’s Critic’s Choice CD of the Year (2009), Rising Star in the BBC Jazz Awards (2007) and most recently the Services to British Jazz Award in the 2016 British Jazz Awards.

Other celebrated jazz leaders and bands with whom he has worked have included Sir John Dankworth, Stan Tracey, Peter King and The Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra. He has recorded three albums, ‘Introducing Simon Spillett’ (Woodville Records, 2007), ‘Sienna Red’ (Woodville Records, 2008) and ‘Square One’ (Gearbox Records, 2013), all of which have received highly favourable reviews in both the specialist and national press. His festival, concert and club appearances across the UK have included sold-out gigs at Ronnie Scott’s and the Brecon Jazz Festival and he has broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s Jazz-Line Up with his own band.

He has also worked as a writer, penning the definitive biography of UK jazz legend Tubby Hayes (‘The Long Shadow of the Little Giant’, Equinox) and articles for magazines including Jazz Journal and Record Collector. Acting as a consultant for a number of jazz record labels, he has written booklet essays for over 90 albums.

www.simonspillett.com

In 2004 David Ellis interviewed Chris Barber at the then Chester Gateway Theatre.
David asked me if I would like feature his interviews on Jazz&Jazz as a follow up
to his interview with Acker Bilk.

David was writing freelance theatre previews and reviews back then and Chris made him feel totally at ease during the interview. David says “So affable was he that it was as though we had been acquainted for years.”

This photo was taken in one of the dressing rooms of the Gateway theatre, Chester, in 2004.

David had the opportunity of interviewing Chis again a year later during the interval. “Chris gave me the whole of his time when he could have been taking a well-earned break in the concert. A lovely, down to earth man and one of the legends of jazz. During the interview you can hear the late Pat Halcox ‘doing a bit of practice next door'”.

My wife and I found Chris his usual affable self when he spent time talking to us after a concert in Wyllyots Theatre, Potters Bars, in 2014. He always makes a point of meeting and spending time with his fans. Here is a YouTube which I filmed from way back in “The Gods” on that occasion.

Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz

(YouTube © Peter M Butler, Jazz&Jazz)
Interviews © David Ellis

Alain Piarou and the Action Jazz Team, France, emailed Jazz&Jazz with
New Year’s Greetings and best wishes for 2017 for all our followers.

http://qbso.r.a.d.sendibm1.com/1q8ndctrg5vf.html

Action Jazz can be contacted at: [email protected]

Heartily reciprocated, Alain!

Peter M Butler
Editor & Proprietor Jazz&Jazz