

Celebrating the Joy of Jazz
“Now You Has Jazz, Jazz, Jazz” – John Petters Recordings
I don’t usually play my own tracks on Now You Has Jazz, Jazz, Jazz,
but at the request of Chris Hyde, the owner of Sound of Spitfire, I will be offering a chronological overview of my recordings.
This is not to blow my own trumpet or more to the point, bang my own drum, rather it is a celebration of the many unique musicians whom I’ve had the honour of working with over the past 40 years.
There will be tracks from my first vinyl LP in 1977 with my Dixie Seven, on to Stealin’ Apples, the second LP in 1982 by my Swing Band, a session with Ken Colyer, an album with Humphrey Lyttelton, Wally Fawkes and Al Casey, a live concert recording with American clarinet virtuoso, Kenny Davern, a Dixieland session with American trumpet star, Yank Lawson, trio sessions with American Blues pianist Art Hodes, with reedmen Kenny Davern and Trevor Whiting and my first release on the New Orleans based Jazzology label.
Enjoy!
John Petters
`Meantime visit this recent Jazz&Jazz YouTube
“The Joint Is Jumping!“
Tune into Now You Has Jazz, Jazz, Jazz here: https://www.soundofspitfire.co.uk/
`On Friday, 2nd September, 2022 “Jazz in the Church” will be back for the first time since December, 2019, and will feature charismatic Saxophonist and Clarinetist Adrian Cox backed by Tom Kincaid on piano, Andy Crowdy on bass and Jack Cotterill on drums.
Venue: St John’s Church, Church Hill, Knutsford, WA16 6DH
Doors open at 19:00 with the show starting at 19:30 and
finishing at approximately 21:30.
Please bring your own drinks, plastic glasses will be provided.
Tickets are available via the link below. If for any reason the event has to be cancelled you will get a full refund.
TICKETS
Disabled access and facilities are available at the venue.
Wales-based FiddleBop plays Gypsy Jazz updated!
On violin, Spanish guitar, keyboard, and fretless bass.
“And we sing too, with four voices in harmony.“
FiddleBop’s jazz is sophisticated yet never pretentious or stuffy. It’s danceable but not rhythmically bland. Has plenty of improvised solos
but is tuneful and melodic.
We play jazz that’s drawn from all of the genres’ century-long history. Look forward to our unique beggars-in-velvet treatment of get-up-and-dance jazz from the 1920s (when “jazz was king”), 1930s chilli-hot swing, and bop and cool post-bop. Also jazz-flavoured classic pop, some folk-jazz, as well as our very own creations. All with Gypsy zing and passion!
Yes, FiddleBop plays Gypsy jazz – which was jointly created by Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli in 1930s Paris — updated for the 2020s.
And the “jazz-zing” bit? That’s the pizzazz and excitement that comes from loving what we play! And from being (ahem!) pretty good musicians.
All of which is why – please excuse us, we’re about to blow our own trumpet (and mix our own metaphors) – audiences love FiddleBop’s unique gypsy-tinged flavour of jazz music. Music which can be sweet, chilled, yet even mysterious at times. Such as:
Also music which, with its roots in the fiery Gypsy jazz tradition, is hot unto cooking. FiddleBop will get your feet stomping and your heart thumping (in a good way, of course) during:
FiddleBop is:
So how about having FiddleBop liven up your next event or party with some “Gypsy jazzing: updated”? We’re friendly, we don’t bite, and we cost less than you might think.
Why not check us out? Simply email us or phone us (01982 560726 / 07968 950870) for a quote.
On a scale of one to ten how can I rate the mind boggling
Disneyland Adventures of my very special jazz friend,
Sarah Spencer?
Best leave it to the star of the show herself.
So why not check her out on Facebook.
Meantime here is one of her Global Rambler’s “Covid Wary”
Combo YouTubes.
Recorded by Sarah Spencer’s Global Ramblers (“Our Music Is Infectious”): Sarah Spencer – vocal; John Service – trombone; Sarah Spencer – tenor saxophone; Hugh Crozier – piano;
Jim Swinnerton – string bass;
Jack Amblin – drums.
Composed by Robert Blackwell, McKinley Millet, 1958
We have a Paypal tip jar – Donations are gratefully accepted but not expected. All proceeds will be shared among those on the video. https://www.paypal.me/SarahSpencerTipJar
The Global Ramblers have a cd out. There are various ways to purchase it (including digital download). Visit Sarah for the details: https://sarahspencer.hearnow.com/
Peter M Butler
Jazz&Jazz.com
OLNEY JAZZ CLUB Carlton House Club Olney 8-10.30pm. Tickets £15 each [currently we are still restricting numbers]. Call 01604 858549 or email: [email protected] “Live Jazz…Use it or lose it!” **** **** **** Tuesday May 3rd Andy Dickens’ Hot Gumbo “Evoking the warmth and exuberance of Mardi Gras New Orleans, the jazz heat of Chicago and the excitement of New York Swing”. Featuring some top jazzmen from the south and south west of England: Andy Dickens [trumpet/vocals], Al Nichols [sax/clarinet], Mark Aston [baritone sax/trombone], Simon Picton [guitar/banjo], Brett Nevill [bass] and Richie Bryant [drums, ex Acker Bilk Band]. A great band….getting rave reviews…not to be missed! Tuesday June 7th Harlem Big Band Vintage big band jazz from New York in the late 1920’S and early 1930’s in the electrifying style of Duke Ellington, King Oliver, Cab Calloway, Fletcher Henderson, McKinney’s Cotton Pickers et al. Top trombonist and “Tricky Sam” stylist Bob Hunt has reformed the legendary Harlem, previously the creation of the late Paul Munnery. “The Cotton Club Revisited!”now directed by Bob Hunt and Michael Kilpatrick and featuring a host of highly respected jazz players! Trumpets: Mike Henry, Charles Manning, Wil Robinson. Trombones: Bob Hunt, Graham Woodhouse. Reeds: Zoltan Sagi, Richard Exall, Michael Kilpatrick. Piano: Art Toper. Guitar/Banjo: Rachel Hayward. Drums: Nick Ward. Vocals and Presentation: Sarah Spencer Tuesday July 5th The Alex Clarke/Clark Tracey Quartet Alex Clarke [sax/clarinet] Great young jazz talent..recent finalist in BBC Young Jazz Musician of the Year; Clark Tracey [internationally acclaimed jazz drummer], James Owston [awesome young bassist!] David Newton [legendary award winning pianist]. Jazz standards with a swinging and contemporary driving edge! THE JOINT IS JUMPIN’… LIVE JAZZ! USE IT OR LOSE IT! Copyright © 2022 Olney Jazz Club, All rights reserved. |
Here it is! The first FiddleBop newsletter since July 2019! A surprise, we’re sure! And we hope that it is a good one.
So… after a gap of nearly two years, how have you been? Whatever your story, here’s hoping that things have been OK for you. And that right now, you are well and happy.
OK. Maybe you’re not exactly thriving, and maybe you’re not exactly riotously mirthful (tho’ we’re pleased if you are). Because who is feeling great and who is doing brilliantly right now? (Excuse me while I turn off the lights and write this in the dark to save electricity. Also so that I can avert my eyes from UK and world news…).
Enough gloom! Let’s catch up with the FiddleBop news.
And you’ll surely recall that FiddleBop version 1 — very sadly — came to an end shortly after we moved to Wales. Boo-hoo!
Yet just as the glorious phoenix rises from its own ashes, FiddleBop version 2 arose! Glittering in the sun and better than ever! Still comprising Jo and Dave, but now with keyboard wizard Paul Stevens and superb fretless bassist Graeme Lamble. (Don’t worry if you can’t remember all this. We won’t be testing you.)
So FiddleBop v2 got ready. We built up our new repertoire, got to know each other better, then did some local gigs and began work on a recording. All was looking good. And then along came Covid!!!.
We in FiddleBop all survived, which is the main thing. But the recording which we had started (in the very capable hands of friend Baze) ground to a locked-down halt. And – of course – we could not do any gigs. Which is a problem for an improvising band like FiddleBop, which thrives and grows from the excitement and interaction of live performances. So whenever we safely could, we kept our spirits up with the occasional socially-distanced practice. Some indoors and some outdoors, amongst those glorious green hills that I mentioned earlier. One of the best things about living here!
Also it was time for some musical rethinking. Nothing too profound! But some thoughts re what could we categorise ourselves as? (“Gypsy jazz-folk” maybe? Hah, too clumsy probably! Got any ideas?) And more thoughts (my head hurts!) about the future musical directions for FiddleBop. There was time too, to patch up some of our battered, much-gigged equipment. And to tinker with the FiddleBop website. Like it?
Jo and Dave started learning Welsh, too. Dyn ni’n mwynhau dysgu Cymraeg, ond mae hi’n yn araf…
Oh, and Dave cheered himself up by getting a new fiddle. Well, not exactly new. This is the acoustic violin (German?) that Dave had played for many years, as far back as the Rollright Stones and Mortlock and Underwood. (This fiddle has had a hard life. The neck fell off it once: fellow fiddler Chris Leslie very kindly glued it back on.) During lockdown, Richard (“Titch”) from Sonic Violins converted this violin to an electric instrument. All done in a socially-distanced way, using emails and delivery services! Dave is very happy with his new toy.
So eventually, at last, in late summer 2021 we were once again able to play a few gigs. Yaaay! What a relief!
Later in the year, Paul the keyboard had his beard (an impressive one, grown throughout lockdown) and his hair shaved for charity. Take a look at the video! Then came the winter, and the resurgence of Covid. We all hunkered down again — Paul feeling a bit chilly, minus hair — and waited for spring.
And here we are now, in April 2022, once more crawling out from under our stone! We’ve moved on with our recording so expect to hear more about that “real soon now”. In the next FiddleBop newsletter, probably.
Right now our calendar holds three festival gigs for FiddleBop during the coming summer: one (almost) in Wales, two in England.
If you can get get to Hay-on-Wye, Herefordshire, on Thursday 2 June, we are playing at 5.15 pm on The Stage venue in the “HowTheLightGetsIn” festival. This is “the world’s largest Music and Philosophy Festival on the idyllic bank of the River Wye”. World-class speakers and great music (including FiddleBop!) make this a fascinating weekend, one that you won’t forget. So why not treat yourself and come along? Festival tickets are available here.
Next in line, on Saturday 11 June, is the “Party in the Park” Festival in Adderbury, Oxfordshire. FiddleBop are playing at 7.30 pm in the Acoustic Tent. We’ve played here before, a couple of times, with FiddleBop v1. Always a great atmosphere and some really good music too! “Party in the Park” starts at 1.30 pm. Adult tickets are £15 (£20 on the day), age 5-16 are £8, under 5s are free. See you there?
And our third festival this year – so far, anyway – is Hook Norton’s “Music at the Crossroads” on Sunday 3 July. We love playing “jazz with Gypsy zing” at MAC! We’ve made music here many times over the years (again, with FiddleBop v1) and it has always been oodles of fun! This year, for the first time, there is an “acoustic day” on the Sunday, which is free entry. And Pete Watkins has some fine music planned! FiddleBop are on stage at 2 pm. We’d love to see you at MAC 2022!
Finally, if you are nearer the Welsh end of things, you might be interested in FiddleBop’s occasional experimental mini-gigs (or should that be “public practices”?) in the back room of the Brecon Tap pub. (Which is in Brecon: yes, you guessed it!) So far, we haven’t publicised these, but in future, look out for details on FiddleBop’s Facebook page.
Thank you! And OK, that’s the lot for now. Stay well, and all the best! And don’t get too gloomy:
“Receive what cheer you may; the night is long that never finds the day.” (Will Shakespeare: Macbeth)
Popular belief is that Jazz has had its day. Not so! There are plenty of great bands on the jazz circuits - playing at Concerts, Clubs, Festivals. People say the musicians and fans are past their sell by dates and don’t attract younger audiences. Again, not so! There is a Jazz Revival! Numerous younger bands with growing numbers of enthusiastic young fans are making their mark.
“Jazz & Jazz” is an invaluable platform for news about young bands and musicians. It’s a great way for organisers like me to know what is going on! The enthusiasm of Peter Butler is inspirational and infectious and has certainly done much to boost the reputation of Fest Jazz beyond the boundaries of Brittany. Long may the site continue and flourish!”
Trevor Stent, Good Time Jazz
“Dear Peter, You have embarked on a lonely road. There have been few people painting New Orleans musicians over the years. There was one guy named Frank Caunce … in the 1965 - 72 period who was very good but not as organised as you. So keep doing what you are doing.”
Barry Martyn, New Orleans
“Very pleased to be associated with Jazz & Jazz. It promises to be be an influential contribution not just to the UK but to any one anywhere capable of accessing it. My Old Green River Band is delighted to have the opportunity to register its gigs and geographical whereabouts and to see the results this must have for all those associated.”
Martin Bennett, The Old Green River Band
“Fantastic Peter, you've got a talent for capturing people! Perhaps I need to have a shave!!!
Emile Martyn, The Fallen Heroes.
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