Common Sense For The Working Musician

Big Bands, Take the Coda, Repeat 'til Fade, Tacet on Cue. Or not?

2013-09-24T12:12:00.000+01:00

Yesterday evening Radio 2 broadcast the final edition of Big Band Special after a 34 year innings. The final coda has been played and my woefully under represented music genre of choice takes a huge body blow and a giant step away from any sort of mainstream media presence.

This post started life as a number of Facebook posts regarding cuts to the output of the BBC Big Band's broadcast output on Radio 2. I've added a little personal history and observations of some recent musical adventures which hopefully suggest that big band music is not in the death throes.

'Well done the BBC, another winner'.

Once again you have taken a giant leap forward with your gradual attempt at the euthanasia of big band music in the UK with your axing of Big Band Special. First you scrapped 'Band Parade', which for those of you too young to remember was a weekly showcase for professional (and occasionally semipro) big bands from across the country. More recently in the midst ...of a smokescreen of lies you did away with the National Rehearsal Band Competition which provided me (aged 15) with my first proper studio session in the old Maida Vale 6, and provided an invaluable showcase for countless musicians who have subsequently, and quite deservedly become household names in our industry. I have for some time considered the BBC to be virtually irrelevant with regard to the cultural life of our nation, and in a week which has seen the passing of David Jacobs, a lifetime champion of quality music, you manage to hit the spot once again. Well done. Not so much Maida Vale as Maida Mistake. (Originally posted to Facebook, 4/9/13).

I have some history with big band music. My introduction to the idiom started in the late 60s and developed in the 70s. My recollection is my Dad buying a Bang and Olufsen hi fi in 1968 and playing Buddy Rich's records constantly. I'd never heard music reproduced with such power and clarity prior to then and the effect was profound to say the least. This was followed by Stan Kenton, Basie, Ellington, Maynard Ferguson Thad Jones/Mel Lewis and Woody Herman. All of this music reflected the present day, and whilst it had its roots in the past it didn't sound anything other than contemporary to my pre-teen ears. It was a few years later before I really heard any of the 'swing era' recordings and whilst impressive in their own way I doubt my career path would have taken the trajectory that it has had I heard the older music first.

I took my first steps as a participant in my early teens. Back then the Musicians Union had an incentive whereby each branch (and there were masses of MU branches back then; even Leamington Spa had its own branch) could sponsor a 'rehearsal band'. Free music was made available to members, home-grown British writing largely from the NYJO stable and most of it of a reasonable standard. At a time when contemporary American arrangements were a bit scarce in the UK this provided an opportunity for musicians to get their teeth into something new rather than warming over the old stock dance band charts of the 50s and 60s.

Even better than that, the Midland district of the MU had an annual big band competition. On a Sunday at the end of October musicians would descend upon the Matrix Ballroom in Coventry and battle would commence. I think I went there for the first time in 1977. Bands would set up at either end of the room and each play three or for tunes including a 'test piece', performed by all participating ensembles. I recall about 11 bands taking part when the contest was at its height. Birmingham, Nottingham, Derby, Wolverhampton, Leamington Spa, Coventry and more all were represented and at the end of the day the panel of judges would cast their verdict. Other than a trophy there wasn't an awful lot at stake besides honour if I may be candid, although a lucky standout player might just get a mention in an MU branch newsletter or, <sharp intake of breath>, 'Crescendo' magazine. Having said that it did provide a valuable showcase not only to bands but individual instrumentalists as well and I developed a whole raft of contacts from my involvement. It wasn't called 'networking' back then.

That said, to an ambitious young musician taking his first steps in the industry it all felt like a hell of a big deal, and that Sunday was an eagerly anticipated highlight of the year. I gained invaluable experience from these contests and remember those times with a mix of affection and gratitude.

The Musicians Union big band contest was as nothing however, when compared to the BBC National Rehearsal Band Competition. Now this was the big deal.

Many musicians reading this will remember what it was like to be involved, as it was open to youth bands and adult players who competed in separate categories. BBC local radio stations could nominate a band in both senior and junior competitions and one Saturday 1n 1979 I got on the Midland Youth Jazz Orchestra band bus to go to BBC Maida Vale studios in Delaware Rd, W9, where we did a three hour session, the best bits of which were submitted to the BBC's hand picked panel of judges.

Some months went by and I'd sort of forgotten about it and was busy doing my first pro gig playing (roasting!) for a 15 act circus at the NEC with a 12 piece band, when such things were the norm. One day we were between shows and I was given a message to call the BBC in Birmingham. Not only had the band won the junior section of the competition but I had had seen off the adult opposition and been awarded the Jack Parnell drum award. Exciting times; my picture in the paper, first time in a TV studio, first radio interview and sometime after, a Radio 2 broadcast from Golders Green Hippodrome.

For a young musician that was an amazing experience culminating a live concert to an audience full of the great and good of the industry. If very fortunate one might even be looked upon with favour by the mighty Lord Ashton of Wealdstone. I wasn't, but that's neither here nor there.

The band won again the following year, and the broadcast fell on my 18th birthday. I still have the recording and I'm proud of what I did.

This account is not unique by any stretch of the imagination and this was an experience shared by countless musicians both on the first rung of the ladder, or receiving overdue recognition after decades at the coal face.

I remember the day I found out that it had been scrapped. Don Lusher had just announced his retirement and he had thrown a party at his house in Cheam for former colleagues and associates from around the industry. Whilst there I bumped into Ray Harvey and Sheila Tracy, both of whom were bordering on incandescent at the announcement that the BBC had scrapped the National Big Band Competition after roughly 30 years. Ray had produced pretty much from day one and Sheila had hosted the show (in her inimitable style) after Alan Dell called it a day.

Anyway the Beeb got rid of it. Shortly thereafter I found a thread about it on the also defunct BBC jazz webpage and clashed with somebody who called himself 'Mr Stevie' and was clearly a BBC insider and was making comments along the lines of, "The next contest will be announced soon". From my experience chez Lusher I was able to refute that unequivocally. I think that was 2005 and we're still waiting. (Incidentally, since this was first posted to Facebook in the early part of September the self same 'Mr Stevie' has broken cover with a blog post about the BBC's orchestras through history).

I've no idea why it got canned, but in one of my posts re the recent developments concerning the BBC Big Band I couldn't help thinking that all those young people coming through year upon year were fostering support for the big band genre and bringing in new blood.
Perhaps this runs contrary to BBC ideals, who knows? It almost feels as if big band music has been put into a critical care unit and is gradually having its nutrition cut to the point where it will fade for the last time and leave us forever.

I find it slightly odd that the BBC manages to support a station called BBC1Xtra. For the uninitiated among you this is 24/7 coverage of the urban music scene. Were that my music of choice I would probably seek out a more authentic source such as an independent or pirate broadcaster, not some posh boys trying to be 'street'; and before you play the 'grumpy old fart' card I should point out that I'm younger than Tim Westwood.

Is there such a word as 'geriatrification'? (to deliberately make something old before its time). Spell check is saying no, so maybe I just coined a phrase. All too often this music falls victim to stereotyping and whenever 'big' and 'band' get used in the same sentence out come all the bog standard cliches. You know the deal; Glenn Miller, the White Cliffs of Vera Lynn and people in WW2 fancy dress. If you want to dress up in WW2 military garb and dance in an aircraft hangar please feel free to do so. Have the time of your life in fact. I've played countless such gigs over the years and they can be great fun in the right company. Problems start when the pygmies in the media start portraying an entire genre thus. The truth is that was just a small moment in a one hundred year timeline. It just so happened that that particular era in big band music provided a backdrop to the truly cataclysmic events of WW2. Whilst arguably the high watermark of popularity this era shouldn't be allowed to define the genre but it seems to do so. When people speak of 'rock and roll' they're obviously not necessarily talking about Bill Haley, Buddy Holly and razor wielding teddy boys. Why, then, should a couple of years in the early 40s be the benchmark for all that big band music was, is and still could become? There was no better example of media ignorance than the recent trailer for something on Sky called 'Chickens', a comedy set in World War 1; complete with music bed featuring Count Basie and Glenn Miller, although there have been a couple of major gaffs in period dramas too. I remember one recent effort where a 1930s dance band played music that was about as 'period incorrect' as it's possible to imagine.
I've been a big band leader since 1982. Thirty years of studying audience demographics teaches you a thing or two. There's no denying that the upper age for big band shows has always been higher than for other genres apart from classical, but then it would be. Big band music (like jazz) has been around for longer and quality engenders loyalty. Give people something good enough and you've got them for a lifetime. Give them One Direction and they'll be off in another direction as soon as the proverbial wind changes. The other day I bumped into some guys who had been taken to one of our concerts at Cadogan Hall when they were in the first year of secondary school. They're at college now and recently came to another gig. They're still into it.

Our band played a show recently at a very prestigious UK school. Their music students are on a three line whip as far as attendance goes. Other students are able to attend at no charge if they wish. I subsequently heard that more sixth formers had chosen to attend our gig than any other previous presentations at the school. They 'got it' too. Neither they nor the general public in attendance needned to be softened up with the all too predictable Miller/Rat Pack offerings. Big band jazz was what they had come to hear, and it was what they got.

Two days later I played a big budget corporate event (nice to see those making a comeback) with somebody else's big band. Here the offering was much more commercial. A non-specialist audience (80% women, mostly under 40) received the music rapturously. Nobody asked if we would play 'Valerie' even once, and the roar of recognition on hearing the hackneyed introduction of that dreaded warhorse 'In the Mood' surprised even me.

Jazz is a tortured soul in a lot of ways. I've often admired rock music for its sense of self assurance and lack of obsession with constantly re-inventing and innovating. A lot of rock music sounds just the way it did 40 (or sometimes more) years ago and yet it rarely if ever gets pushed off the airwaves. Undeniably the cutting edge of jazz and improvised music needs to retain its sharpness, (well represented on BBC Radio 3) the mainstream will remain fresh and relevant if nurtutred properly. If only somebody could make the powers that be realise how much of the great music recorded from the 30s to the present day is actually really rather 'hip', 'edgy', 'challenging' and ever so slightly 'urban', not to mention 'urbane'. It's about the perception of the content and how you put it over.

So, dead or alive? Recent experience say to me very much alive. If anything the scene, especially in London, is currently more vibrant than at any time I can remember in the 21 years I've been here. New bands with leaders such as Callum Au, Reuben Fowler, Mike Gorman, Graeme Taylor, Richard Shepherd and many others are providing a huge injection of musical positivity: writing new music and breathing new life into classic repertoire and familiar compositions. Also Ronnie Scott's has its own in-house big band. Every show they play sells out. This is progress. These are positive new developments.

Hopefully inadvertant euthanasia through lack of media coverage can be avoided. It almost feels as if the BBC's line on this runs counter to the sentiment of the general public. (Surprise, surprise!) Perhaps they consider big band aficionados to be Ukip supporting, Daily Mail reading nasty Little Englanders who need to be put in their place. Don't bother posting comments on the Radio 2 website btw, you'll get deleted in less time than it takes to say, "Coming up next on Radio 2, Jessie J and Dizzee Rascal, innit".
I've spent a lot of the last 35 plus years playing big band music of all kinds, everything from the old army uniforms to the emperor's new clothes. This music has given me many, many unforgettable career moments; I've gained a profile and spent a fortune and I'd really miss it if it were no longer around.

Never Knowingly Undersold

2011-12-04T14:05:00.000+00:00

It's not even Christmas and already the calls are coming through from promoters and venues apropos of concerts and festival appearances for 2012 and beyond. Make no mistake, this is good news. What with the world economy teetering on the edge of freefall it's rewarding to learn that even with such (allegedly) dark days ahead there are a few brave souls who are at least expressing an interest in presenting no nonsense, straight ahead big band jazz of the highest quality and paying me appropriately.

Note the last three words of the previous sentence once again if you will. Guaranteed fees for live appearances are getting ever more difficult to secure; I've heard every tale of woe going about getting funding, sponsorship, people to pay a fair admission price to hear top class musicians doing their thing etc etc. I've done a fair amount of risk taking myself; you win a few and you lose a few. Sometimes you'll take a big hit on promoting an event and that hurts, no doubt about it. Experience has taught me not to risk what I can't afford to lose. So, promoters, I feel your pain, believe me I do.

Having said that I do have a sense of my own value. It's a privilege to lead a band full of top draw musicians who go out on stage and give 100% every time without me having to ask them to do so. They do a great job and we're a great team, not to be messed with.
Jazz rarely pays paticularly well and many times guys in my band will display tremendous loyalty by working for me when they could perhaps be elsewhere making more money, although arguably not having anything like as good a time musically. Therefore I always try to negotiate as good a fee as is possible and promoters should take note:

"The most we can afford to pay you is £XXX"
"We had so-and-so last year and he did it for £500 less than you are asking for".

I have no problem with either of the above. I am not in the business of being the cheapest band in town, and it's worth remembering that when you go shopping for something the price on the ticket often reflects the quality of the goods on offer.

Plenty of cheaper big bands are available, you can take your pick. However, this is where a few musicians could help not only themselves but the wider music economy. We all understand that every leader wants to get gigs for their bands irrespective of size or genre. Live performance is the oxygen which helps the music to stay alive but I do take issue when I hear about bands taking on gigs in certain venues for inappropriately low fees. Case in point it came to my attention that somebody took a big band into Ronnie Scott's a while back and played a Sunday lunchtime paying the players about £30 a head! If this is true and not mere rumour the bandleader in question should hang his head in shame and possibly consider early retirement.

Looking forward to 2012 I am currently taking the first steps towards organising a semi regular series of big band shows in the capital. These shows will feature a number of first class bands apart from my own.
Interestingly I'm looking into the possibility of private sector sponsorship in order to guarantee that musicians will be treated properly and paid decently.
It might take a bit of doing but keep your fingers crossed and stay tuned.

In the meantime let's all make a New Year's resolution to try really hard to break free of the 'fifty quid' mentality. Jazz musicians are I think unwittingly in part responsible for keeping gig fees artificially low. Why not ask for more? You might just be surprised at the result, and if we all try to face in the same direction who knows what could be achieved. Public opinion can be influenced with a little well-thought-out campaigning as evidenced by the growing backlash against Westminster Council's frankly moronic plans to introduce evening parking charges in central London. They say it is in order to ease congestion, and yet I remember when they did away with most of the meters and single yellow lines in W1 using the same absurd premise. Outcome back then? Less places for people to park equals more people driving around searching equals increased congestion.

Remember, what we offer is an exclusive, high end, luxury product. It isn't for everybody. You can't get it in Primark so don't price it accordingly.

Opportunity Knockers

2011-09-20T18:23:00.002+01:00

The floor of the music industry is littered with toys. They are strewn everywhere. They have been thrown out of prams across all the genres for as long as there has been an industry, but lately it seems things are reaching new heights of disquiet.

These observations arose from a simple, but, I like to think, pithy and incisive Facebook status update I posted a little earlier.
Here it is in case you missed it:

'Opportunities come and go. Everything and everybody has their time. Be as prepared as you can be in order to maximise your opportunity to do something lasting when the time comes, which it will if you try hard enough for long enough. Style changes, but substance sticks'.

There has been enough hot air spouted on the internet of late to make a serious and lasting impact on climate change. Dangerous levels of methane from the collective back passage of the UK dairy herd are as nothing compared to the clouds of flatus that have taken to the air just recently. This leads me back to some of the points I made in an earlier but largely unrelated post.

Nobody is compelled to pursue music as a profession. Other career options are available.

Having chosen music as a profession entitles you to nothing. There are no points to be scored for 'suffering for your art'. It is entirely your choice. Some of the greatest artists in history have understood the importance of diversification in order to survive, whether it be Michelangelo designing the tomb of Pope Julius II or Benny Carter writing a movie score.
Talent alone is insufficient, in fact it could be said that to lack the ability to understand the pressures of the big bad world outside of the practice room is to be deficient in a specific and necessary talent.

Personally I never bought into that 'I'll only play jazz' argument; it makes about as much sense as limiting yourself to a specific tempo or key signature if you stop to think about it. I've played all manner of styles and genres with musicians of every stripe. I like to think that having done this has given me a breadth of experience and hopefully a nominal amount of wisdom and insight that informs what I do. In short, I play good music with good musicians. It's a privilege to be able to do so.
Having said that I'd rather play jazz than pretty much anything else but the simple truth is that there are not, and never have been any fortunes to be made from playing jazz. One of the best and most visible British jazz drummers of recent times was the late, great Martin Drew. There seemed to be a period back in the late 70s and early 80s when the Oscar Peterson trio, with Martin on drums were on every show on television. Rumour has it that they even made a guest appearance in an episode of 'Crossroads' although I am unable to verify this at the time of writing. Some years later I was fortunate enough to become friends with Martin, and he invited me to his house to hang out. I was astounded. I had expected a six bedroom detached with an in and out driveway! Far from it.

Jazz has a long history in the UK, even predating the factional years of the 1940s with Ken Colyer and his revivalist acolytes on one side of the fence and the young turks of the Club 11 on the other. Jazz flourished in the pre rock and roll era in the UK as never before or since. Whilst this was by no means the birth of jazz in the UK, this era defined and shaped the British scene. There is a direct lineage between the boom time of 55-60 years ago and the British jazz scene of today. Trendy media darlings will try to blind you with their revisionist smokescreen and their naive quasi political agenda but don't be deceived. Case in point. A three hour documentary tracing the development of British jazz completely ignored Dick Morrissey. In case you've forgotten or never knew Dick was one of the best, most prolific and popular jazz musicians this country has ever produced, but oddly in this particular instance he was erased from history in favour of those who are perhaps deemed by some to be more 'edgy'. So when the tyros and the wannabes and a few of the 'never weres' who have taken more than they have contributed talk about being overlooked I frankly fail to see their point. Perhaps it is a desperate attempt at attention seeking (what they would call 'raising awareness' of course), or purporting to pursue a moral crusade which actually boils down to "why don't I get more gigs?"

There are many answers to the above question. First among which is that the audience for jazz is diminishing. We mostly play to an ageing demographic, a good many of whom lived through the boom time of six decades ago. This audience is not being replaced or replenished. Mostly this is because of the marginalisation of jazz in print and broadcast media, but who is to blame for that? If your set consists of original compositions lasting 15 minutes each which have no resonance with a general audience then don't be surprised to find yourself marginalised. And please don't blame it on somebody else! The audience is waiting for you to communicate with them, to create some rapport. There was only one Miles Davis and even he didn't always get it right.

Never stop developing your craft. Recognition should not be the barometer by which you measure your achievement. Jazz is about being in it for the long haul. I'm a better musician than I was ten years ago. I hope you are too.

If you have embarked on a career in jazz hoping for money, fame or overnight success, stop immediately and do something else.

Compromise. It's not a dirty word. See it as an astute business move. A very wise promoter told me years ago when we first took the big band out on the road;
"Play one for you and one for them".
He was right. Back in those days we used to play a great arrangement of 'A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square'. It was a sophisticated, angular and deeply left-field chart, but even the most mainstream punters loved it because they knew the tune. Some of them were even able to recognise it. In 2007 when I first put a 'tribute' formula in front of an audience our attendances doubled overnight. One of the outcomes of this is that sales of our three albums of original music have increased to unprecedented levels.

Be patient. Apart from a little bit of very fleeting attention in my middle teens I got practically nowhere in the jazz industry until 1995. In the space of a couple of weeks I embarked on a near full time road gig with a well-known British jazz artist and the first London edition of my big band came together and played for the first time. I was already 32 by this point.

Be mindful of how you deal with people. It's a business. Treating people with respect will enable you to stay in business. Or flourish, maybe. It doesn't mean you need to be obsequious, that's just as unappealing. While you're at it never forget who might be watching you. An internationally acclaimed British musician said some years ago,
"Play so well that people just can't ignore you".

So if you're feeling down because your current musical circumstance doesn't exactly tick your boxes, take a moment and be thankful for what you have. Opportunities are there for the taking. If you blow it, don't blame somebody else. Being a good musician is only the start of it, and don't ever forget that somebody out there somewhere doesn't have a gig tonight, and they play better than you!

Arts Funding, a More Direct Approach?

2011-09-15T13:00:00.000+01:00

Continuing the thread that was started with Sunday's post about some slightly odd goings-on in the world of arts funding I've been thinking a lot and reading a lot about the subject. It's no news to anybody even slightly interested in the domestic jazz scene that the amounts of money bestowed upon jazz musicians, promoters, organisations and such like are utterly derisory to say the least. Looked at alongside the money lavished upon opera and ballet the figures become even more contemptible.

I have to say that I have been on the receiving end of arts funding and it benefited me enormously; creating as it did the opportunity to record some new music with a new band and to then set up a series of live dates to put said music before an audience. It was great. It was a very long time ago. I haven't troubled the funding bodies since. My view is that I've had a bite of the cherry, let somebody else take a turn. I take my hat off to anybody who can plough through the acres of paperwork and become sufficiently fluent in 'quangospeak'.

Practical realities cannot be sidestepped though and we all need income in order to survive. Freelance employment is only part of the answer and is probably more unreliable than at any time in my recollection given the over supply of truly able players coupled with the ongoing economic downturn. The same applies to teaching. Just like the previous post on the trials and tribulations of theatre musicians you can find some amazing, international level talent teaching in London's schools and colleges.

So what are the other alternatives for those of us who are not blessed with compositional skills? It certainly isn't releasing your own music: invest eight grand and spend the next five years breaking even? No thanks. I prefer a quicker return on my outlay.

The solution came to me quite by accident in 2007. We had done a particularly pleasing out of town gig with the big band and a number of the musicians were very eager to reprise the show in London, so we did. Such was the result that I've repeated the formula on a number of occasions. I put gigs on on Monday nights when lots of industry friends aren't working so they come out in numbers and give support. Then when they put on gigs I go and support them, the jazz industry to some extent becomes its own audience. It has always gone on. I remember going to see local musicians play from before I was in my teens but whether there is significant untapped potential for something bigger here remains to be seen. Any coming together of self promoters (yes, I am a self promoter and make no bones about it!) will enhance bargaining power accross a whole range of sectors. Already this week I've dispensed advice to two fellow musicians about the pitfalls and benefits of staging your own shows. The single biggest benefit in my experience is sidestepping the middleman for the investment of a few hours of your free time here and there.

My next grand plan is that we musicians do our own funding. I don't know how this will pan out but purely in the interests of research if all readers could send me a small sum (£10 perhaps?) I'll let you know as soon as I have the numbers together.

An Inflation Free Area of the Economy

2011-09-14T16:43:00.001+01:00

The popular and not-so-popular media is full of your daily dose of gloom and doom with regard to the economy. Prices of everyday essentials are surging ahead at a truly alarming pace, and the present and previous administrations are fighting like ferrets in a sack to point the finger of blame at one another.

So what is this inflation free area of the economy that I have to share with you?

It's musicians' wages. In the last few days amongst other things I played a fairly important gig about 135 miles away and a small jazz gig which was more along the lines of fun with good musician friends on the doorstep. A little check through the files revealed that comparable gigs were paying exactly the same money over 15 years ago. That's not inflation adjusted figures by the way, it is literally exactly the fees as the mid 90s.

Given that one of the most inflation prone retail sectors is clothing it can only be a matter of time before we start seeing a profusion of naked bands; which makes the two gigs I referred to earlier in this post an altogether different and slightly worrying prospect.

We'll Keep a Welcome in the West Midlands

2011-09-12T11:00:00.001+01:00

Good God I must have been bored yesterday afternoon, so much so that I found myself studying an Arts Council spreadsheet detailing current funding and projected funding going forward to 2015. Actually it was interesting, albeit a little disheartening to see what a pitifully small percentage of such monies goes to jazz musicians, promoters and organisations in England.

England. Note that and bear it in mind for a moment please.

The spreadsheet is arranged by region, with said regions listed alphabetically, starting with East and ending with Yorkshire. You get the idea. I was especially interested to see funding allocations for the West Midlands since that's where I came from and I was pleased to see the names of many familiar organisations listed amongst the various grants both large and small. I would quite like to have seen 50 or 100K tossed in the direction of the Midlands Youth Jazz Orchestra but that's another topic for another day, other than to note that it is by no means unprecedented for organisations who are encouraging excellence in young jazz musicians to (rightly) receive six figure annual stipends.

Now, back in the dim and distant past of my schooldays I really had no particular aptitude for geography whatsoever. My recollection is that I was worst in my class at it and dropped the subject just as soon as opting out became an possibility. Having said that I do know my way from A to B. Like so many freelance musicians I have spent thousands of hours on British roads, and I tend to know where places are. Some mornings I need GPS navigation to find the bathroom, but that's another story. Mindful of this perhaps you will be as surprised as I was to learn that in amongst those West Midlands arts funding allocations was Welsh National Opera, picking up a total payout of roughly 31.5 million between now and 2015.

Now you can say what you like about regional assemblies, boundary changes or gerrymandering, but one thing of which I am totally convinced is that Wales is not in the West Midlands, nor is the West Midlands part of Wales, any more than Prince Charles is known as HRH the Prince of West Bromwich.

I'm sure that there's a perfectly legitimate reason for this. It's about 20 years since I left the West Midlands. Maybe in the interim Dudley has become a tax haven or something like that.

Seriously though, can anybody explain why arts funding allocated to the West Midlands is going to a Welsh organisation, especially when Arts Council Wales is making a grant of 4.5 million to Welsh National Opera in the current year alone. Which somehow brings me back to the Midlands Youth Jazz Orchestra.

West End Blues

2011-09-04T16:50:00.000+01:00

Elsewhere on the internet debate is raging about the pros and cons of the working life of a West End theatre musician, and how the repetitive nature of the work can become irksome over the fullness of time. It's not an avenue I ever pursued but a lot of very good friends have done so with great success. Suffice to say the sounds the emanate from the orchestra pits of London's theatres are of the very highest order indeed.

However, the sounds of "woe is me I've got a regular job with a steady income" is a little bit harder to understand.

Nobody made me become a professional musician, it was my decision and mine alone. I have a reasonably active intellect which might well have enabled me to turn my hand to all manner of things; instead I've made drums and music my primary focus since I made the big decision many years ago.

Nobody else is obliged to be a professional musician either. Personally I always swore that I would move on if ever a working situation became a chore, and always arranged my personal commitments in such a way that I didn't need to stay in a situation that wasn't making me happy. Not everybody is in such a fortunate position as kids and mortgages come along. I was never blessed with the former and no longer have the latter.

Maybe the piece that inspired me to make this posting is a salutary tale to those players who think that the streets of Theatreland are paved with gold, (or chrome over brass at the very least). I'm going to read it again with that in mind and take a view.

My only involvement with the West End is from a punter's perspective. Happily I've got numerous great friends in virtually every pit in town and can get company discounts. (Have you SEEN some of those ticket prices?)

What I sometimes find slightly depressing is that the lights dim and the overture kicks off and the audience is treated to two, three or more minutes of world class musicianship. I'm given to scanning the darkened auditorium and wondering how many people care about the sheer quality of what they are listening to, or indeed who's playing it. I'm sure some of them think it's prerecorded! That's a big part of the problem that I have with the cultural drift of the last couple of decades. Remember when you used to see musicians on telly playing instruments? Time was it would be on a daily basis, even if it was only 'Pebble Mill at One' while you're waiting for meals on wheels to show up.

I think that's a good part of why I never went down the theatre route. At the time when the offer of the touring show with a West End transfer came I was having too much fun doing a touring jazz revue show complete with a big drum feature which re-invigorated my enthusiasm for soloing. In other words I like to see the audience and I like them to see me too. Communication. (and a slightly supersized ego I suppose).

Heart On My Sleevenote

2011-09-02T16:58:00.000+01:00

A little while back I recorded with the talented singer Debbie Wilson in the estimable company of John Critchinson and Dave Green. Debbie has finally got round to making a CD and I was flattered to be invited to contribute the liner notes.

I thought I'd massage my already somewhat inflated ego and share a few extracts with you here.

Excuse me if I punctuate excessively as I’m a little bit excited. Sometimes it happens when I play the drums too. I neither know nor care at this point just how many records I’ve played on; what matters to me is what I refer to as ‘the shortlist’. The shortlist consists of the recordings of which I’m genuinely proud and can listen to more than the usual once or twice without wincing. The shortlist has just gained a new addition.

In an age where the career path for a female jazz vocalist consists of graduating from music college, navigating the secret tunnel beneath London which comes out in the 606 Club, and then sending your unsolicited internet news letter to as many people as possible, Debbie Wilson is a thoroughly welcome and refreshing change, bringing as she does a lifetime of experience which informs her performances throughout this debut disc. I like this approach; live your life, get some experience, have a story to tell and then start making records, rather than the other way round. Take Debbie’s advice and ‘Do It The Hard Way’. My sentiments exactly.

I remember a tale told to me by a chart topping singer of the 1960s who when working in a dance band prior to getting her big break was forbidden by the bandleader from singing Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen’s ‘All the Way’ as he considered her to be insufficiently mature to be able to convey the meaning of the lyrics. Bear that in mind when you listen to Debbie’s reading of Sunny Skylar’s ‘Don’t Wait Too Long’ and you’ll immediately understand why these words should never be entrusted to a 23 year old. Similarly Critch outdoes himself on this track and I keep returning to the point in his solo where he repeats his previous phrase in a different place in the time. All the chops in the world will never give you magic moments like that.

In addition Debbie has successfully avoided going down the traditional route for debut female vocal albums and consciously decided not to follow the oft-trodden path of inviting guest contributors from the upper echelons of British jazz. A tradition which has, incidentally, resulted in Alan Barnes and Jim Mullen taking up residence in Monaco for tax purposes. At the risk of appearing immodest, don’t be confused by the somewhat stellar nature of the rhythm section, Debbie took time to evaluate who best met her expectations not only musically but personally too. Instrumental virtuosity is no excuse for personality shortcomings.

Another plus is Debbie’s avoidance of over elaboration and pretension. It takes maturity, experience and courage to stick close to a great melody and the avoid vocal gymnastics. You can extract every last ounce of meaning from a lyric without a single ‘hoobleedoop’. I’ve listened to these tracks over and over. Hoobleedoop count, zero.
Listen to how Debbie makes every word count on Arthur Schwartz & Yip Harburg’s underused 1934 composition ‘Then I’ll Be Tired of You’ in the unlikely event that my point was insufficiently clear.

This session re-emphasises the ongoing value and importance of the Great American Songbook and when we got the programme for the recording date I wasn’t sorry about the lack of any uber-cool, knowingly re-harmonised material from the canon of the likes of Radiohead and Coldpay: not even slightly.

And finally don’t draw any false inference from track 8, as this is most definitely the beginning of a love affair between Debbie Wilson and aficionados of good music in the UK and beyond.

I do hate it when people end sleeve notes with ‘enjoy’, so I’m not going to do that because I already know that you will.

We did too.

All Trombones Look The Same To Me

2011-09-02T15:45:00.000+01:00

Drums. Great aren't they?

Can there be any other musical instrument that allows each individual player so much individuality from the setup alone? Before you've even played a note the audience can tell a great deal about you just from looking at your instrument.

Set ups are often identified with specific styles and genres. An obvious example; you see a four piece in small sizes with a couple of large cymbals (at least one of which will have rivets installed) you can be sure that acoustic jazz will be on the menu. Similarly if you are a guest at a wedding and the drummer has a twelve piece kit which takes two hours to set up it is fairly safe to assume that he is not a full time professional.

There's so much choice to be had these days. Drums come in all shapes and sizes. You can have any custom finish you care for. You can get tiny snare drums, cymbals with holes in and a remote bass drum. I have been a proponent of the remote bass drum for many years. I have a 20" and 22" bass drum with my DW set and one of them is always 'remote'. I leave it at home.

It's also important if you are contemplating expansion and innovation with your drum setup that you don't forget to learn to play first.

So give free rein to your individuality in the way you set up your drums. I feel sorry for trombone players, as a trombone is pretty much a trombone and that's about it really.

I'll be getting some new drums shortly. Refurbished 1970s Rogers with modern spurs, tom fittings etc. 24, 13, 16, 16 in marine pearl in case you hadn't already guessed. If you're at the World's Greatest Drummer event in November you should see them then. (More about that in a future post).

No Pleasing Some People

2011-09-02T14:28:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I read an interview with a London based musician. He has a regular gig with a very well known artist in addition to which he has a West End Show, yes, that's right a West End Show; pretty much the last remaining source of decent regular income for professional players in our modern industry and considered by many to be the Holy Grail. You've only got to cast an eye over the scene; a roll call of players in London theatres reads like a who's who of British musicians. Some of the best instrumentalists of this or indeed any era are to be found down the pit, either holding down a regular chair or depping in several productions at any one time.

Never having had any inclination towards Theatreland myself I was intrigued by the potential insight that would be shared, so here are a few choice quotes:

"It’s not so much the music but it’s the same repetitive activity that destroys you; you’re trapped in a loop."

"I do prefer being at home".

"I’d probably rather not be playing. I’d like to retire! We all have to work but... wouldn''t you rather not?"

So there you are, pearls of wisdom to inspire all who are fortunate enough to read them. Any suggestions of worse ways to earn a steady income of give or take a grand a week would be welcome. You have to feel sorry for people sometimes.

Don't Be Fooled By The Title.....

2011-09-02T13:49:00.000+01:00

Everything has to be called something, required fields cannot be left blank; there's probably a law against it or something. So just to clarify, it's highly unlikely that this blog will contain any common sense of any kind, and that hardly any of it will be of any practical use to the musician, working or otherwise.

What it will offer however, is the occasional rumination on our industry and the world at large, plus a few choice reminiscences from 35 years in the business.