| gig reviews 2009 |
| |
| Ralph Allin Quartet - April |
| |
Ralph Allin (Vln & jokes) Al Gurr (Pno) Jadie Carey (Bs) Steve Street (Dms) |
The last club session by the quartet was at Number 8 which Ralph remembered as being ‘posh’ but he expressed approval at our latest venue with proper stage and spotlights, the only regret -that he’d turned up in his lawn mowing trousers!
 With the first notes of 'Lullaby of Birdland' the distinctive sound of this band swept over the room; the sonorous amplified violin, a wonderfully warm toned electric bass minus the usual grating bass guitar sound plus piano and drums providing a more modern style of backing than usually heard in the club.
|
| |
| May Review - John Hallam / Jeff Barnhart |
| |
| |
The evening continued, impressive in its musical variety, with Grappelli like moments on 'After You’ve Gone', 'I Got Rhythm', with a subtle, sudden ending and 'All of Me' where the violin was played plectrum style for those who had confessed to being banjo aficionados. 'Ain’t Misbehavin' (with a charming pizzicato, laughing violin) and 'Honeysuckle Rose' showed the group’s appreciation of Fats Waller
We heard gypsy influences with 'Minor Swing', a latin flavoured Beautiful Love complete with violin harmonics to end and an upbeat 'Misty' to a lilting Caribbean like rhythm. 'Embraceable You' and, later on, 'I Saw You Standing There' saw Ralph using his high tech. radio equipment to perambulate round the club whilst the sound from his violin came from the stage – spooky!
|
|
|
| |
by Peter Farrall |
photo by Val Wood |
| |
A trio spot without Ralph featured Al’s piano, a bass solo and then drum breaks to produce some wonderful heady jazz as they rendered 'All the Things You Are' to an obviously appreciative audience. 'Over the Rainbow', 'If I Were a Bell', 'Norwegian Wood' all included to provide an evening of eclectic jazz by four musicians playing with a panache borne of talent, enthusiasm and, no doubt, a lot of hard work yet they make it look so easy.
And to end such an evening – get the audience clapping and jigging to 'The Irish Washerwoman' and 'The Sailor’s Hornpipe'! |
