Paul Edis Trio: The Music of Bill Evans @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. September 27.

Paul Edis (piano), Mick Shoulder (double bass) & Adam Sinclair (drums)
(Review by Russell).

The Exchange Café in Hexham’s Queen’s Hall Arts Centre attracts the Guardian reader,  the novel reading couple (each reading a different title – now that’s what I call a good night out), the coffee drinker and the beer drinker. The latter, initially disappointed at the absence of a hand-pull, took solace in a small selection of bottled beers (at Guardian reader prices) behind the bar. The house beers, supplied by the Tyne valley’s micro brewery up in the hills at Allendale, included APA (Allendale Pale Ale, 5.5%). It proved palatable. A good number of Arts Centre patrons settled down for an evening of jazz (next week they will get along to a folk gig, the week after a string quartet will tempt them to have a run out in their Tyne Valley Tank - aka 4x4).

Pianist Paul Edis has been researching the music of Bill Evans. This Queen’s Hall gig was the trio’s second opportunity to play Evans’ music following a highly successful first outing earlier this year at a Splinter session at the Bridge Hotel in Newcastle. Edis has taken to talking about Evans the man, his life and music, in so doing putting into historical context each tune. Some of the stellar names of modern jazz were musical associates of Evans; George Russell, Scott La Faro, Paul Motian, Jim Hall, Miles Davis, Philly Joe Jones. Some of them became his junkie friends… The Edis trio (Mick Shoulder – double bass, Adam Sinclair – drums) played one wonderful tune after another; Bill’s Hit Tune, Very Early, Funkallero (cookin’), Waltz for Debby, Person I Knew (excellent combination of brushes and bass drum accents from Sinclair). The audience listened reverentially, seemingly frightened to respond. Well…someone had to act as cheer leader – let’s have some applause! That’s better! 

Peace Piece had this listener thinking Satie until Edis corrected such thinking telling us it owed something to Chopin. Peri’s Scope, Turn Out the Stars (a lament for La Faro, killed in an automobile accident), all great tunes, all handled with the utmost sensitivity. Evans experienced much tragedy in his life – the deaths of loved ones and the curse of hard drugs (heroin and cocaine to name but two). Edis chronicled the highs and lows of his subject’s life – the good times of the Riverside years, the lows of addiction. The music lives on and Edis’ project is a joy to listen to. B Minor Waltz, 3/4 Skidoo, Laurie, We Will Meet Again, Five – all great tunes played by the superb Paul Edis Trio.

Russell