Toby Boalch Sextet @ The Bridge Hotel. June 16

Toby Boalch (keyboards), Chris Maddock (alto saxophone), John Fleming (tenor saxophone), Richard Foote (trombone), Nick Jurd (double bass) & Jonathan Silk (drums)

(Review by Russell).

Splinter at the Bridge is a ‘must get to’ gig. Every Sunday night in the upstairs room of the Bridge Hotel perched high above the Tyne there is a guarantee of excellence. This week’s guests - the Toby Boalch Sextet - were no exception. Hailing from Birmingham, the musicians must have been disappointed to see so few faces take their seats. Other bands have played to a similarly sparse turn-out in recent weeks. Tyneside’s jazz audience is large in number yet reluctant to make the effort to get to gigs.

The Sage Gateshead can certainly pull them in – a guarantee of excellence perhaps - whereas the smaller venues struggle to survive. Earlier this month Toyshop presented the music of Clifford Brown. It was an excellent gig with few people in attendance. This week’s gig drew the hardy few. The absent hordes missed a corker. Six young guns, graduates of Birmingham Conservatoire, played their socks off.

Led by Toby Boalch, the band played the music of the affable pianist. Stated influences on band members include Bob Brookmeyer and Booker Little. One thing is for certain, those legendary figures would have approved of the music heard at the Bridge. Bass and drums were right on the money (bassist Nick Jurd works regularly with Soweto Kinch, no less and Jonathan Silk, yet another wonderful drummer) and the frontline boasted three fine soloists taking it in turn to emerge from a shimmering canvas of vivid colours sketched in unison.

State of Play got things under way, making it clear these guys could play. Boalch led by example, followed by John Fleming, tenor. A blues - King’s Road Blues - introduced altoist Chris Maddock and Richard Foote (trombone); assured alto, terrific trombone. A ballad showcased the work of Chris Maddock and a marvellous first set drew to a close with Contradiction featuring powerful solos from Fleming and Foote.

Dusk. Trains skirted round Castle Keep, northbound, southbound. The beers tip-top. The Bridge is the best room in town to hear jazz - visiting musicians like it too. Altoist Chris Maddock maintained the high level of performance as the second set began with Mighty Mike. A highlight of the evening - Checkered Past - coalesced around a bass/drums/trombone section (Ray Anderson came to mind) with fizzing kit work from Silk, rooted bass playing from Jurd and some serious improvisation from Richard Foote (trombone). Glimmer cooled it before Boalch thanked those present for being ‘such an attentive, listening audience.’ The sextet swung it out with November Song. An excellent set from an excellent sextet, the Toby Boalch Sextet.             

Russell.