Matt Anderson & Jiannis Pavlidis @ The Jazz Café. December 6

Matt Anderson (tenor saxophone) & Jiannis Pavlidis (guitar)

(Review by Russell)

The Leeds-Newcastle connection brought tenor man Matt Anderson and Leeds College of Music guitar tutor Jiannis Pavlidis to the Jazz Café on another Toon Party City night. Santa hats (flashing lights variety) and Toon shirts (Toon 2 Chelsea 1) paraded down the street, choosing to give the jazz a miss (another pint or six, a kebab and a mad scramble in the marshalled taxi queue the preferred option).

Anderson and Pavlidis arrived in time after a somewhat fraught journey. Their set-up a minimal affair, things started on time. Take the Coltrane built up a head of steam; Matt stoking a blues furnace, Jiannis spraying white hot chords into the night. The Leeds duo, a genuine working partnership of three or four years standing, are working on an album of standards (soon to be available as a download) inspired by the likes of Sonny Rollins and Jim Hall. All the Things You Are encapsulated what they’re about; due respect for a classic tune, inventive, conversational lines, ego handed in at the door of the GASbook. Alone Together (almost, they were in select company) dazzled in restraint; Joe Pass, up there in the Jazz Club in the Sky, surely approved of Jiannis’ tasteful playing, chords, a single-line idea, another chord cluster, Matt, off mic (there wasn’t one), signposting the melody.

The Caff’s Saturday crowd largely ignored the fine music - chatter, chatter, then ape-like, applauding something they hadn’t really heard (what’s new?). The attentive few loved it. The second set offered more gems – Solar (Matt offered the thought Bill Evans could be considered the composer), Sometime Ago (comp. Sergio Mihanovich) featured Matt at his best; the tune studied, his interpretation expansive, Jiannis with him all the way. Class. A Monk tune in the Caff is de rigueur – Ask Me Now was this evening’s selection. Body and Soul (a tenor man’s prerogative) Oleo (another Caff staple). A night of quality jazz. Matt and Jiannis went out on I Hear a Rhapsody. Do it again soon, guys.                 

Russell.