Mick Shoulder (guitar); Giles Strong
(guitar); Paul Grainger (double bass); Gavin Lee (clarinet)(Review by Russell)
Easter Day, Blaydon on Tyne basking
in near heatwave conditions, it's always like this on the Costa del
Tyneside...not! Go to the gig or to stay in the pub beer garden, that was the
dilemma facing Blaydon Jazz Club's faithful.
It seems the beer garden - and the
weather - won. That said, those who made the effort to get along to the Black
Bull were rewarded with an evening of top quality music courtesy of Mick
Shoulder's Swing Manouche. Mick and Giles Strong played as if in WWII Paris,
their guitars leading the cultural resistance alongside the advancing Allied
Forces. Bassist Paul Grainger stood defiant, shoulder to (Mick) shoulder with
his comrades. And then there was County Durham's answer to Hubert Rostaing, the
suave, the sophisticated, the one and only Monsieur Gavin Lee.
With Stéphane exiled in Blackout
London - 'Ere don't you know there's a war on? - Swing Manouche carried the
torch opening the concert with Anniversary Song. Throughout the
evening Mick, Giles, Gavin and Paul took it in turn to solo, the whole thing
looking effortless, a sure sign of a cracking outfit. All of Me, Troublant
Bolero (troubled times), Anouman, the brilliant Douce
Ambiance, the era-defining Nuages - très bon, Monsieur
Lee! - this was Swing Manouche at their best.
Blaydon Jazz Club continues to defy
the odds, standing resolute in these straightened times. Together,
Djangologists, jazz fans everywhere, we will never surrender. Vive la
jazz!
Russell.
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