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| © Patti |
Magnus Pickering (cornet, vocals); Joe Pickering (clarinet/tenor sax); Daniel Pickering (trombone); Cornelius Corkery (guitar); Fraser Urquhart (piano); Chris Hyde-Harrison (double bass); Robbie Ellison (drums)
If the Weatherbirds didn't actually blow in from the 'Windy City' in person, I'm telling you boy, they certainly did in spirit and I don't mean bathtub gin. This was the Austin High School Gang now known as the Trinity Laban/Guildhall/Uni of Scotland Gang a.k.a. the Windy City Weatherbirds.
After a brief chorus of Tin Roof Blues they segued into Riverboat Shuffle with solos by the Brothers Pickering and honorary Weatherbird Fraser Urquhart.
Magnus P took the vocal on Someday Sweetheart. He has a pleasant croony voice who, back in the day, would have stolen the hearts of a few flappers. That's a Plenty, Sister Kate and At the Jazz Band Ball were straight out of the Great Dixieland Songbook. Punchy solos from all with Daniel P maybe just edging it with his smooth(ish) Teagarden(ish) approach.
Lazy River. This was a highlight in an afternoon of highlights. Muted trumpet and rhythm guitar shared the rarely heard verse before the others joined the party. Beautiful ...
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| © Patti |
The clock was ticking fast, but still time for four more. Love Me or Leave Me, taken uptempo, (What Did I Do to Be So) Black and Blue, reminiscent of the recording by Muggsy, Who's Sorry Now? selected after hearing it on YouTube by Warren Vaché and finally, On the Alamo. A shortened version but a nice one enhanced by some flowing piano from Fraser.
I haven't mentioned bassist Chris Hyde-Harrison but his two solos were superb. Nor have I mentioned Robbie Ellison who, despite his youth, is well-attuned to the idiom. His only failing was not to shout 'ooyah!, ooyah!' at the end of his breaks à la Lennie Hastings with the Alex Welsh Band. He is forgiven ... Lance
Tin Roof Blues; Riverboat Shuffle; Someday Sweetheart; That's a Plenty; I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate; At the Jazz Band Ball; (Up a) Lazy River; Fools Rush in (Where Angels Fear to Tread); Love Me or Leave Me; (What Did I Do to Be So) Black and Blue; Who's Sorry Now?; On the Alamo.
2 comments :
I asked Joe about the tenor, and he confirmed it's a Conn 10M. What a gorgeous tone it makes, with Joe playing!
After hearing Magnus singing 'Fools Rush In', I tried to remember all the other recordings of the song and looked online for inspiration. This took me to another site ....... and a link to an Alexander Pope site, and his 'Essay on Criticism' written when he was 23 in the early 1700s. In this poem, he gave us three quotes, which are still in use now - 'fools rush in, where angels fear to tread', 'a little learning is a dangerous thing', and 'to err is human, to forgive is divine'. Not bad for one poem! It's a great song too.
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