Lewis Watson Quartet @ Gala Theatre, Durham - June 27

© Russell

Lewis Watson (tenor sax); Mark Williams (guitar); Andy Champion (double bass); John Bradford (drums)

Jazz at the Gala. Sold out. What's new? The Gala Theatre's monthly lunchtime concert series continues to attract capacity audiences. Musicians of the highest calibre are key to the series' ongoing success story and this afternoon's guests, the Lewis Watson Quartet, weren't about to buck the trend. 

A 'modern jazz' tenor saxophonist, Lewis Watson has few equals. His current quartet, comprising A-listers Mark Williams, Andy Champion and John Bradford, is a settled unit and it shows. A one hour set of mainly original compositions didn't flag for so much as a nanosecond. Earth opened the programme and its grandeur was - and is - quite something. It's as if Watson's composition has long-since become a standard, played by musicians the world over. 

© Russell

Guitarist Mark Williams, himself no mean composer, constructed fully-formed solos from a standing start, Watson giving him free reign to do just that. Whenever Andy Champion takes to the stage he cannot help but give a double bass masterclass. From start to finish, AC's time-feel and sense of swing walked them through it. And then there was John Bradford, drummer of choice for many bandleaders. 

Whether an original or a standard, Watson really gets inside a tune. The Road Ahead is a relatively new addition to the set list, it's bedding in nicely. Song for Keith (recently revived, remembering the late Keith Morris), a sparkling take on Skylark, a jaunty Sonny's Disposition (a nod to Sonny Rollins) and a Trane-like Prayer to Be, on this midsummer Friday afternoon, Durham's Gala Theatre was the only place to be. Russell          

Set list: Earth; The Road Ahead; Song for Keith; Skylark; Sonny's Disposition; Prayer to Be.