The Great, Late, Duke Ellington. The Duke Ellington Songbook: The Echoes of Ellington Band @ Pizza Express, Soho - July 6

Peter Long (MD, clarinet); Sara Oschlag (vocals); Colin Skinner, Alison Cawley (alto saxes); Simon Spillett,  Alex Garnett (tenor saxes); Jay Craig (baritone sax); Ian Bateman, Daniel Higham, Andy Flaxman (trombones); Mark Armstrong, George Hogg, Nathan Gray, Rory Simmons (trumpets); Robin Aspland (piano); Steve Pearce (bass); Matt Skelton (drums)

“Great”, we all know but “late” was news to me. Yes, I know he died in 1974 but I was unaware of his rep for leaving things 'til the last minute (or later)! Pete Long’s patter (worth the admit before a note is played) returned time and again to the story of Billy Strayhorn on his knees in the recording studio frantically finishing off the music even as the first track was being recorded. This because Ellington had arrived announcing, “Well, boys, I’ve got ONE!” (Completed tune, that is!)

We got that “one”, Caravan, near the end of the gig. Oddly this had less input from Strayhorn than any of the other tunes tonight being Ellington’s arrangement of Juan Tizol’s composition. On Caravan, the MD’s “favourite singist”, Sara Oschlag, hit some of her lowest, husky notes as well as some neck-hair-raising high ones, proving herself easily capable of matching Ella Fitzgerald’s 3 octave span and probably able to slug it out with Mariah Carey’s alleged 5 (should she wish to)! This vocal range was in evidence from the off and was combined with more than enough power to compete with the band at full-throttle, great use of the mic and the ability to REALLY scat like Ella. Formidable!

And the musicians? The concert publicity promised: “highly specialized virtuoso players on all the instruments…”. Understandably, this being my first jazz gig anywhere south of York, I recognized precisely one of the instrumentalists as they took their places at the start but his presence, front left and with sax in hand, was enough to validate the hype – it was Simon Spillett, no less! I have been fortunate enough to see him perform a few times when he ventures north of York! On the closing number, Cottontail, the “trading” between himself, Sara Oschlag and Alex Garnett was absolutely mesmerising!

The collective gravitas of the other musicians guaranteed a wealth of experience and soon gave way to (repeated) collective mirth, not only at the MD’s banter but in the clear enjoyment of each other’s musicianship. They were having a ball as was the audience although only one brave couple essayed a few dance moves in the straitened confines of a full house here. The feel for swing, musicians and vocalist both, was such that in larger premises (especially licensed like these) even I might have taken to the floor!

And the tunes?

Rockin’ in Rhythm (“commissioned by the Vatican”); Take the A-Train; All Too Soon and Bli-Blip. These were followed by an instrumental, Mount Harissa, which the MD pointed out is something of an outlier for Ellington with its Latin rhythms. To which educational content he added that the title “is a location not an instruction”! This tune gave us a taste of things to come as it saw Simon Spillett on his feet for the first time. Then it was back to the vocals with a bang: a raucous, raunchy Ain’t Got Nothin’ but the Blues. Sara, come north sometime, please!? Don’t Get Around Much Anymore (“dedicated to Rudolf Hess”!) was followed by Duke’s Place/C Jam Blues which featured an alto sax solo from Alison Cawley - outnumbered by the chaps but blowing for equality. Good on her!

The second half whizzed (always brilliantly) through more of the top Ellington/Ella repertoire such as I’m Beginning to See the Light, Passion Flower and Just Squeeze Me, featuring Jay Craig on baritone sax. We were then treated to one of the two compositions which kept Ellington solvent in tough times, It Don’t Mean a Thing… (The other being Sophisticated Lady). This arrangement must surely have influenced Ray Charles as the first few bars had me questioning, “Hang on, Ellington didn’t write Hit the Road Jack, did he?”. I’ve never heard the original so the gradual fade to what seemed like just Steve Pearce’s bass and an almost whispered chorus of doo-wops took me by surprise before delightful contributions from Ian Bateman, trombone, and George Hogg on trumpet turned up the volume again! Surprise and delight were the keynotes of my experience today: truly memorable!

Lost in Meditation was the calm before the storming closing number, Cottontail. As a novel (to me) full-stop to the afternoon the band then went into a Pete and Dud style rendering of Goodbyee! Brilliant! Jerry