Nick Ramm Ensemble @ Vortex Jazz Club, Dalston - June 19

Nick Ramm (piano); Pete Wareham (tenor sax, flute); Byron Wallen (trumpet); Tom Herbert  (double bass); Corrie Dick (drums)

An extraordinarily talented quintet of heavyweights of the UK jazz scene performed a set list of Nick Ramm composed tunes at Dalston’s premier Jazz Club on 19 June to provide a rich evening of entertainment on a sultry Friday evening. It was the first time I had seen Nick Ramm play live. Nick has been playing with Pete and Byron since the 1990’s and with Tom and Corrie more recently. I saw Corrie leading his own band at the Vortex last year and I have also seen him play with others such as Laura Jurd in the band Dinosaur. I have recently been enjoying the 2023 double album London Brew which celebrates the 50^th anniversary of Miles Davis’ record Bitches Brew which features amongst others Nick Ramm and Tom Herbert so I was expecting a very special show and I was not disappointed.

The bands Nick has been involved with include the Cinematic Orchestra  whose drummer Luke Flowers I have the privilege of hearing play live regularly in Llandudno and in the North West of England. Nick’s compositions draw from his roots in soulful piano and contemporary jazz. The all acoustic line-up of piano, double bass and drums is augmented by the two horns played by Pete and Byron and Pete also played the flute on the tune Dos Santos. On all tunes Corrie excelled and I enjoyed his solos on What do I Want? and on an epic 15 minute plus version of Payroll  a fast bop number. The slow cycles of Little White Petals are  contrasting examples from the set list which was broken into two parts. Stylistically the music draws from a wide palette of influences. As Nick indicated at the beginning of the concert many of the main themes are written in the minor key but balanced by another section with brighter tonalities.

On many of the tunes the horns played together much like, for example in the Miles Davis bands of the 1950’s and 60’s. Pete and Byron are two of the most eminent UK horn players in the genre of jazz.

This concert was the premiere of a brand new tune What do I Want?

A Friday evening in London very well spent. Richard Morris

Setlist: Minor Niner; Second Rise; Boona Cha Boon; What do I Want?; Dos Santos; Everything is Moving; Little White Petals; Payroll; Where the Zero Begins

The Vortex Jazz Club  11 Gillett Square, London N16 8AZ  Tel: 020 3337 0993  www.vortexjazz.co.uk

The Vortex is one of London’s most acclaimed venues for jazz. It is a small not-for-profit club with innovative programme of jazz improvised and experimental music. It houses two performance spaces.