Shaye Cohn (cornet); Barnabus Jones (trombone); Craig Flory (clarinet); Gregory Sherman (guitar, vocals); Quentin Bardi (banjo); Todd Burdick (tuba); Robin Rapuzzi (washboard) + Ewan Bleach (tenor sax, clarinet)
A sold out Monday evening second house, the second of four capacity audiences over two days. Getting an audience in excess of two hundred in, then out, in timely fashion could be a nightmare for lesser establishments. Ronnie Scott's staff know the drill, efficiently showing ticket holders to their seats, waiting on tables, then, when the lights go up, things go in to reverse with a couple of hundred punters filing out onto Frith Street, brushing past the second house queue. This evening, Tuba Skinny would be making their debut here at Ronnie's. For bandleader Shaye Cohn it would be a special moment. Daughter of guitarist Joe Cohn, Shaye talked about her grandfather, tenor saxophonist Al Cohn, who, once upon a time, stood on the very spot Shaye was occupying on the stage.
Joe Greene's Just like Two Drops of Water (Wynonie Harris recorded the number) featured the band's special guest, playing tenor sax, Ewan Bleach. Multi-instrumentalist Bleach is a long time friend of the band, sitting in with Cohn and co a few years ago in the Crescent City. One sensed there was a mutual respect. Musically, Bleach fitted in, of course he did. Equally, the Englishman was every bit as laid back as his American friends. A match made in, if not heaven, N'Awlins.
Willie the Lion's Harlem Joys, Ellington's Rainy Nights, Armand Piron's Bouncing Around, the ensemble work impeccable, the solos commendably brief. Ronnie's audience couldn't get enough, Jabbo Smith's Ready Hokum a good 'un. Tuba Skinny at Ronnie Scott's, it really did happen! Russell
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