Sharp Little Bones with Tony Kofi, Volumes I & II album launch

(Peggy’s Skylight, Nottingham. 11 Could 2023. Overview by Jeanie Barton)

Double disk launch by Ubuntu Music UBUO138 

This evening was a pleasure to behold and introduced collectively pals from all corners of College of Nottingham music lecturer, author and performer Simon Paterson’s life. Paterson is double bassist in the home band of fashionable, Parliamentary Award-winning Nottingham jazz venue Peggy’s Skylight, alongside Paul Deats on keys and Andrew Wooden on drums. He got here up with the idea for Sharp Little Bones about three years in the past, and the natural development of this band and venture has been nurtured by their shut relationship enjoying collectively on the venue. Paterson has written all of the compositions on this new launch however there was apparent enter from the entire ensemble, which since final yr has additionally featured Tony Kofi on sax.

Because the gig started, the packed room hushed and so they launched into the primary funky quantity ‘Ury Bop’ in 7/8, a catchy melody named after an expression in an Indian people story ‘The Previous Lady and the Pumpkin’. The music and sound instantly felt distinctive with Deats on Fender Rhodes and Korg Prologue synth, which concurrently sounds each futuristic and retro. 

‘Chromatose’ is a zen-like quantity, once more with uncommon rhythmic kind, focusing harmonically on 4ths with chromatic shifts – it was moderately haunting. ‘Layli’s Lullaby’ begins with a bass and sax unison intro in 7/4. Layli is Simon’s daughter who, like my son, should have slumbered most soundly when jazz was pumping, given how the piece begins small however builds to a drum breakout by Andrew Wooden, aka Woody. 

‘Hiddenness’ has a sinister nearly aggressive hook opening that dissipates into an arhythmic free drum solo. This in flip dissolves to a fragile unison function with the horror-edged hook instantly interjecting – it actually retains the listener on their toes! Finally the quantity morphs into a giant swinger of a tune with Kofi dropping in ‘the quickest solution to Harlem’ line from ‘Take the A Practice’. 

‘Downfall’ is a ballad that includes Paterson harmonising on his electrical bass and doing an intensive solo. Deats is on synth, sounding each ethereal and area age; the entire composition provides a sense of being weightless. ‘Stranger Hazard’ jogged my memory a little bit of Charlie Parker’s ‘Now’s the Time’, that includes chromatic lifts and bebop stops plus a Bo ba bo ba! Bembé rhythm, which interrupts the onerous swing – nice enjoyable. 

Within the second set, ‘Roo’s Blues’ is called after Paterson’s eldest boy Rubin who, aged 10, is properly into his jazz and already jamming at Peggy’s ‘Nottingham Jazz Jam’ on alto sax and keys. It jogged my memory of Mancini’s ‘The Pink Panther’ with a form of “detective vibe”. It’s a nod to his favourites Artwork Blakey and Sonny Rollins. 

‘Troll Stroll’ has a boogaloo rhythm like ‘Beat Goes On’ however with a twist. There’s actually lots of humour in Paterson’s writing and the band’s efficiency – the viewers had an actual chuckle. 

‘Mackerel Sky’ is a cool blues with a cyclic syncopated head performed in unison. The shape is handed round and Paterson made a pleasant rock and roll lick throughout his solo – displaying his variety of fashion. Kofi employed round inhaling essentially the most intense second that received the gang whooping. It ended with an unexpectedly ecclesiastical ending by Deats on the Rhodes. 

‘Sorceress’ featured Deats, this time on the grand piano, for an intro harking back to romantic classics and Gershwin. This gave solution to an electrical bass pulse with a drone/peddle adopted by a spacious melody that inbuilt complexity for a modal, non secular vibe. It ended because it started, on the grand. 

The viewers demanded extra, in order that they did an encore of ‘Trailblazing’ the place suspended bass harmonics supported the tenor melody.

These two albums have been recorded in only one 9-hour session at Metronome in the summertime of 2022. With this clearly profitable venue full to the brim and producing new music/collaborations like this, it’s devastating to assume it’s at the moment below risk of demolition. Please preserve an eye fixed out for fundraising and petition updates on the venue’s web site.