Gareth Roberts with the Dave Jones Trio, Brecon Jazz Club Bar, Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon., 16/06/2015.

Brecon Jazz Club’s monthly gig for June featured two of the leading lights of the South Wales jazz scene. I’ve been a long term admirer of the talents of both trombonist Gareth Roberts and pianist Dave Jones, local favourites but also musicians worthy of national recognition. Both are highly competent jazz soloists but they are also composers of some stature having produced six albums of original material between them over the course of the last few years. The Jazzmann has reviewed both of Roberts’ albums and all four of Jones’ and the standard of writing and playing is superb throughout all of them.

Roberts is also a key member of Cardiff cult favourites Heavy Quartet as both player and composer and he is also a featured soloist in the acclaimed Capital City Jazz Orchestra (CCJO), the Cardiff based big band led by alto saxophonist Ceri Rees. 

Jones leads his own quartet but also plays in several other bands including the sextet Burum who perform a unique mix of Blue Note era jazz and traditional Welsh folk music. He has also appeared with Coltrane Dedication, the free-wheeling outfit fronted by saxophonists Lyndon Owen and Caractacus Downes. 

Coincidentally I’d seen both Roberts and Jones performing just two days earlier as part of the second Swansea International Jazz Festival. Roberts had been part of the CCJO who had appeared with guest vocalist Lee Gibson while Jones had been leading his own quartet. Reviews of both performances can be found in our feature covering the Sunday at SIJF.

Tonight’s show was much more of an “ad hoc” arrangement with Jones having to arrange cover for his regular bassist Ashley John Long who had been taken ill on the previous Saturday night. Donnie Joe Sweeney stepped admirably into the breach on double bass with the experienced Greg Evans filling the drum chair. Jones’ drummer of choice is the Irishman Kevin Lawlor who had appeared at Swansea but subsequently returned home to Co. Wexford. Although all four of tonight’s musicians had performed with each other in various permutations over the years this was the first time they had actually played together as a quartet. Given these circumstances they delivered an evening of excellent jazz over the course of two well programmed sets that included a number of jazz standards interspersed with original compositions from both Roberts and Jones. The music was presented with great good humour by the always affable Roberts and a commendably large crowd on a gorgeous summer’s evening went home very happy.   

The Jones trio opened proceedings with the standard “Long Ago And Far Away” which featured an expansive and inventive solo from Jones at the keyboard and a further solo from Sweeney on double bass.

Roberts then joined the trio for “Stella By Starlight”, leading off a sequence of solos that also included features for Jones and Sweeney.

Despite the fact that the programme had been put together at relatively short notice it was good to see the composing talents of both Jones and Robert being featured. The first original tune was Roberts’ “Neverending Journey”, a piece that first appeared on his 2006 début album “Attack Of The Killer Penguins”. A big band version of the tune has recently been recorded by the Capital City Jazz Orchestra. The piece is obviously something of a favourite for Roberts and it is impressive in its scope with a strong narrative arc and a number of dynamic changes. Tonight it was the vehicle for excellent solos from Roberts on trombone and Jones on piano.

A version of Tadd Dameron’s “Ladybird” saw a return to more familiar standards material with Sweeney’s propulsive bass walk and Evans’ busily brushed drum grooves fuelling fluent solos from Jones and Roberts. The number concluded with a bass feature from Sweeney which included some dramatic extreme low register playing.

The writing skills of Jones were showcased with a performance of the new composition “Departures And Arrivals”, a piece which had received its world premi?re just two days previously in Swansea. It’s a typically melodic piece of writing that more than maintains Jones’ high compositional standards and it was interesting to see the first solo performed by Roberts on trombone rather than Lee Goodall on sax. The fact that the tune worked so well again second time round in a different instrumental format is a tribute to its adaptability and to the composing abilities of Jones. The piece has an instant melodic appeal and was particularly well received by the discerning Brecon audience.

Thelonious Monk’s blues, “Blue Monk”, was the vehicle for an extraordinary trombone feature from Roberts that saw him utilising the full range of the instrument from vocalised low register growls, sometimes aided by the use of a plunger mute, to almost impossible high register bat like squeaks. Jones and Sweeney also soloed but it was the extraordinary slide gymnastics of Roberts that mesmerised and delighted the crowd.

The first set ended with a lively take on the standard “There Is No Greater Love” (announced with a particularly cheesy joke by Roberts) which included features for trombone and for Greg Evans at the drums who turned in a series of crisply brushed breaks.

Set two commenced with a Latin inflected arrangement of Joe Henderson’s “Recorda-Me”, a tune that has become something of a hard bop favourite. Here it was the vehicle for ebullient solos from Jones, Roberts and Sweeney. 

“Welsh Rarebit” was the second original tune from Jones, this time one of his oldest pieces and obviously a much loved favourite. Dating back to 2004 it was recorded on the trio album “Impetus” in 2009 before reappearing in a sextet arrangement on “Resonance” in 2012. Yet another version appears on the 2014 quartet album “Live At AMG”. Roberts played on the “Resonance” version so the tune represented an appropriate choice for this evening with solos coming from Roberts and Jones and with a closing drum feature from Evans.

The second original composition from Roberts was “Chwilio” (English translation “Searching”), a ballad from his second quintet album “Go Stop Go” (2010). Roberts may be an fluent and agile trombone soloist with an irreverent streak but he’s also capable of playing with great tenderness on ballads as he demonstrated here alongside a similarly lyrical Jones.

Roberts stepped aside as the trio tackled the little known Horace Silver tune “Tiffin” with Jones dedicating the piece to the composer’s memory. Sweeney’s driving bass groove and Evans’ crisply energetic drumming fuelled a joyous Jones solo that also managed to allude to the previously heard “Blue Monk”. There was also an extended feature for the highly capable Sweeney on the bass.

Roberts returned to the stand as the quartet wrapped up proceedings with Dudu Pukwana’s “August One” with the playful, joyous township feel of the music inspiring sparkling solos from Roberts and Jones with the trombonist again utilising the full range of capabilities of his instrument. There was also some great dialogue between bass and drums with the veteran drummer Bert Jones signalling his approval from the audience.

Brecon Jazz Club’s Lynne Gornall had little difficulty in encouraging this fine quartet to come back for an encore, a good humoured take on Duke Ellington’s “Caravan”  with Roberts bringing something of a New Orleans feel and Jones adding classical flourishes to his solo as well as a final visit to “Blue Monk”. Evans turned in some effervescent drum breaks as he traded fours with Roberts. Great stuff and a hugely enjoyable end to an evening of high quality jazz.

Tonight’s performance was one that exceeded expectations, not just a routine standards gig but one that quite rightly showcased the composing skills of the two leaders as well as highlighting their capabilities as jazz soloists.

During the course of the evening Roberts took time out to inform the audience about a project he has been working on featuring the music of his quintet and the words of the poet clare e. potter. This jazz/spoken word collaboration entitled “Sucking on Sugar Cane” will explore the legacy of Hurricane Katrina a full decade after the event. potter lived in New Orleans for ten years and Roberts spent three months composing new music for the project. The premi?re of this hybrid event will take place at Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff on the evening of July 1st 2015. Please visit http://www.chapter.org for further information and ticket details. 

 

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