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Review

Mark Latimer Trio

Mark Latimer Trio, Black Mountain Jazz, Kings Arms, Abergavenny, 17/04/2011.


by Ian Mann

April 19, 2011

/ LIVE

An eclectic, irreverent but hugely entertaining performance from this genre straddling pianist and his trio.

Mark Latimer Trio

Black Mountain Jazz, Kings Arms, Abergavenny, 17/04/2011

This was my second piano trio gig of the weekend, having covered Will Butterworth’s performance in Presteigne only the night before. These two shows provided ample evidence of the sheer variety available from the superficially simple configuration of piano, double bass and drums. Both Butterworth and Latimer are classically trained but they put their finely honed techniques to very different uses.

Latimer’s is one of those names I’ve often seen mentioned but have never actually got around to listening to on record or seeing in the flesh. Knowing him to be a genre straddling artist with a foot in both the jazz and classical camps I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this evening, especially as it was initially billed as a duo performance featuring just Latimer and bassist Steve Tanner. In the event the performance saw the group augmented to a trio with the welcome addition of drummer and percussionist Iolo Whelan, a highly versatile musician whom I last sighted in the engine room of the lively folk rock outfit Mabon. Whelan’s performance tonight behind his uniquely customised drum kit was sensational and added greatly to the success of the evening. In addition to traditional kit drums he also deployed a frame hung with small cymbals and sundry other exotic percussive devices. The range of sounds and colours available to him enhanced the music superbly. Of even more significance was Latimer’s use of grand piano following the recent deployment of electric keyboards at the club. He certainly got the most out of the instrument even if he did give it a bit of a rough ride at times! More on that later.


Right from the beginning it was obvious that Latimer is one of the music’s great eccentrics. His announcing style was full of self deprecating humour in the style of Ronnie Scott but with a surreal twist, a glance at his website reveals an obvious delight in language and wordplay. His choice of material was equally off the wall, jazz standards, pop tunes, TV themes, the avant garde-it was all grist to Latimer’s mill. He seemed to take a perverse delight in trying to confuse his audience but did so in an eclectic and highly entertaining fashion. Not keen on announcing song titles he defied his audience to “name that tune” by disguising many of the covers elaborately, including the heavily mutated “All The Things You Are” ( he sometimes refers to it as “All The Things You Ain’t”) that opened the first set. Latimer deploys his technique in irreverent ways, his tumbling runs and thundering left hand rhythms variously echoed Thelonious Monk and McCoy Tyner as he improvised at length supported by Tanner’s sturdy bass and Whelan’s quirkily energetic drumming. Eventually both Tanner and Whelan enjoyed features on this highly innovative and personalised exploration of this hoariest of jazz standards.

Next up was a tune first recorded by late 90’s indie/pop act Alisha’s Attic. Even Latimer and his colleagues weren’t sure of the actual title of the piece- the all female duo (they were sisters) had a number of hits in the late 90’s but I’d hazard a guess that is was the self referential “Alisha Rules The World” from 1996. In any event the trio turned it into something very lovely, this time emphasising the melodic and lyrical qualities of the piece as well as improvising at length. Following Tanner’s bass solo the delicate filigree of Whelan’s exquisite cymbal work in the song’s closing exchanges could have come straight off an ECM recording.

The trio demonstrated that they could do more or less conventional swing on the standard “Nobody Else But Me” before closing the first set with a Latimer original simply entitled “Spanish”. His solo piano intro utilised the whole keyboard taking in ethereal trills to thunderous left hand clusters. Latimer isn’t the kind of performer who does things by halves. Many of the patterns were drawn from Spanish guitar music but Latimers “transcriptions” were little short of stunning. Tanner’s bass solo was accompanied by Whelan’s hand drumming before the percussionist took over to deliver a richly textured solo that was immaculately constructed and always maintained a sense of melody and an inner logic. This was greeted with rapturous applause by the small but enthusiastic audience and brought the curtain down (metaphorically speaking) on an eclectic but hugely entertaining first set.

Half time brought something of a bonus as we ate our tapas to the strains of the latest Sarah Gillespie album ” In The Current Climate”. Sarah and her partner in crime Gilad Atzmon were a huge hit at BMJ earlier in the year and it was good to be reminded of just how good that album is.

If Latimer’s first set had been eclectic he was to push the envelope even further at the start of the second. His “Variations Of A Motivic Cell” was an irreverent take on the music of Steve Reich that saw BMJ’s resident sound engineer Jim assisting Latimer with a little live looping as the pianist played different phrases to construct a typically Reichian edifice of layered sounds. “Look, no hands!” exclaimed Latimer as he lifted his digits from the keyboard and the music continued unabated. He then invited Tanner so sit by him at the piano stool and instructed him to repeatedly play a single note (“this one here”) which was added to the pulsating layers of rhythm. Whelan meanwhile busied himself under the piano lid drumming on the strings, sometimes using devices to dampen the sound. These included Latimer’s jacket which the pianist roughly jammed into the body of the instrument and a pint of cider, which was also passed around the three musicians, each taking a swig as they played. The sense of absurd theatricality was completed by Latimer repeatedly slamming his backside on the keyboard. The audience were bemused but at the end applauded enthusiastically. “It’s all a bit of fun” declared Latimer, as indeed it was. This might be the sort of thing you’d see at The Vortex all the time but it was certainly a first for BMJ and undoubtedly the weirdest performance I’ve ever seen here. I’m not sure that I’d want to listen to it at home though!

Rather more conventional was the gospel tinged “Ode To Life” written by the late Don Pullen (1941-95), one of Latimer’s all time piano heroes. This was a lovely tune, not one that I can recall having ever heard before, and distinguished here by a typically expansive solo piano introduction, another reminder of Latimer’s awesome technique.

Latimer’s own “Bridge Over The River K.Y.” closed the set, another intense and lengthy workout that saw the trio introducing some rock tinged rhythms to the music. Ever the entertainer Latimer, aided and abetted by Tanner, made a big show of going outside for a smoke, the pair of them leaving Whelan to it for the course of another lengthy drum feature. Whelan entered gamely into the spirit of things and his party piece proved to be just as colourful and inventive as the drum solo which had closed the first half.

The brief encore was a brisk romp through Brian Fahey’s “At The Sign Of The Swinging Cymbal” , a tune made famous by DJ Alan Freeman who used it as the theme tune for “Pick Of The Pops”.

I have to say that I was impressed by my first encounter with Mark Latimer’s music. I was impressed by both his technique and his cheery irreverence, a Mark Latimer performance, at any rate one with his jazz hat on, is never going to be dull. Tanner and Whelan offered good natured, sterling support with the young drummer really bringing something extra to the music. 

Unfortunately my discovery may have come rather too late. BMJ’s Mike Skilton revealed the possibility that this may have been Latimer’s last ever public performance. The pianist has been battling with a severe form of arthritis and has been playing through the pain barrier. On tonight’s showing one would never have known but it would seem that playing is becoming increasingly difficult.

Whilst this may be disappointing for me, and any other new converts the trio made tonight, this career threatening illness is a disaster for Latimer. All the jazz world can do is to wish him well and from this jazz fan in particular say thanks for a wonderful evening’s entertainment. If Latimer is bowing out he’s doing so smiling. Let’s hope we’ve not heard the last of him just yet.

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