BMJ Collective with Dom Pipkin. Black Mountain Jazz, Melville Centre, Abergavenny, 08/06/2025.

Jack Mac (Jack McDougall) – tenor & alto sax, vocals, Nick Kacal – double bass. Ryan Thrupp – drums
with Dom Pipkin – piano, vocals, tambourine

PROLOGUE

BMJ Collective is essentially the house band of Black Mountain Jazz.  Originally formed in 2021 for that year’s ‘hybrid’ Wall2Wall Jazz Festival the line-up has undergone a number of personnel changes and currently features founder member Jack Mac on reeds and occasional vocals, together with Nick Kacal on double bass and Ryan Thrupp at the drums.

Mac, Kacal and Thrupp also act as tutors at the BMJazzKatz sessions which bring young people  together for regular jazz sessions at the Melville Centre, with the intention of forming a youth big band. Mac is heading the programme and the Katz, together with their tutors, have already made three public performances, two of which have been covered elsewhere on this site.

The idea of the tutors then performing for the public in the evening following the Sunday afternoon sessions is not only for ticket sales to contribute towards the teaching costs, but also for the students to see their tutors performing at their best and embodying the JazzKatz motto of “work, play, inspire”.

As these BMJ Collective gigs have now become regular events it is intended that a different guest musician will be invited to perform with the group each time. To date the   ‘BMJ Collective With’ series has featured vocalist Sarah Meek, pianists Alex Hutton, Ross Hicks Michael Blanchfield, Tom Berge and Anders Olinder, trumpeter Gethin Liddington and guitarists Chris Cobbson, Denny Ilett and John Close  Founding member Alex Goodyear also returned for a guest appearance at the drum kit, temporarily replacing Ryan Thrupp. All of these performances have been hugely enjoyable events and each has been reviewed elsewhere on The Jazzmann.

Every performance in the series has included an interesting selection of material sourced from the jazz canon and beyond, the majority of it chosen, or written, by the guest performer. All of the gigs have exceeded my expectations, representing far more than the usual obligatory or perfunctory ‘house trio with guest soloist’ session.   As I have previously observed,  “this is a series of events that continues to punch well above its weight”.

BMJ COLLECTIVE with DOM PIPKIN

London based pianist, vocalist and songwriter Dom Pipkin has immersed has immersed himself in the culture of New Orleans and has visited the city on many occasions, appearing at the annual Jazz and Heritage Festival alongside some of his musical heroes.

His prime musical influences include the ‘Nawlins’ musicians Professor Longhair, Fats Domino, Dr. John, James Booker, and The Meters, these distilled into a virtuosic, all action piano style topped with powerful and commendably soulful vocals.  Pipkin and his regular working band Dom And The Ikos are a popular attraction on the London live music circuit and have performed regularly at Ronnie Scott’s.

In addition to his New Orleans inspired projects Pipkin is a member of the trip hop band Morcheeba and has also acted as a musical director for Paloma Faith. As a session musician he has worked with David Byrne,  Paul Weller, Ray Davies, Laura Mvula,  Jon Cleary, John Newman, the late Pee Wee Ellis among others. 

Pipkin has recorded a total of five albums and continues to gig relentlessly right across the UK and further afield. His appearance in Abergavenny was facilitated by his long running friendship with BMJC bassist Nick Kacal and represented his third visit to Black Mountain Jazz.

Pipkin was part of the ‘hybrid’ Wall2Wall Jazz festival that was organised by BMJ in 2021. Playing in a trio format with Kacal and drummer Jimmy Nordan he played a restricted numbers live gig in the  Barn at White House Farm in the village of Llanvetherine. This was witnessed and reviewed by guest contributor Nigel Jarrett, whose account can be viewed here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/dom-pipkin-trio-new-orleans-comes-to-wall2wall-the-barn-white-house-farm-llanvetherine-abergavenny-04-08-2021

Pipkin and the trio were also filmed and recorded in live performance earlier in the day at BMJ’s regular HQ, the Melville Centre, by Mark Viveash and the 47 Studios team. This was later streamed to a paying audience on line and my review of the streamed performance, which inevitably included some of the same numbers as the Llanvetherine show, can be found here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/dom-pipkin-trio-new-orleans-comes-to-wall2wall-livestream-for-wall2wall-virtual-jazz-festival-abergavenny

I seem to recall that Pipkin later returned to play a show for BMJ at the Melville in 2023, but I wasn’t in attendance for that one and that performance remains undocumented by The Jazzmann.

Tonight’s event teamed Pipkin and Kacal with the bassist’s regular BMJC partners Mac and Thrupp. Given Mac’s love of all things New Orleans – he runs his own ‘Nawlins style Full House Brass Band – this was an event that all four participants had very much been looking forward to – although it was not without its challenges.

By his own admission Pipkin had to have his ‘jazz hat’ on more often than usual as part of an ensemble more used to playing jazz standards than New Orleans barrel-house style piano music. And even allowing for Mac’s love for the music of the ‘Crescent City’ it took the trio into relatively uncharted territory too. If things were a little ragged at times it was both understandable and forgivable, musical risk taking is to be encouraged and a commendable sense of fun predominated throughout.

Opener “Mardi Gras” set the template for the night, a lively performance featuring Pipkin’s vocals and whistling while his rumbustious New Orleans style piano playing, with his fingers flying over the keys really set the hammers of the acoustic upright dancing.  Mac, on tenor sax,  was the other featured instrumental soloist.

When announcing a version of the Duke Ellington song “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” Pipkin promised that every number would be getting a “New Orleans kick”. This piece was no exception, with Pipkin’s vocalising and piano soloing augmented by further solos from Mac on tenor sax and Kacal on double bass. These were followed by a subtle series of piano and drum exchanges and finally a vocal reprise.

The quartet’s all instrumental take on “Limehouse Blues” was inspired by a recorded version by pianist Ellis Marsalis (father of Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo et al) and drummer Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts. This was introduced by Thrupp’s ‘second line’ style drumming and included solos from Pipkin at the piano and Mac on tenor. Ther was also a further drum feature for Thrupp as he traded fours with the rest of the band. It was interesting and refreshing to hear this piece performed in a New Orleans style after having witnessed so many Django Reinhardt / Hot Club style renditions over the years.

One of Pipkin’s most significant influences is the late New Orleans pianist and composer James Booker (1939-83), the subject of the documentary film “Bayou Maharajah”, directed by Lily Keber. Indeed Pipkin was invited to perform at the film’s official premiere. Tonight he chose to play the Booker song “One Hell of a Nerve” and the quartet delivered a rollicking version of the tune with Kacal’s powerful bass grooves underpinning Pipkin’s virtuoso piano playing and impassioned, rough edged, Booker-esque vocals. Mac was featured on alto sax and there was also an unaccompanied piano passage showcasing the Booker style, with the strong left hand rhythms a particularly distinctive component.

From Pipkin’s album “Come on Sunshine” the original song “I Love You” demonstrated Pipkin’s ability to write in a broadly New Orleans style and featured his singing and whistling in addition to his piano soloing. Kacal was also to feature as a soloist on double bass.

The Allen Toussaint song “Get Out Of My Life Woman” saw Pipkin and Mac sharing the vocals and also included powerful instrumental solos from Mac on alto sax and Pipkin at the piano.

The BMJ trio members temporarily left the stage for Pipkin’s solo performance of his song “Love Affair With New Orleans”, a piece that its creator described as “a show tune in the Nina Simone vein”.

A lengthy and very enjoyable first set concluded with “Jakimo-Fi-Na-Hey”, a song written by  alto saxophonist Donald Harrison, a native of New Orleans and once a member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. The title of the tune comes from a chant of defiance sung by the Mardi Gras Indians of the city, black revellers who dress up at carnival time and of whom Harrison is a chief. Pipkin alternated between piano and tambourine, the latter a symbol of the carnival rhythms, in a piece that fused these traditional New Orleans elements with the kind of modern jazz that Harrison performed with the Messengers and others. Pipkin’s singing and piano soloing were augmented by Mac’s tenor solo and a stunning drum feature from Ryan Thrupp that really brought the house down and concluded the set on a rousing note.

Set two commenced with Pipkin solo, playing and singing the Dr. John song “Life” in the style of James Booker.

“Big Chief”, performed with the whole quartet, was a celebration of the Mardi Gras Indian tradition, a song written by Earl King and recorded by Professor Longhair. This was a fast moving item, fuelled by Thrupp’s vigorous drumming and featuring Pipkin’s whistling and singing, plus instrumental features for piano, alto sax and drums.

Pipkin has played with the band Fallen Heroes and the next song, “Smile and Get On Down” was sourced from their curiously titled album “The Taste of the Chinstrap”. Do they eat Penguins one wonders, and not necessarily the chocolate ones. However, I digress.
This was played in the style of Huey ‘Piano’ Smith and featured Pipkin’s piano and vocals, Mac’s alto sax and Kacal’s double bass.

Mac took the lead vocal on “Buddy Bolden’s Blues”, a song attributed to Jelly Roll Morton. Even singing without the aid of a mic his voice was powerful and bluesy and rooted in his love of New Orleans music. Instrumental solos came from Pipkin on piano, also sounding authentically bluesy, and Mac on tenor sax.

The evening concluded with two genuine crowd pleasers, beginning with one of Dr. John’s best known songs, “Such A Night”. This was introduced by an extended passage of unaccompanied piano that offered further evidence, if indeed any were needed, of Pipkin’s mastery of New Orleans piano styles. There was also an unaccompanied piano coda that bookended the song itself, which saw Pipkin’s singing and piano playing augmented by Mac’s tenor sax soloing.

To close we heard the New Orleans staple “Iko Iko”, an adaptation of a children’s playground song given a New Orleans vibe. It’s the song that gives Pipkin’s band its name and it’s a regular fixture in his live performances. The audience were encouraged to sing along, and some were even moved to get up and dance. All four musicians were featured as soloists, with Mac on alto sax, as the evening ended on a joyous note.

The inevitable encore was the Huey ‘Piano’ Smith song “Don’t You Just Know It”, another staple of the Dom and the Ikos repertoire. This was a song with a refrain that encouraged further audience singing and dancing, with Pipkin on piano and Mac on alto the featured soloists.

I have to admit that the strain of New Orleans music that Pipkin plays isn’t a particular favourite of mine but it’s impossible not to be captivated by the energy and joyousness of his performances. His love for his chosen material is never in doubt and his command of it is masterful. As a pianist he’s a genuine virtuoso, and although his singing isn’t in quite the same league he’s an effective and more than adequate vocalist. Mac, Kacal and Thrupp clearly loved playing with him and enjoyed the opportunity of playing something different, with the irrepressible Thrupp again catching the eyes and ears of many in the audience. The occasional ragged moment could be forgiven in what was largely an excellent performance all round. Both the band members and the audience had great fun and it was a good way to round off the current ‘BMJC With…’ series, which will return in October when the BMJazzKatz sessions begin again.

In the meantime June 2025 is shaping up to be New Orleans month at Black Mountain Jazz as Jack Mac will return on June 29th for a regular Club night with the Full House Brass Band. Please visit http://www.blackmountainjazz.co.uk for further details.

 

 

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