Deirdre Cartwright ‘Organik’ Trio, Brecon Jazz Club, The Muse Arts Centre, Brecon, 13/10/2026

Deirdre Cartwright –  guitar, Pete Whittaker – Hammond organ, Gary Hammond – percussion

Brecon Jazz Club’s latest event saw a welcome return visit from guitarist and composer Deirdre Cartwright, leading the trio that appear on her latest album “Organik”, released earlier in 2026 and her first recording as a leader for fifteen years. My review of the “Organik” recording, which provides the base for much of the following biographical material, can be found here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/deirdre-cartwright-organik

Cartwright first came to prominence as the guitar tutor on the 1983 BBC TV series Rock School. She’d already played with Painted Lady, the group that evolved into Girlschool,  and with the band Tour De Force but turned towards jazz, leading her own groups in addition to performing as a member of the fondly remembered all female Latin jazz ensemble The Guest Stars.

With bassist Alison Rayner Cartwright co-ordinated the long running Blow The Fuse jazz nights at London’s Vortex Jazz Club and also established the Blow The Fuse record label. She is currently a member of Rayner’s acclaimed quintet ARQ, which visited Brecon Jazz Club back in 2017.

In addition to appearing on all four ARQ albums Cartwright has also released six albums under her own name, these embracing a broad variety of jazz styles in the company of a wide range of contributors, among them Rayner and fellow ARQ members Diane McLoughlin (reeds), Buster Birch (drums) and Steve Lodder (keyboards).

The Cartwright back catalogue includes “Debut” (1994), “Play” (1997), “Precious Things” (2002), “Dr. Quantum Leaps” (2004), “Tune Up Turn On Stretch Out” (2007) and “Emily Remembered” (2011), the last named a homage to Emily Remler.

Cartwright was also part of the all female trio Lund, with vocalist / lyricist / percussionist Sarah P and drummer / percussionist Ann Day, releasing the album “Flawed Heroine” in 2015.

Together with Rayner she is also a member of the all female ‘party band’ Electric Landladies.

Cartwright, Rayner and McLoughlin also play with the Latin / Brazilian jazz quartet Sea Change, alongside percussionist Jessica Palin.

Cartwright was voted Best Guitarist at the 2019 British Jazz Awards and in 2020 received the Services to Jazz Award for her work with the Blow The Fuse organisation. Meanwhile ARQ has won a Parliamentary Jazz Award for Best UK Jazz Group and a Presto Music Award for Jazz Recording of the Year 2025 (for the album “SEMA4”). 

Other artists with whom she has worked include vocalists Carol Grimes and Ian Shaw, trombonist Annie Whitehead, drummer Winston Clifford and fellow guitarists Tal Farlow, Mick Goodrick, Will Barnes, Steven Kirby, John Close and Tom Ollendorff.

As an educator she has written seven guitar tuition books. She has also hosted her own show on London Jazz Radio.

Cartwright is no stranger to Brecon and last visited in October 2025, a year ago to the day, as part of a quartet co-led with visiting American guitarist Steven Kirby, with local heroes Nick Kacal and Ryan Thrupp filling the bass and drum chairs respectively. Review here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/steven-kirby-deirdre-cartwright-quartet-brecon-jazz-club-the-muse-arts-centre-brecon-14-10-2025

In 2015 Cartwright brought a band to that year’s Brecon Jazz Festival to perform a show celebrating the music of two influential guitarists who were both lost to the world far too early, Wes Montgomery (1925-68) and Emily Remler (1957-90). This was an event that represented something of a ‘six string summit’ with Cartwright joined by two fellow guitarists, local hero Will Barnes and a then very young Tom Ollendorff, who had just graduated from the Royal Welsh College of  Music & Drama in Cardiff. Bass duties were undertaken by Rayner, with Cardiff based drummer Greg Evans completing the group. Review here;
https://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/deirdre-cartwright-band-friends-brecon-jazz-festival-09-08-2015

Tonight’s performance featured Cartwright’s Organik Trio featuring organist Pete Whittaker and percussionist Gary Hammond. Whittaker was playing a two manual Crumar organ while Hammond deployed an impressive battery of percussion including congas, bongos and cajon plus a whole array of smaller percussion instruments that Cartwright referred to as “toys”. “The only Hammond on the stage is Gary”, joked Cartwright.

The use of percussion rather than the conventional drum kit helps to give the Organik Trio a distinctive sound that almost inevitably tips its metaphorical hat towards the music of Latin America and Brazil. Tonight’s show featured virtually every track from the “Organik” album, plus a selection of well chosen covers.

The trio kicked off with the lively album track “Mango Bango”, inspired by Cartwright’s trip to the Bequia Blues Festival on the Caribbean island of the same name, part of the St. Vincent and The Grenadines archipelago. As part of this ‘organ trio with a difference’ Cartwright deploys a classic jazz guitar sound and was the first to take a solo here, her sophisticated chording underpinned by the sounds of organ and congas. Whittaker and Hammond also enjoyed solo features on this breezy, feel good opener. Each album track is inspired by, or dedicated to, a famous fellow guitarist, either living or dead. In this case it was the late, great Grant Green (1931-79).

Also from the album Cartwright’s version of the standard “Softly As In A Morning Sunrise” is inspired by an arrangement of the same piece by the tragically short lived American guitarist Emily Remler (1957 – 90). Cartwright has previously paid tribute to Remler’s memory on the 2011 album “Emily Remembered”, a set of guitar duets recorded with fellow Remler admirer Kathy Dyson. Tonight’s rendition of “Softly” was delivered at a slower pace then has become usual, with elegant solos from Whittaker and Cartwright, plus a feature on bongos from Hammond.

From the recording Cartwright’s composition “Espresso Martino” represents Cartwright’s homage to Pat Martino (1944 – 2021), a guitarist who often performed in the organ trio format, most notably with that giant of the Hammond Joey DeFrancesco. With Gary Hammond reverting to congas Cartwright’s piece blended Latin, blues and funk elements and included solos from Cartwright and Whittaker, plus an organ and percussion dialogue, with Hammond augmenting the sound of the congas with those of body percussion.

Cartwright was initially inspired to play the guitar by The Beatles, but her arrangement of “Eleanor Rigby” was channelled via the recorded version by jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery (1925 – 68). Introduced by a passage of unaccompanied guitar this Latin flavoured interpretation of the song featured Hammond on bongos as Whittaker and Cartwright shared the solos.

Cartwright informed us that her original composition “One For Polly” was actually a contrafact based on the chord sequence of  “The Saga of Harrison Crabfeathers”, a composition by the American pianist Steve Kuhn. Cartwright was introduced to Kuhn’s tune by Steven Kirby at last year’s Brecon Jazz Club show and Cartwright’s adaptation was recorded for “Organik” in February 2026. Centred around an infectious 6/8 groove this piece featured Hammond on cajon as he shared the solos with Cartwright and Whittaker.

The opening set concluded with the only piece thus far not to be included on the album. This was an arrangement of “Jeannine”, a bebop standard and the most famous composition by the American pianist and composer Duke Pearson. Played with a distinctive Latin twist this arrangement featured solos from Whittaker and Cartwright plus a percussion feature from Hammond that incorporated both bongos, his main instrument on this tune, and congas.

Set two commenced with another non-album track.  “Road Song” is one of Wes Montgomery’s most famous and most accessible compositions and a tune that he recorded with organist Jimmy Smith. Solos from Cartwright and Whittaker were followed by a conga feature from Hammond.

Also not on the album but a tune that has been in Cartwright’s repertoire for some time (it was played with Kirby last year) Cole Porter’s “Love For Sale” featured an expansive solo from Whittaker, one of the UK’s most respected jazz organists.  Other UK jazz artists that Whittaker has performed with include  guitarist John Etheridge, saxophonists Art Themen and Theo Travis and vocalist Zoe Schwarz. He is also a member of the soul jazz outfit The Filthy Six. Cartwright was also featured as a soloist while Hammond was featured on both cajon and congas. This lively, Latin-esque interpretation of the song was particularly well received by the Brecon Jazz Club audience.

Hammond’s collection of ‘toys’ came into play during the trio’s delightfully laid back interpretation of “The Gentle Rain”, a bossa written by the Brazilian composer Luiz Bonfa that features on the album. The percussionist produced a rich array of exotic sounds to accompany the typically fluent soloing of Whittaker and Cartwright.

The recording also includes an arrangement of Bronislaw Kaper’s “On Green Dolphin Street”, one of the most frequently played jazz standards. Cartwright’s version takes inspiration from a recording by the tragic figure of guitarist Doug Raney (1956 – 2016), the son of jazz guitarist Jimmy Raney. Introduced by the combination of guitar and congas tonight’s performance included solos from Whittaker and Cartwright, plus a feature for Hammond. The London born percussionist is now based in Hull and plays on the city’s jazz scene in addition to pursuing a busy session career.  He plays across a wide range of musical genres, with two of his more high profile engagements being with Nina Simone and with The Beautiful South.

Cartwright swapped her arch-top jazz guitar for a vintage Fender Stratocaster for the last two numbers. Apparently the Strat used to belong to Steve Hillage, of Gong and System 7 fame, one of my prog rock heroes back in the day. Rather incongruously Cartwright deployed Hillage’s old instrument to play the Hoagy Carmichael tune “Georgia”, giving it an unusual and innovative interpretation featuring the sounds of sustain heavy guitar and heavily distorted keyboards, with Whittaker delivering his most powerful and fiery solo of the night, much to Cartwright’s delight.

The set closed with Cartwright still on the Strat for an imaginative jazz / latin adaptation of the Dire Straits song “Sultans of Swing”, written by that group’s guitarist and vocalist Mark Knopfler. As a jazz musician Cartwright could relate to the lyrical content of Knopfler’s song and set about putting her own stamp on it. Introduced by a dialogue between the leader on guitar and Hammond on various items of percussion this piece was something of a tour de force for the percussionist who subsequently switched to bongos as he shared the solos with Cartwright and Whittaker.

Naturally a jazz interpretation of such a well known rock song was always going to be popular with the audience and The Muse crowd responded very positively to the trio. The deserved and inevitable encore proved to be another jazz interpretation of a famous rock tune as Cartwright returned to her arch-top for a take on The Doors’ “Light My Fire” with Whittaker giving it the full Ray Manzarek as he shared the solos with Cartwright and Hammond.

Cartwright is a much loved figure with Brecon audiences and the Organik Trio were given a great reception, and rightly so. The standard of the playing from this ‘organ trio with a difference’ was excellent throughout and this was allied to some intelligent original writing from Cartwright plus some fascinating and innovative arrangements of the outside material, be it unusual versions of jazz and bebop standards or imaginative interpretations of pop and rock songs. As Angus Kings of The Muse and of Mid Wales Rhythm & Blues Club noted Cartwright and the Trio absolutely made these covers their own, placing their own distinctive stamp and identity on them. It was an observation that brought a smile of satisfaction to Cartwright’s face when I passed it on.

It’s a tribute to Cartwright’s character that she was here to play this show at all. This date at The Muse, long in the diaries of both Brecon Jazz Club and the musicians involved, clashed with the Parliamentary Jazz Awards that were taking place in London the same evening. Cartwright and Alison Rayner were the recipients of a special Parliamentary Jazz Award for their fifty years of making music together.

Here’s what the Awards committee said about Cartwright and Rayner and their contribution to British jazz;

“Special APPJG Awards celebrating fifty years of activity and progress
Alison Rayner and Deirdre Cartwright
For over fifty years, Alison Rayner and Deirdre Cartwright have been influential figures in British jazz, celebrated as performers, composers, bandleaders and educators. Through their outstanding musical achievements and commitment to nurturing talent, they have helped shape the UK jazz landscape, inspiring generations of musicians while championing creativity, collaboration and artistic excellence”.

Cartwright honoured her commitment to Brecon Jazz Club rather than attend the awards ceremony, which for me speaks volumes for her integrity, and perhaps goes some way to explaining just why she and Rayner came to win the Award in the first place. As part of the house band at the ceremony Alison was definitely there to collect this well deserved ‘gong’ on Cartwright’s behalf. Well earned congratulations to both of them.

My thanks also to Deirdre, Gary and Pete for speaking with me after the show, Three exceptional musicians, but three exceptional human beings too.

This evening’s event was supported by Art Council Wales’ Noson Allan or Night Out community scheme, which has assisted Brecon Jazz Club on numerous occasions over the years, so many thanks to them for their positive involvement.

 

 

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