If you wanna get ahead… Sultan Stevenson is at Pizza Express Soho
HATS have a small but significant place in the history of jazz. Think of the plaintive Goodbye Pork Pie Hat, written by Charles Mingus in memory of saxophonist Lester “Prez” Young and his favourite headwear, which was the broad-brimmed and low-crowned version. Trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie wore a beret with aplomb, signifying his hep beatnik credentials. Thelonious Monk was definitely a hat cat, with an eccentric and eclectic range of titfers, reflecting perhaps the often-unpredictable nature of his harmonic explorations. His trademark look was immortalised in the title of Eric Dolphy’s tune Hat and Beard. Joe Zawinul of Weather Report and Ahmad Jamal both liked an embroidered skull cap and the pork pie (with a narrower brim than the style Prez preferred) came back into vogue during the 1980s jazz revival (think Absolute Beginners era). Something of an outlier, Hammond master Dr Lonnie Liston Smith (of Expansions fame) favours a turban.
I got to thinking on all this when reading a piece about the young pianist Sultan Stevenson in the latest issue of Jazzwise, an artist we have already flagged here as one-to-watch. I was aware that he has adopted the ubiquitous bucket hat as something of a trademark, but I hadn’t realised he makes his own, usually in wild, colourful geometric or swirling patterns. Anyway, there are more reasons to see the talented Sultan than his hats, cute though they are, and he is live at the Pizza Express Soho on Tuesday, June 13, promoting his rather splendid album Faithful One (Whirlwind Recordings – the title reflects his religious beliefs: as with hats, a devotional strand has always run tangential to the devil’s music – think Ellington and Coltrane). If you like the idea of McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock or Chick Corea being played with a deft contemporary slant (and still swinging), then get thee to Dean Street (https://www.pizzaexpresslive.com/). Guest Denys Baptiste on saxophone is an added bonus.
We said last year that jazz harpists were having a moment, but increasingly it seems like this is no passing fad. One of the pioneers of jazz (and funk) harp was Dorothy Ashby (1932-1986), who has just been awarded the full collectable re-issue treatment with a six-LP set remastered by the go-to vinyl guy, Kevin Gray. Dorothy Ashby with Strings (New Land) is limited to 1,000 copies and costs a wallet-bruising £200. It is a little cheaper to go and see someone who has championed Dorothy (and Alice Coltrane) across London for the past few years. In fact, Alina Bzhezhinska has done more than most to convince jazzers that the harp can be a lead instrument rather than mere colouration. Her excellent AlinaHipHarp ensemble, featuring saxman Tony Kofi, plays The Forge in Camden on June 8 (www.seetickets.com/event/alina-hipharp-collective-feat-tony-kofi/the-forge/2571342).
Somewhat nearer in time than that – you’ll have to get your skates on to catch her – is Belgian Julie Campiche who takes the harp into unfamiliar territory, moving between gentle introspection, hard grooves, spooky avant-garde and shimmering electronica with deceptive ease. Be quick – she’s at World Heart Beat in Nine Elms (Northern line) on June 2 – (https://uk.patronbase.com/_WorldHeartBeat/Productions/19/Performances).
One last recommendation: US harpist Brandee Younger’s album Brand New Life (Impulse!) which celebrates the Ashby/Coltrane legacy while sometimes reflecting it through a hip-hop lens (it’s produced by beats master Makaya McCraven). Excellent.
Anyone who saw alto sax player Danny Silverstone discussing John Coltrane (and his hero, Sonny Rollins) and his legacy at the Dartmouth Arms on York Rise recently will be aware than he more than knows his way around the music of the jazz greats. He will be playing at MAP Studios in Grafton Road in Kentish Town as part of the Equinox Quartet, featuring classic tunes from the likes of Rollins, Shorter, Hancock and Dameron. It starts at 1.30pm on June 11 and is the beginning of a monthly residency for the band. See http://mapstudiocafe.com/
Not quite full-on jazz, perhaps, but singer-songwriter Sodi Cookey sits at the intersection of a Venn diagram featuring Fela Kuti (who played jazz in London pubs as a young man), Steely Dan (jazzmen at heart) and Gregory Porter (these days, jazz-tinged gospel). Born in London but brought up in Nigeria, Cookey has already played to enthusiastic crowds at The Forge and the Camden Club (opposite The Roundhouse), and this charismatic performer returns to the latter with his mix of soul, hi-life and jazz on June 23. See https://thecamdenclub.co.uk/whats-on/
Talking of the Roundhouse, here is an event to book in advance. The promotor/record label Jazz re:freshed is coming to the iconic venue for the 10th iteration of its annual festival (Re:Fest). It’s always a fantastic selection of rising and established nu-jazz stars (the seminal Steam Down this year, for example, and drummer/producer Romarna Campbell – over 50 musicians / DJs in all.) It is on July 29, from 12pm and costs from just £15. (www.roundhouse.org.uk/whats-on/jazz-refest/?book=true)
Looking ahead to another gig that is likely to sell out, alto player Immanuel Wilkins is at Ronnie Scott’s on July 3. I first heard him on vibe player Joel Ross’s dazzling album Parable of the Poet (Blue Note) from last year and he has a remarkably fast and fluid style, which never sacrifices clarity of phrasing, except, perhaps, when he sets up a Coltrane-like sheet of sound. He can do soulful ballads and gospel-tinged workouts too. Give his album 7Th Hand (also on Blue Note) a listen to hear how he successfully blends classic horn and drum sounds with up-to-the-minute grooves or, better yet, catch the group live at Ronnie’s. (www.ronniescotts.co.uk/performances/view/8500-immanuel-wilkins)
