Thought I’d drop a quick post to let you know what’s going on this weekend.
Last night I had a great show at the Pizza Express Maidstone with Clare Teal. We’re currently promoting our brand new album Hey Ho which came out on Monday. And is currently number 1 in the iTunes Jazz charts by the way….
Tonight I’ll be playing with Esther Bennett and Duncan Lamont at the Pheasantry in Chelsea. Esther’s gigs are always lots of fun so do come along if you’re in the area. Lovely pizzas there too…
And don’t forget Monday night I’ll be at the fabulous 606 club in Chelsea with the fantastic Nina Ferro. This is the first gig for a while we’ve done playing the material from her last album Waiting for the Sunset, and promises to be a great show. We’ve got Femi Temowo on guitar, Martyn Kaine on drums, Jono McNeilon bvs and Grant Wndsor on piano. It’s gonna be great and it’s gonna get busy so definitely book now to grab yourselves a table!
If you haven’t heard Nina’s album, here’s a little player for you (aren’t I good to you?!)
And if you’re sitting at home messing about on the internet, remember to checkout my latest offering at Bandcamp. I’m still offering it on a ‘pay what you want’ basis, including for free. So there’s really no excuse if you haven’t got a copy yet…
Ciao for now. Hopefully see you at one of these shows over the next couple of days;)
It’s a little late now but happy new year all the same.
Had a funny start to the year as I was struck down with the flu literally as my new year’s eve gig ended, so I managed to spend the entire first week of the new year in bed. Not a great start but things could only get better…
As indeed they did! As many of you know I have just returned from an all-too-short trip to San Diego. The Clare Teal band was asked to play at a rather swanky fundraiser for the San Diego Symphony up in La Jolla. So off we went at the beginning of last week for a three night jaunt halfway around the world all in the name of jazz…
We had such a great time. We were staying at La Valencia right in the middle of La Jolla. The weather was gorgeous and it was such a treat to escape from the cold and rain at home for a few days. We found an excellent breakfast spot called Cody‘s which we visited on several occasions (check out the eggs benedict and the french toast if you’re in the area- they rock!) and spent an inordinate amount of time seal-watching at the beach.
The gig itself was incredible. The venue was a purpose built construction over the host’s swimming pool decorated floor to ceiling in hand-made white paper flowers. The whole room was lit to change colour throughout the evening and during our set and the effect was mesmerizing. The guests’ evening began with a private recital from virtuoso pianist Lang Lang, after which they were brought to our venue and treated to a three course dinner accompanied by a jazz set from the trio; closely followed by a set from Clare. It really was a great night and we were really well looked after by the hosts.
So what other news? I hear you ask.
Well, Duke Special has a new 3-track EP Duke Special Sings The Songs of Ruby Murray. It is available at the Dukestore and all profits go to Depaul Ireland. It really is a lovely EP so go order your copy now..
Clare Teal’s latest album is now finished and due for release in March. Watch this space!!
And finally, the Little Alex project is well under way now. It is a collaboration between me and the fantastic drummer Steve Alexander. You can follow our escapades via Twitter as well as the Facebook page (don’t forget to click the Like button!). We are currently working on tunes combining looped bass (a la Mandala) with Steve’s live drums. The demos we’ve come up with so far sound great and we’re working towards an EP to be out sometime soon this year.
So it’s all happening folks. If you’re around tomorrow night I’ll be playing at The Spice of Life in Soho with Nina Ferro. See you there…
Now I don’t normally do this on the blog, but I’ve got a very exciting show coming up on Monday which I wanted to tell you about. We will be officially launching my good friend Nina Ferro’s excellent new album Waiting For The Sunset on Monday 10th at the wonderful 606 Club in Chelsea (90 Lots Road, SW10).
I’ve been playing with Nina for a few years now and she is one of the most fantastic singers you’ll ever hear. Her new album features some great new original material and some choice covers all arranged by Grant Windsor.
The show will feature a 10 piece band (yes, a 10 piece band at the 606.. how we’ll all fit on the little stage at once is frankly beyond me, but we’ll certainly have a go). This is the lineup:
Nina Ferro- Vocals (obviously!)
Grant Windsor – Piano, keyboards & backing vocals
Simon Little- Electric & upright basses, backing vocals
Femi Temowo- Guitar
Darryn Farrugia- Drums
Jono McNeil- Backing vocals
Jamie Lee Wilson- Backing vocals
Brandon Allen- Sax
Quentin Collins- Trumpet
Trevor Myles- Trombone
This is a real all-star lineup and promises to be a fantastic show. I’d seriously recommend you all get on the case and book your tickets now; I think the show is fast selling out. Personally, I can’t wait!Â
You can hear some of the tracks from Waiting For The Sunset on Nina’s MySpace page.
If you were planning on coming to one of my shows in London this year, come to this one. It’s gonna be a stonker. See you all there.
