The Bebop Shop : A Swingin' Affair: Blue Notes & Hard Bop Classics : The Jazz Couriers: Tubby Hayes & Ronnie Scott
Only a few years before, the very notion of British jazzmen holding their own at an international level would have been all but risible; yet by the close of the 1960s the news that guitarist John McLaughlin and bassist Dave Holland were being headhunted by Miles Davis was greeted not by surprise, but with a certain amount of jingoistic pride. No one musician had done more to raise the game of the local performers in the preceding decade than Tubby Hayes; his story was as much about the personal cost of his dedication to musical excellence as it was his overcoming the inertia of his surroundings; his story remains one of lasting impact. (Proper Records) Price: £15.49
Hailed as "England’s greatest jazz combo", Ronnie Scott and Tubby Hayes formed the Couriers to bring their message to the world that British jazz was alive and kicking! Joined by Terry Shannon on piano, Phil Bates on bass and Bill Eyden on drums we find them on a double bill with Dave Brubeck live at the Dominion Theatre in early February 1958. Wearing their influences on their sleeves, Brubeck was heard to declare "They sound more like an American band than we do". Moving ahead to November 1958 and the Couriers had been joined by Jeff Clyne on bass for a recording in London which clearly shows how British jazz was beginning to take it to their American cousins! For "Tubby’s Groove", Tubs steps out from the Couriers for the first time but is in familiar company with Shannon and Clyne and joining them on drums, the legendary and phenomenal Phil Seamen! Completed by four classic sides featuring the hard hitting, searing sound of Tubby’s tenor alongside trumpeter Jimmy Deuchar from "Pub Crawling" where the band pay tribute to the fine art of beer drinking! All three albums plus, have been digitally re-mastered for probably the finest sound quality ever! (AVID Entertainment) Price: £8.99
Hayes’ mastery of vibes, flute and alto sax are showcased on the rare “London Jazz Quartet” LP (1959) - here in its entirety - plus “An Evening With Tony Kinsey” (1961) teaming four of the UK’s greatest jazz musicians – Hayes, Kinsey, Bill Le Sage and Jimmy Deuchar. The compilation also dips into the Jazz At The Flamingo album for the two tracks on which Hayes sits in with the Tony Crombie Quintet, and rounds up a couple of studio sides, again with Crombie.
With comprehensive and informative sleeve notes, this is an essential purchase for the many devotees of the exciting late-’50s / early-’60s era when the UK modern jazz scene (with Hayes at the helm) became world-renowned via Soho’s jazz hotspots, The Flamingo and Ronnie Scott’s. (Discovery Records) Price: £10.99
Tracks: Tin Tin Deo / Visa / Supper At Phil's / Hook's Way / The Trolley Song Price: £10.99
The thirteen tracks on offer here were composed by and feature British jazz and rock and roll legend Tony Crombie and includes an extra track that was not included on the original album.
Wonderfully remastered and with extensive notes by Simon Spillett this is a great and entertaining sidebar to the main development of Britain's Legendary modern jazz icon. (Jasmine Records) Price: £11.99
Newly discovered live recordings by Tubby Hayes and his Quintet recorded at the Dancing Slipper, Nottingham, December 1963. With Jimmy Deuchar, Terry Shannon, Freddy Logan and Allan Ganley. Price: £8.99
In contrast is ‘London Swings’, the second album compiled on this release, a swinging, jazzy, big band affair conducted and arranged by Johnny Scott, erstwhile leader of British jazz group The Johnny Scott Quintet. Recorded in Abbey Road Studio No.2, the music is centred on the city of London, and Johnny Scott comes up with inspired arrangements of famous numbers including Chelsea Bridge, A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square and London By Night as well as a light sprinkling of original compositions. (Dutton Vocalion) Price: £10.99
Fortunately for the generations of listeners who weren't lucky enough to have been around when Stan Tracey and his resident trio held forth with the likes of Stan Getz, Sonny Rollins, Johnny Griffin, Roland Kirk, Ben Webster and Sonny Stitt, journalist Les Tomkins ensured that at least some of this mythic and exciting music found its way on to tape.
It's these historical recordings by Les Tomkins that compile Candid's Collectors series that encompass performances by many of the leading American visitors to Scott's club on those halcyon nights in the mid-sixties. It is perhaps inevitable that the first issue documents the work of indisputably the great British jazz virtuoso of his generation, the late great saxophonist Tubby Hayes, a performer who has latterly achieved almost iconic status among a new generation of jazz listeners. (Candid Records) Price: £10.99
This release is the first in a unique archive series of Tubby Hayes recordings that will be presented by Savage Solweig Records. The tape archive it comes from belongs to Tubby’s partner, who has kept his original tape collection in perfect order for the last three decades. These tapes represent the peak in Tubby’s playing and performance; the tapes have not been heard until now, and will be not only enjoy delicate remastering but will come with 12 page booklets, rare unseen Tubby photos and extensive sleevenotes by the UK’s leading Tubby academic, Simon Spillett. (Proper Note) Price: £10.99
Savage-Solweig Records is dedicated to the release of previously unissued recordings by the late, great British jazz virtuoso Tubby Hayes. With unique access to the tapes left in Hayes personal archive after his death, many hours of recordings have been unearthed and carefully restored to create a series which displays this much-missed genius at the peak of his powers. Each release features extensive booklet notes by Hayes biographer Simon Spillett, contemporary photographs and reminiscence by those directly involved in the actual recordings.
Recorded: The Dancing Slipper Ballroom, West Bridgford, Nottingham, February 12th 1964. (Proper Note) Price: £10.99
