The names of the personnel on this CD, with the exception of two, Pete Allen (leader of the Dukes of Wellington band) and Roger Marks (leader of the Armada Jazz Band), did not ring any bells for me, probably because I am not domiciled in the UK; but I’m quite sure that British jazzers will recognize all these gents. That, coupled with the fact that several of the tunes on the playlist—“Caution Blues,” “Bechet’s Walk,” “Brenda’s Boogie,” “I’m Slapping Seventh Avenue with the Sole of My Shoe,” and “Beau Sejour”—were not familiar to me promised listening to this disc would be something of an adventure.
The jazz style of the CD is mainstream (which flirts, on occasion here, with a more modern jazz style), and very good, I might add. (While my preferred style is New Orleans revival, I try to keep my ears open enough for other styles—even other types of music altogether.) So anyone reading this review should be aware of that caveat but also remember what both Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong are reputed to have said about music: “There are simply two kinds of music, good music and the other kind” (Ellington) and “There is only two kinds of music, the good and the bad. I play the good kind” (Armstrong). On this CD it is the good kind.
Most of the tracks illustrate these points. Also, although we do hear a statement of the melody on several occasions, it is not made as frequently as Jelly Roll Morton averred should be the case: “Always have the melody going some kind of way…” So even though we might not be able to come away from hearing an unfamiliar tune and being able to whistle or hum it, there is much pleasure to be derived from hearing how the musicians present it.
Considerable variety keeps the contents very interesting. Tempos and rhythms run the gamut from quite brisk (“I‘m Slapping Seventh Avenue …”) to quite slow (“Caution Blues”) to march (“Bechet’s Walk”) to the unusual hemiola rhythm (“Dardanella”). (Google helped me out with naming the last!)
While there is a good deal of ensemble playing, space is provided for solos, every instrument other than drums being allocated some. Indeed, several tunes feature an instrument, providing in some cases almost a master class. In this category I would place (in no particular order) “Comes Love” (trombone), “The Nearness of You” (guitar), “My Old Flame” (muted trumpet). “Brenda’s Boogie” (piano), “Sophisticated Lady” (tenor sax). Only string bass and drums have no feature tracks, but the string bass has a solo on “The Gypsy,” and the drums provide fills and breaks on “I’m Slapping Seventh Avenue …” and elsewhere.
In addition to the musicians’ excellence, the arrangements of the tunes contribute to the enjoyment one gets. The arrangement of “Comes Love” gives the tune new life with its various ritards and full stops as well as providing a spotlight on Rogers’ artistry. Then there is “Just A-Wearying for You” (a tune new to me) where a skillful weaving back and forth between guitar, clarinet, and string bass creates a most melancholy but beautiful aura. In similar fashion, the interplay of these same instruments in “Caution Blues” creates something of a hauntingly mournful mood. Another arranging device is the close harmony of the front line that forms the intro of “I‘m Slapping Seventh Avenue …” and later the coda—very enjoyable.
And then there are the small touches, such as the guitar obbligatos behind Allen’s vocal intro on “Oh How I Miss You Tonight”—or the single string guitar/string bass duet that comprises the rendition of “The Nearness of You”—or the fills taken by the dual clarinets along with the other fills by the trombone and drums during the breaks on “New Orleans Wiggle,” not forgetting the fine banjo chording that underpins that entire track.
It all adds up to a most entertaining album. Allen’s contribution of two originals to the tune list is impressive lagniappe. His “tribute” to Sidney Bechet, “Bechet’s Walk,” is more of a march than a walk but fun. (I was put in mind of the Firehouse Five Plus Two’s “Who Walks In When I Walk Out?” as I listened.) But I thought that perhaps the rest of the group were not having quite as much fun as Allen, however, in their required repetitious chording behind the soprano sax. Nevertheless, it is a light-hearted romp that listeners will appreciate. And his “Beau Sejour” (“Beautiful Stay” in English), although I do not know to what “sejour” is alluded here, certainly is beautiful. (I would wish him as much success with it as Acker Bilk had with “Stranger on the Shore!”)
While I may not have come away humming or whistling these tunes that were new to me, I still enjoyed them; the same is true for those tunes with which I am familiar. I should think that anyone who can get outside of his/her comfort zone will enjoy these renditions, too, by Pete Allen and his cohorts. This CD is available on the Upbeat Recordings web site www.upbeat.co.uk and on-line from Amazon.
New Orleans Wiggle – Jazz Magic
Pete Allen Jazz Band
Upbeat URCD 348
Under the Bamboo Tree; Caution Blues; Oh How I Miss You Tonight*; Just A-Wearying for You; Wise Guy*; Comes Love; Hello Brother*; Bechet’s Walk; The Nearness of You; Brenda’s Boogie; Sophisticated Lady; Dardanella; My Old Flame; I‘m Slapping Seventh Avenue with the Sole of My Shoe; The Gypsy*; Beau Sejour; New Orleans Wiggle.
Recorded Brazen Sound Studio, Exeter, Devon, England, Mar. 10 and 11, 2025.
Personnel: Pete Allen, clt. & sop. sax, voc*; Chris Hodgkins, tpt.; Roger Marks, tbn.; Trevor Whiting, clt., alto sax, sop. sax, & ten. sax; James Clemas, pno.; Dave Hanratty, bs., Max Britain, gtr. & bjo.; Jim Newton, drs.
Born in Dundee, Scotland, Bert Thompson came to the U.S. in 1956. After a two-year stint playing drums with the 101 st Airborne Division Band and making a number of parachute drops, he returned to civilian life in San Francisco, matriculating at San Francisco State University where he earned a B.A. and an M.A. He went on to matriculate at University of Oregon, where he earned a D.A. and a Ph.D., all of his degrees in English. Now retired, he is a professor emeritus of English at City College of San Francisco. He is also a retired traditional jazz drummer, having played with a number of San Francisco Bay Area bands, including And That’s Jazz, Professor Plum’s Jazz, the Jelly Roll Jazz Band, Mission Gold Jazz Band, and the Zenith New Orleans Parade band; he also played with some further afield, including Gremoli (Long Beach, CA) and the Phoenix Jazzers (Vancouver, B.C.) Today he reviews traditional jazz CDs and writes occasional articles for several publications.
