i ll Asi’ s( III. I I s I IVAI DENNIS ROLLINS BADBONE The Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow. Thu 29 Jun
Trombonist Dennis Rollins' colourful presence on the UK jazz scene goes all the way back to the seminal Jazz Warriors big band of the late 805. His stints with bands like Gary Crosby’s Jazz Jamaica and a four-year stretch with Courtney Pine confirmed his reputation as a serious improviser who also liked to party, and that philosophy has been carried over into his own Badbone outfit.
His characteristic mixing of jazz with funk, reggae, hip hop and anything else that takes his fancy reflects a genuinely eclectic approach to music, not so much anything goes as what's good is good. He dismisses out of hand the idea that dance music can‘t also be serious jazz, and any Badbone gig is guaranteed to move your feet as well as your head.
Rollins was born in Birmingham but raised in
o 02%“! immensivr, .
Yorkshire, where he first laid hands on his beloved trombone courtesy of the Doncaster Youth Jazz Association as a 14-year-old. He cites a range of influences on his subsequent development, including bebop master JJ Johnson, ska pioneer Don Drummond and the mighty funk of Fred Wesley.
‘The trombone is so close to the human voice; that’s what I really love about it. With the trombone you have that ability to slide around in between the notes just like you can with a voice, and that is what really attracts me to the instrument.’
Rollins releases the third Badbone album this month, but the band really need to be heard live to capture their full-on impact. The jazz festival has almost certainly go it right by scheduling them in a late-night slot at this movement-friendly venue, with performance poet shortMAN as a special guest of the band. Prepare to feel the groove, but don’t miss those horn solos. (Kenny Mathieson)
(3i ASH )W .IA/f/ I I. Si IVAI DAVID MURRAY 8. THE GWO KA MASTERS The Old Fruitmarket. Sat 1Jul
American saxophone master [)(lVlti Murray has cast his net Widely for musical collaborators over the years. and this proiect is no exception. Mention the Iaribbean in a ia/x context and thoughts; lllllll(}(il£ii(3|y turn to Cuba. but the music he WI” explore With the Gwo Ka Masters features his adaptation of music from the less obVioi s source of Guadeloupe. one of the small islands that makes up the Leeward Islands.
The Gwo Ka Masters take their name from the Ka drum. an instrument said to have been originally made from the barrels that carried the dried meat for the slave ships on their voyages. The discarded barrels had a skin stretched across them and l)f()‘.|(i(?ti a distinctive means of expression. as Murray explains.
‘The Ka drums are different from African drumming. There is more of a melody thing going on With the Ka drums. When I go into these projects. I'm trying to learn about their music. and especially their rhythms. l can't get on With a thing unless I study it real hard and get it really absorbed. and I spent a lot of time JUST analysing the rhythms and the way they worked.‘
In return Murray and his American collaborators on the proiect bring their own iaxx credentials to the table the saxophonist throwing in a few other diverse influences from his multi—cultural stock pot. including rhythms from Africa and Soath America. (Kenny Mathiesonl
i Jiseatch
Vic Galloway mulls over a perennial DJing dilemma: whether to educate or please the crowd.
It's the Sllly season for me iust now. With countless opportunities to get out there and DJ. No matter where y0u play however. there is always the DJ Dilemma‘“. Do you play the crowd-pleasers or indulge yourself? Anyone who has played records to an audience. and been paid for the pleasure. has had this quandary. Or maybe not but I still find it a really difficult ChOice to make.
When I play out. a lot of people want the indie classics of the day that are increasingly riiainstream and radiofriendly. while others want to be challenged and have their minds broadened. As a new music lover, and someone constantly on the lookout for cutting edge sounds, I personally love to play the oddballs and rarely-aired treats. However, as a punter, isn't it usually your chorce to hear the favourites; to dance. bond and be comforted by the familiar? I know how much I like to hear a classic tune in a club that unites my friends to joyfully ‘cut some rug' but I'm equally happy to hear something I've never come across.
The other question is how far to push an audience wrth the ‘mashing-up' of genres. I think in a perfect world. it should be absolutely acceptable to hear hardcore punk alongside R88. country. electronica, reggae or whatever. A dancefloor doesn't always agree. however. I'm always in awe of a club like Optimo that can play techno or electro as a mainstay. then drop Dead Kennedys' ‘California Uber Alles' into the equation.
The aim in the end is for people to have fun, but I'm a contrary fucker too. and love to upset the applecart from time to time. If they want indie. give them metal and if they want hip hop, give them folk. They'll learn to love it. Vic Galloway presents on BBC Radio Scotland from 8.05pm Monday evenings, and BBC Radio 1 from 7.30pm Thursday evenings.
22 Jun—h Jul 200‘) THE LIST 85