Best British Jazz

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

let's not leave it to Breakfast and their Best of British; what are the ten best British Jazz LPs/albums of all time

My two for starters
Stan Tracey Quartet Under Milk Wood
Joe Harriott Quintet Free Form [it was the first]

must be zillions of contenders; point them all out and i will learn how to set up a poll for the top ten ....

[British = leader British and recorded in British Isles or Ireland]

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

let's not leave it to Breakfast and their Best of British; what are the ten best British Jazz LPs/albums of all time

My two for starters
Stan Tracey Quartet Under Milk Wood
Joe Harriott Quintet Free Form [it was the first]

must be zillions of contenders; point them all out and i will learn how to set up a poll for the top ten ....

[British = leader British and recorded in British Isles or Ireland]

Er.....


Tubby Hayes....Down in the Village

Joe Harriot....Abstract and/or Movements

Mike Taylor....Trio

Rendell/Carr....Dusk Fire

Stan Tracey...Little Klunk

Ron Coltrane...Roarin' with Ron

BN.

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

yep never can forget Big Ron eh ....

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

yep never can forget Big Ron eh ....

Ron set the bar....so to speak.

The first two Neil Ardley albums, Western Reunion and Dejeuner? Excellent.

BN.

[Serial_Apologist]

Oh I could have field day here...

Michael Garrick - "Black Marigolds"

John Dankworth - "The $1.000,000 Collection"

John McLaughlin - "Extrapolation"

Jack Bruce - "Things We Like"

Alan Skidmore - "Once upon a Time"

Mike Westbrook - "Marching Song"

Harry Beckett - "Flare Up"

Chris McGregor - "Brotherhood"

Nucleus - "Solar Plexus"

Tony Oxley - "Four Compositions"



....and that's only up to 1970!

[Ian Thumwood]

1. Spike Hughes - "All American band" recordings of 1933 with Coleman Hawkins, Chu Berry, Red Allen. Doesn't fit Calum's criteria but the best jazz recording involving a British jazz musician prior to 1950's.

2. Tubby Hayes ~ "Mexican green"

3. Stan Tracey ~ "Little Klunk"

4. Kenny Wheeler ~ "Music for large and small ensembles."

5. Mike Gibbs ~ "By the way...."

6. Joe Harriott ~ "Abstract."

7. "It's later than you think" Colin Towns big band with Norma Winstone

8. John Surman / Jack DeJohnette ~ "The amazing adventures of Simon, Simon."

9. John Surman / John Taylor - "Ambleside days."

10. John Taylor trio "As it is."

11. Loose Tubes ~ "Delightful precipice."

12. Mike Westbrook ~ "Westbrook / Rossini."

I would add that I think John Escreet has the potential to be the best jazz musician this country has produced.

My choice is based upon my own collection but think that room should be found for albums by Sandy Brown, Iain Ballamy and Chris McGregor. The only BOB record in my collection is "Country cooking" which is pretty poor.

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

I would have gone for Chris Mcgregor's Group UK debut ..."Very Urgent" from 1968 but Calum's guidelines were Brit leader/recorded.

Anyways, Dudu's "Marie my Dear" a kind of S.African homage to Monk and more is glorious and brings back loads of memories of The Old Place (which being Gerrard Street was in Britain - just).

BN

[MrGongGong]

Evan Parker: Six of One

[charles t]

Calum: A most productive topic.

May I suggest a sub-category?

Yes, Charles T.

Best of British Jazz albums - Post-2000.

For collectors of same...

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

ta Chas T - yes let us have the pre and post Millenium lists!

er as to what is a Brit this forum takes a wide open and tolerant stance on furriners and that innit .... who could possibly say i mean Humph was a toff and Tubby was from ST Pancras and went sarf ....

i also like the album that Stan Tracy made with Danny Moss 'Just You Just Me' a tempting definition of a brit for some ...

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

"Live at the Vortex" - Julian Siegel Trio with Joey
Baron and Greg Cohen. (2007?)

Very good. The last "disc" I bought by a British yoof.

BN.

[Serial_Apologist]

Calum: A most productive topic.

May I suggest a sub-category?

Yes, Charles T.

Best of British Jazz albums - Post-2000.

For collectors of same...

Excellent idea Charles, allowing this time not to forget our greatest contributer to jazz, Kenny Wheeler, if I may say so, given that it was here that his musical personality was formed.

Kenny Wheeler - Live at the Vortex, London (2003) with Evan Parker, Paul Dunmall, John Edwards and Tony Levin.

Barak Schmool's Timeline - "Know Hope" (2003)

Django Bates - "You Live and Learn (apparently)" (2003)

Nick Ramm's Clown Revisited - "Flashes of a Normal World" (2005)

Liam Noble Trio - "Brubeck" (2007)

Troyka (2009)

Julie Tippetts - "Tales of Finin" (2009)

Alexander Hawkins Ensemble - "All There, Ever Out" (2010)

Tony Marsh - "For the Last Time", with Paul Dunmall, Phil Gibbs (2012)

Trish Clowes - "And in the Night-time She is There" (2012)

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

Tim Whitehead Colour Beginnings 2009

who made that Ellington inspired album or prog a while back ... thought it was Hawkins

and that cornucopia of british talent
Kenny Wheeler Music for Large and Small Ensembles ...

[Serial_Apologist]

Tim Whitehead Colour Beginnings 2009

I saw that done at the London Jazz Festival with Turner slides, what, 4 years ago?

who made that Ellington inspired album or prog a while back ... thought it was Hawkins

Probably Mark Lockheart - who produced a couple of fine solos in the Dedication Orchestra gig last Saturday, btw

marklockheart.co.uk*

and that cornucopia of british talent
Kenny Wheeler Music for Large and Small Ensembles ...

Er - 1990. Don't worry, happens to me all the time nowadays!

*Sorry - can't make the link work with the usual http:// prefix

[RayBurns]

I really wouldn't like to say what are the best British jazz albums but the ones I like most are -

John McLaughlin - Extrapolation
The Trio (John Surman, Barre Phillips, Stu Martin)
Tubby Hayes - Tubby's New Groove
Don Rendell/Ian Carr - Dusk Fire & Phase III
Jazz Couriers - Live (at the Dominion Theatre)
Chris McGregor - Brotherhood of Breath
Mike Westbrook - Release (this isn't as well regarded as some of his other output, but I've loved it ever since it's release)

and I don't know whether these count as British but I've always loved the two Clarke-Boland band albums recorded at Ronnie's.