Shear Brass at Ronnie Scott’s: a Sunday treat for George Shearing fans

Ask a jazz fan to name a Brit-jazzer who made it big on the international stage and chances are they’ll come up with Joe Harriott and Tubby Hayes; but there is one British musician and composer who became a bona fide megastar in the USA – George Shearing. The blind boy born in working-class Battersea back in 1919 became a big draw globally, feted by the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Nancy Wilson, Nat Cole, Mel Tormé and even beat writer Jack Kerouac. He also played for three US presidents and received a knighthood. How’s that for credentials?

Sadly, today Shearing is – his standard ‘Lullaby of Birdland’ aside – not as well-remembered as he should be. Kudos, then to drummer Carl Gorham, George’s great-nephew, who’s keeping the flame alive with his splendid Shear Brass project. This septet – Gorham, James Pearson (piano), Alec Dankworth (bass), Anthony Kerr (vibes), Jason McDermid (trumpet/ arrangements), Pete Long (saxes/clarinet), Martin Gladdish (trombone)  – along with guests Alison Jiear on vocals and percussionist Satin Singh, wowed a Sunday lunchtime audience at a sold-out Ronnie’s with a mixture of stories and jazz.

Despite being a drummer, Gorham leads from the front, acting as MC, a role to which he is gloriously suited; he mixes anecdote with factual information, resulting in a series of amusing, affectionate and enlightening interventions, telling us much about Shearing the musician and the man.

Kicking off proceedings with the good-time swing of George’s famous ‘Conception’ the band followed with Juan Tizol’s ‘Caravan’, a piece that informed the young pianist, done in the style of bandleader Ambrose, another key early influence. Throughout the two-part, 18-song show,  Gorham put the band’s choices and approaches into context, providing a narrative which was both enlightening and hugely enjoyable. The band shimmered and swung beautifully, Jiear’s vocal spots were spot-on (especially on ‘Let There Be Love’), and Singh added percussive heft to Latin-tinged numbers like ‘Rondo’ and ‘Rags to Riches’.

Shearing’s is not perhaps the most ‘fashionable’ music these days, but it’s evidently still popular and much-loved, given the audience’s enthusiastic response to George’s compositions; indeed, it’s remarkable just how many standards he composed over his long life: ‘Night Flight’, ‘The Fourth Deuce’, ‘Midnight Mood’, ‘How’s Trix?’ and his first smash hit ‘September In The Rain’, all of which were performed with warmth and verve.

A wonderfully satisfying tribute to one of the jazz greats – hopefully Shear Brass will return to our stages soon, and keep spreading the word; because as Sunday lunches go, they don’t come much better than this musical feast.