Jazz breaking news: Empirical and Liam Noble Trio lead Blue Note 75th series at Pizza Express Jazz Club
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Pizza Express Jazz Club in Soho is to host a new monthly series of gigs to celebrate Blue Note’s 75th anniversary in 2014 with the first four events running from January to May featuring leading UK jazz ensembles presenting music from some of label’s classic albums.
MOBO-award winning four-piece Empirical (pictured left) kick things off on 22 January with their take on Herbie Hancock’s Empyrean Isles, followed on 9 February by leading UK pianist Liam Noble and his Trio who will be presenting their take on the classic Bud Powell album, The Amazing Bud Powell Volume 2.
Noble explained the significance of that album for him: “The Amazing Bud Powell Volume 2, recorded in 1953, contains some incredibly ground-breaking composition amongst its more straightahead jazz readings and captures Powell at the height of his imaginative powers.”
The hard-bopping Quentin Collins/Brandon Allen Quartet dive into the music of Wayne Shorter’s Speak No Evil on 30 March, while edgier sounds come from the tenor/alto sax attack of the Tom Challenger and Martin Hathaway Quartet as they perform the music of Ornette Coleman’s New York Is Now on 21 May, with further gigs in the series to be announced as it continues throughout 2014.
– Mike Flynn
For more info go to www.pizzaexpresslive.co.uk