Jazz on a Sunday

The Yorkshire Stompers - Jazz on a Sunday

Reports of its demise, be this actual or assumed, continue to emerge but traditional jazz remains obstinately alive and kicking - nowhere more so perhaps than in Rochdale where Jazz on a Sunday’s regular fortnightly concerts continue to attract audience numbers comfortably in excess of those in recent years.

2017 began on a high with the visits, in January of a pair of long-time favourites in the persons of drummer Norman Pennington’s Tame Valley Stompers with Terry Brunt on trombone and in early February of clarinet supremo Mart Rodger and his Manchester Jazz.

February saw too the eagerly anticipated return of New Orleans style trombonist Mike Owen, joined as he had been last time by the Delph-based Spirit of New Orleans, and again, predictably, bringing the house down.

Then in March it was back to the roots of the traditional jazz boom here in Britain courtesy of a third visit to the club by clarinetist Chris Walker’s Pedigree Jazz Band with its “Tribute to Trad Jazz” focusing, almost inevitably, on the Barber, Ball, Bilk catalogue, although not exclusively so, and thanks to Chris’s insights and anecdotes as fresh and enjoyable as ever.

Following that came a band new to Jazz on a Sunday namely The Chase Jazzmen, a five-piece outfit from the West Midlands, and a programme of traditional and popular tunes ranging from the early nineteen hundreds through to the fifties.

With The Old Fashioned Love Band having had to cancel at short notice some adept juggling of dates by organiser Tony Sheldon served not only to plug the gap but enabled him to conjur us an extra gig for April.

First up were The Chicago Teddy Bears with reedsman John Hallam, now seemingly a semi-permanent fixture with The Teds, in fine form.

Seven days later came The Yorkshire Stompers with their trademark all-encompassing mix of tunes ranging from classic jazz to spirituals and finally stepping in at short notice to end the month on a second visit here were the Bolton-based Dixie Beats. Led by trumpeter John Percival they featured surely a star in the making in seven-teen-year old reeds player Alex Clarke. Look to your laurels Amy Roberts and the sisterhood!

Performances are fortnightly, find a full list on Rochdale Online Events:

https://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/events/search?searchtype=text&searchvalue=jazz