Harlem Hot Stompers - Jazz on a Sunday

Harlem Hot Stompers - Jazz on a Sunday

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Always popular, always well received, the Harlem Hot Stompers were back in town to entertain, and the Rochdalians are beginning to realise that ‘Jazz on a Sunday’ is the place to be!

Tom Culbert, leader of the Quayside Stompers, was deputising on piano for the indisposed John Reade, who had been bitten on the finger by a dog whilst delivering leaflets for the local MP Jim Dobbin.

Led by reedsman Tony Faulks, the band played off with “I’m Going Away Just to Wear You Off My Mind” – don’t you just love these long titles – slowing down to “Smiles”, a neat duo for Faulks’ clarinet and John Ronan’s muted trombone and the band somewhat distracted by the arrival on the dancefloor of Castleton’s own ‘Josephine Baker’.

“Put on Your Old Green Bonnet” brought out the vocal and muted cornet of Bill Smith, to be contrasted with bluesy trombone, piano and Ian McCann’s guitar leading “Memphis Blues”.

“It’s Shuffling Time” featured Smith’s cornet whilst Faulks aired his tonsils with “Ace in the Hole” before a rousing end to the first set as Ronan’s sliding trombone and the tenor sax of Faulks powered into “Bogalusa Strutt”.

Set two began with the rarely played “Yama Yama Man” which was trombone led, with Dave Parr’s double bass and McCann’s solo banjo, to be followed by the classic “Storyville Blues” with muted cornet, a duo for clarinet and trombone, and Parr switching to brass bass.

Veteran drummer Dave Berry took the mike to sing “Someday You’ll Be Sorry” with Culbert taking the spotlight with ragtime piano in the key changing “Swipesy Rag” followed by the gentle ragtime of “Mabel’s Dream”.

The often requested “St Philip Street Breakdown” highlighted Faulks’ expertise on clarinet and a Bill Smith Texas favourite “Beedleumbum”, a song about a local delicacy had the gang all trailing along. McCann’s banjo brought up the second interval with “Nobody’s Sweetheart Now”.

Suitably refreshed, an excellent melodic “Harlem Bound” set the gig back on track led by the tenor sax, with the slow and remembered “Smoky ‘Mokes” in it’s wake.

Out came the drums and vocal of Dave Berry with “My Blue Heaven” – how is Molly then?

Bix Beiderbecke’s “Davenport Blues” with a fine rounded sound arrangement for cornet with piano solo and neat duo for guitar and double bass faded away for the muted cornet and harmonica plaintive sounds in “Flow Gently Sweet Afton”.

“I May be Wrong but I Think You’re Wonderful” had Smith in good voice with an interlude for guitar, double bass and drums, whilst Bechet’s calypso rhythms opened up for Faulks solo on soprano sax bringing the gig to its close, as the band played out with Faulks leading the vocals in their signature tune “Bye and Bye”.