Chiarello, Preston and Mudge - Jazz at the Fox

Bill Mudge

Gianni Chiarello - guitar
Bill Mudge - organ
Richard Preston - drums

23rd January 2020
Jazz on Toast, The Fox, Twickenham, UK

Jazz on Toast is a relatively new staple for jazz fans in South West London. An informal gathering of maverick musicians, usually with a house band of three players, and a wild card guest thrown in. An opening set of an hour (8.30-9.30pm) gives way to an open jam session for whatever remains of the night (10pm+). The night opened in October 2017 with Tom Ridout (saxophone),  Mike Redfern (guitar), Matt Gedrych (bass) and Jack Yardley (drums). It is testament to this night that it continues to flourish in 2020. Other Jazz Jams have flared to life and died during the two and half years that Jazz on Toast has been alive in Twickenham. Like the infamous Grey Horse Jazz Jam (Kingston) that burned so brightly in the late 2000s and early 2010s the core of musicians that play are young or brim with a latent talent.

Local guitar hero Gianni Chiarello has gained a reputation as an extremely versatile musician, having professional credits as a guitarist, bassist, arranger and producer. His style is a preconception-free mix of jazz, rock, blues, funk and modern harmony. A Native of Italy, took up the guitar at age 8, inspired by blues/rock players. In his forming years he performed with some of his country’s finest musicians, always keen to develop different musical styles. In 1999 he moved to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music, on a scholarship program, where he gained a degree. 

Hammond organ specialist Bill Mudge has been part of the London scene since 2010. His debut album, Skylight, is a thing of beauty, and although hard to find is well worth tracking down. A Renaissance man of considerable talents Mudge remains one of the brightest sparks of the London Arts scene. 

See his photography here - https://www.billmudge.co.uk/ 

and listen to some of his music with Toy Rokit  https://toyrokit.bandcamp.com/ 

Peter Jones at Twickenham Jazz Club

Leon Greening

Peter Jones - vocals
Kelvin Christiane - saxophone
Leon Greening - piano
Andy Cleyndert - bass
Sophie Alloway - drums

Kelvin Christiane

14th January 2020
Twickenham Jazz Club, Twickenham, UK

Sophie Alloway

Lesley and Kelvin Christiane ushered in the new jazz decade at Twickenham Jazz Club with the Peter Jones Quartet. 2020 here we come!

Peter Jones

Peter Jones has taught film and media at a variety of London colleges, and published a short book on black cinema (BFI Publishing), followed by a handbook for media and film students (Hodder Arnold). During the making of his first album (`One Way Ticket to Palookaville' - 2013) he developed a serious interest in the work of Mark Murphy. In 2018 he published This is Hip, an outstanding book on the life and music of Mark Murphy. His second album (`Utopia') was released in 2016.  

Andy Cleyndert

Joe Browne - Waitrose Kings Cross

Joe Browne

Joe Browne - saxophone
John Williamson - bass
Mat Skeaping - drums

Waitrose, Granary Square, Kings Cross, London

9th January 2020

John Williamson - bass

Customers at Waitrose Kings Cross are treated to a free jazz concert every Thursday night. The London Granary Square store is part of a recent re-development of the area next to the Regent’s Canal. The store (a converted railway engine-shed) is a meeting point for listeners warming up their evening with a cheeky Chablis or fiery Barbera before reaching out into London's nightlife.

Mat Skeaping

Joe Browne is a saxophonist, composer and educator based in London. After completing a degree in Music and English, he continued to study jazz saxophone as a postgraduate at Birmingham Conservatoire and Berklee College of Music in Boston. During this period he was lucky enough to learn from some great saxophone players on both sides of the Atlantic, including Julian Siegel, Jean Toussaint and Joe Lovano.  On returning from the US he settled in London where he now works as a musician and educator. As well as a healthy schedule as a sideman in various jazz, pop and classical ensembles, his own group, Last Summer’s Tealights, can regularly be heard at venues across London and beyond.