NORTHUMBRIAN MUSIC
NIGHTS
What we said about
JAZZ GIRL
There must be a familiar throat-catching moment in every promoter's experience: when the much-hyped band steps up to the stage, the crowd falls silent, and the music begins. Will the entertainment live up to the billing?
Last Friday night at Allendale's King's Head, it was a receptive crowd, primed by friends to enjoy the show. So it was a bit of a shared experience, really, this community promotions exercise, as friends and promoters alike stood ready to enjoy the promised delights of Andrea Pattison on vocals, Nick Pride on jazz guitar and Paul Armstrong on double bass. We all knew she could sing, and the lads could play, but oh, she is a wee slip of a thing, so young, so cheerful, with such an engaging smile.
Hot Tar had started off the show with some good standards, in a surprise trio arrangement, as Andy Morgan's bass mandola held a nice line, with Glynn Galley's acoustic guitar providing intriguing accompaniment to Ray Johnson's trumpet and vocal renditions. And they got better and better too, as confidence increased with the enthusiastic crowd urging them on.
But suddenly it was the moment of truth, as the bands changed places, and Andrea opened her mouth to deliver the songs we'd come to hear. Listening, listening, and then, you could feel the delight rippling around the room, as we thought to ourselves, yes, that's how I remembered it, that's the voice I wanted to hear again!
And the phrasing, the coloration at the ends, the swoops and the twirls, the ache and the pathos and pure melodic devil-may-care fun as the songs poured out. There were many in the audience who lost their hearts to the singer. Some repeats, (but not many!) from the last time, some delicious new ones, and all available on the band's newly printed CD.
The review was ecstatic last time, so if I note that the anticipation was more than rewarded, perhaps that will suffice for this one. I always take CD sales as a pretty good indication of the audience's appreciation of any entertainer. Jazz Girl sold out their entire stock of CDs, and took orders for as many more, that night, and their promised return is one commitment that the local promoters, Northumbrian Music Nights, are delighted to make.
