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Some British Jazz Pianists

Some British Jazz Pianists

Gerry Moore, Billy Jones, Arthur Young and others

Label: Retrieval
Format: CD
Barcode: 0608917405521
barcode
Catalog number: RTR 79065
Releasedate: 01-04-11
" But, I trust, this CD will show that there was some genuine talent on the British piano scene in those earlier days (before Second World War ), which, when it was given the chance, could shine as brightly as many more famous names of the period." (Max Easterman)
  • Max Darewski was the younger brother of Herman Darewski, he composed England's Crown to mark the Coronation of Edward VII
  • Joe Bolton was the pseudonym under which Joe Batten recorded ragtime and other ‘light’ pieces
  • Billy Jones gives all of his songs, especially Ringtail Blues a very modernistic interpretation
  • In Gerry Moore we meet Britain’s first full-blooded professional jazz pianist and one of the few who managed to make a living from the music for most of his life
  • Reginald Foresythe's solo piano work is less well-known, and the two recordings featured here show that he was capable of playing with true jazz feeling and some fine Hines-like touches
  • Arthur Young’s interpretations, especially on Sapphire and Amethyst, are extraordinarily close to what we might have expected from the master (Art Tatum) at this period, without in any way being stylistically slavish copies.
The title of this CD says exactly what it is: some British Jazz pianists: extraordinary pianists of the early years (before Second World War). Also with previously unissued material.