On Stage: New Cool Collective with Mark Reilly @ NSJ Club

The coolest jazz collective on the face of this planet and beyond, New Cool Collective, regularly teams up with artists from every part of the musical spectrum. In the past they played with afrobeat legend Tony Allen, Dutch local hero Guus Meeuwis and Orchestra Baobab's Thierno Koite. Recently they recorded a record, The Things You Love, with no one less than Matt Bianco's Mark Reilly and they are now touring with him.

New Cool Collective and Mark Reilly at North Sea Jazz Club Amsterdam, September 8 2016

Needless to say that this collaboration is guaranteed to be a hot dancing party. The record already proves this with new arrangements of Matt Bianco and New Cool Collective songs but mostly brand new compositions. Captain of the ship is of course Benjamin Herman and the band first starts out with a few of their own songs to warm up. Since this is a hot summer's night, that doesn't take long and Herman quickly introduces Mark Reilly.

Reilly is looking sharp, blending in perfectly with the cool combo. Some wonderful swinging songs follow with Reilly's warm voice fitting the music like they are made for each other. The Matt Bianco classics have been reworked for New Cool Collective without losing their swinging edge. Reilly certainly looks like he's enjoying playing with this brilliant combo.

I forgot how many good songs Matt Bianco wrote. The swinging 'Whose Side Are You On', a brilliant version of 'More Than I Can Bear', both not on the record and of course the smash hit 'Don't Blame It On That Girl'. It's wonderful to hear these great songs come to life again. New songs like 'We Should Be Dancing' and the funky 'Double Stitch' sound even better and get the best of both worlds. The band is not allowed to leave without playing an encore and lays down a couple more sizzling hot songs, leaving the crowd in an overheated state.



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On Stage: Ginger Baker's Jazz Confusion at North Sea Jazz Club Amsterdam

The question “who is the best drummer ever” is quite useless I think. There have been so many great drummers around and there still are, that are impossible to compare, so it's a waste of time trying to answer it. But if you ask people, quite a few will answer that it must be Ginger Baker. Although he is still playing regularly I never had the chance to see him until now.

Ginger Baker’s Jazz Confusion at North Sea Jazz Club Amsterdam, November 26 2015



When you think about the legendary drummer, you automatically think about Africa, the continent he grew really fond of and the one he got so much inspiration from. As he explains himself he’s already 76 years old and things aren't so smooth for him any more. He’s playing with some fine musicians, Pee Wee Ellis on saxophone, Alec Dankworth on bass and percussionist Abass Dodoo. All the ingredients for an explosive night you’d think.



But Baker’s age is starting to get to him and he’s not in great shape. The rhythmic and groovy compositions by Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins and himself, sound uninspired and simply aren't really exciting. Ellis also looks far from being in great form and when he’s not playing he is sitting on his stool looking tired. Dodoo and Dankworth are the only ones that have something to show tonight with some great sounding solos. Especially Dodoo is showing great skills behind his percussion set, playing with a big smile on his face.



Baker is occasionally addressing the sold out venue, sounding short-winded, but explosive as always telling someone to “fuck off” after shouting out something. Now and then we get to see some sparkles of the old master’s brilliance and his wonderful technique. He tells us he’s not playing his own drum kit and the setup is not to his liking. Especially the pedals’ setup is causing him trouble and give him cramp. In the end it's clear that his best years are behind him, but still it's wonderful to see the living legend in the flesh behind a drum kit.



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On Stage: Children of the Light Trio at North Sea Jazz Club Amsterdam

Also playing with sax legend Wayne Shorter, Children of the Light Trio are a one of a kind top band in itself, a jazz supergroup that consists of the wonderful top musicians Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci and Brian Blade. All the reason to pay a visit to the North Sea Jazz Club.

Children of the Light Trio at North Sea Jazz Club Amsterdam, October 23 2015



The reason I like jazz trios so much is because of the freedom it gives to each musician and it's instrument. And tonight's musicians know how to use that freedom in every way possible. Pérez makes the grand piano sing wonderful melodies, playing ringing notes that blend into each other, like rain drops falling on the roof top tiles, creating natural symphonies. Patitucci's fingers run along the neck of his bass playing swinging grooves, his glasses sliding to the tip of his nose, while one of my big heroes drummer Brian Blade is playing amazing rhythms which such subtle control and dynamics.



Tonight is a master class in every aspect of jazz music, individual control of each instrument, but also the arranged music, playing as a band and on how the threesome can get the best out if each other. It is obvious how much they enjoy playing in this setup, pure joy showing in their faces, approving smiles and looks among them and a shoutout once and a while of admiration when one of the others plays a perfectly timed accent or ingenious feat of musicality.



This is also obvious from the response of the audience that are greeting these moments with loud applause and cries, but also breathlessly wait for every last note to be played in every composition before going into a loud roar. In the more quiet parts the club is absolutely dead quiet to be able to hear everything, which is an absolute bliss in times where people use concerts as an excuse to catch up with each other. Tonight was an absolute bliss in every aspect of live music.



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On Stage: Orlando Julius And The Heliocentrics

Now that all kinds of afro music is hot and happening again, it has renewed interest in some old veterans. Like afrobeat legend Ebo Taylor for instance who almost was forgotten. Another one of those giants is Nigerian musician Orlando Julius who started in the sixties and finally was noticed outside Nigeria after the turn of the century. Last year he released a new record Jayide Afro with The Heliocentrics which surprisingly is his first international album with new material. Now he is touring with them around the clubs in support of that album.

Orlando Julius and the Heliocentrics at North Sea Jazz Club Amsterdam, January 28 2015



The small stage of the North Sea Jazz Club is completely full when the big band takes the stage. They don't need to warm up at all and start grooving right away, with Julius playing his tenor saxophone. He will play his instrument a lot tonight, but will also bend over his organ now and then or just stick to vocals. He's singing mostly in a local language, which is impossible to follow of course. But also the "Nigerian English" can often be hard to understand. Which is a shame because he's chatting in between songs about what they are about, cracking jokes in between. Julius is in his seventies but is still looking very brisky, dancing around stage while smiling non stop throughout the set.



The Heliocentrics are a great band, that understand perfectly what the somewhat psychedelic music needs, keeping songs going forever with a tight groove. Of course they all get plenty of time to show their skills in exciting solos, now and then challenging each other to join in. Julius' music has lots of soul and is a blend of highlife, afrobeat, funk and soul, or Super Afro Soul as he calls it. Think of a mix of Fela Kuti and James Brown and you get the idea. He used to live in the USA for twenty five years, which explains the soul and funk influences.



And so we can hear funky guitars and horns on top of hypnotic drums and percussion, that will get every one moving, which is exactly what happens. Throughout the whole set I don't think there's a single person that is able to stand still. At the same time there's no sad face to find here, all you can see are big smiles around. They leave the stage for a short time at the end of the set and return one more time to play Julius' first hit song from 1964, 'Jaguar Nana'. When we go outside we almost the expect to be greeted by the African sun and have a cold beer outside. Instead it's dark, cold and wet, so better go home quickly and play some more African music.



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