LIVE REVIEW: OMAR AND QCBA BOOGIE BACK TO CAMDEN’S REOPENED JAZZ CAFÉ

Jazzwise’s Kevin Le Gendre writes, “The south London jazz vocal don hits home with some uplifting spiritual soul-food.”

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Omar at Jazz Cafe – Photo by Monika S Jakubowska

Omar at Jazz Cafe – Photo by Monika S Jakubowska

Reopened but with the novelty of distanced tables in its large standing space, one of London’s premier venues takes baby steps towards a post-covid world. This is precisely the kind of gig that is medicinal in every sense of the term. British soul legend Omar has long made music that can lift the spirits as well as impress with its ingenuity, and his meeting with a grade-A jazz quartet co-led by trumpeter Quentin Collins and saxophonist Brandon Allen provides a welcome opportunity to appreciate that. The fact that the set exclusively comprises Omar material written over a thirty-year period makes a strong case for him as a notable original composer as well as a man with a stellar voice. Casting his melodies against a largely acoustic backdrop actually highlights the richness of Omar’s phrasing, with Allen’s rapier flute doubling the second half of couplets and Collins’s lyrical brass floating in tight counterpoint.

Favourites such as ‘The Man’ have a notably lithe swing and a gospel holler thanks to the simmering chords of Ross Stanley’s Hammond organ, though ‘Essensual’ reminds us that Afro-Latin rhythms are a major component of Omar’s music, as befits his longstanding affinity to legends Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway. Yet there is a substantial amount of space afforded the band, culminating in an explosive interlude in which drummer James Maddren inventively breaks up a hitherto steady beat and Allen and Collins launch into raucous solos that raise the temperature in the room before everybody settles back down and Omar returns to the familiar ground of pieces such as ‘Syleste’. This deliciously lithe bossa nova is a highlight of his repertoire, and in tonight’s guise the original bass clarinet riff is covered by Allen pushing his low notes to the burr of a baritone.

Omar brings customary light and shade to the table, with that all-important falsetto as silken as it ever has been, but he also feeds off the energy of the soloists. On the coda of this and other songs he launches into lengthy scat solos that underline the entwinement of jazz and soul that places the likes of John Hendricks, Marvin Gaye and George Benson in one lineage. Omar has his own place in that, above all because the texture of his voice lies in a thought-provoking space between Black Britain, the Caribbean and Black America. He breaks boundaries.  

Omar’s stream of wordless sounds, some throaty and rugged, some airy and refined, brings to mind the singer in his youth, playing a ‘body rhythm’ in which tightly co-ordinated vocal riffs and chest slaps call forth the spirit of a one man barbershop band. As a multi-instrumentalist who has always had an ear for timbres off the beaten track Omar was most probably intrigued by the sight of Alina Bzhezhinska combining solo harp and laptop beats in the first half of the evening, and he also regularly plays synthesizer to produce an additional overlay of rakish funk that gels with the horns. 

Anyway, when things slow right down for the mandatory take on his signature tune, ‘There’s Nothing Like This’ Omar is also astute enough to rein in and let the beauty of the theme speak for itself. Everybody singing along knows this all too well, a wave of nostalgia washing away the misery of a pandemic that has not quite left the scene.

Omar + QCBA – Live at the Jazz Café

LondonJazz News’ Lavender Sutton writes, “"The audience would agree that there’s ‘nothing like this’ – but in case you missed it, watch out for the album release on Ubuntu Music."

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Omar + QCBA
(Live at The Jazz Café. Also recorded for future release as a live album. 29 May 2021. Review by Lavender Sutton)

Omar Lye-Fook (Monika S Jakubowska photographer)

Omar Lye-Fook (Monika S Jakubowska photographer)

Quentin Collins and Brandon Allen (Monika S Jakubowska photographer)FOR THE FULL REVIEW, PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE, ABOVE.

Quentin Collins and Brandon Allen (Monika S Jakubowska photographer)

FOR THE FULL REVIEW, PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE, ABOVE.

JOE DOWNARD AND JAMES COPUS – THE DYNAMIC DUO REBOOT JAZZ CAFE LIVE PERFORMANCES

Jazzwise’s James Rybacki writes, “All in all, it’s both a triumphant return to live music and a chance for Ubuntu Music to show off some of the exquisite talent they’ve got on the roster.”

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The Joe Downard Sextet. Photo by Monika S Jakubowska.

The Joe Downard Sextet. Photo by Monika S Jakubowska.

A return, at last, to live jazz and all that comes with it. The frenetic improvisation of top-drawer players spurred on by an enraptured crowd, the electric charge that ripples around the room as a wicked chord change throws you, a blue note cuts through, and the band brings it all together to rise to a crescendo.

Onstage in Camden Town’s newly socially distanced Jazz Cafe, the relief from the artists is almost palpable. They’re back to doing what they love, and playing with a renewed passion and zest - you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.

Launching his album Seven Japanese Tales after what must have been an agonising and uncertain wait, Joe Downard wields his upright bass with downright intensity, steering his band adroitly through seven lush and long pieces. Leading the attack, Alex Hitchcock and James Copus’s respective saxophone and trumpet play off each other magnificently, intertwining with invention and restlessly sparring.

The rhythm players come into their own on songs like ‘Terror’, where a driving and busy opening gives way to a more pensive and meandering middle section. Later in the set, the tense chords at the start of ‘The Thief’ are even more awesomely jarring in person than they are on the record. There, they are exquisitely dissonant. Here, they almost strike fear in the best way possible.

James Copus starts his set with new material, a languid groove that lays the foundation for the set and showcases the trumpeter’s evident chops. Copus’s material from his album ‘Dusk’ has a more electronic feel for the live set, with an electric bass and Fender Rhodes sound changing up the musical soundscape. The keys playing enters more synthy territory at times, getting very glitchy and outside, spiraling chaotically before coming back in line. All in all, it’s both a triumphant return to live music and a chance for Ubuntu Music to show off some of the exquisite talent they’ve got on the roster. “We’re taking over London,” co-founder Martin Hummel tells me between sets, “come with us!” Gladly.

Around the LJF World in +10 Days —Gonzo Journalism from a Diehard Jazz Fan

Preface: This pastiche is decidedly biased, as it is written by someone in the business—as a manager, record label owner, agent and talent spotter—whose love for jazz exceeds all in his life, other than his love for his family. I’ve chosen to highlight my relationships with each artist/band, along with a sound bite performance rating, to protect the innocent. Otherwise, I’ll simply take the 5th Amendment.

Andrew McCormack, Quentin Collins, Daniel Casimir, Shane Forbes

Andrew McCormack, Quentin Collins, Daniel Casimir, Shane Forbes

Andrew McCormack, Tom Harrison, Leo Richardson, Quentin Collins, Daniel Casimir, Shane Forbes

Andrew McCormack, Tom Harrison, Leo Richardson, Quentin Collins, Daniel Casimir, Shane Forbes

Martin Hummel, Noemi Nuti

Martin Hummel, Noemi Nuti

Tom Harrison, Martin Hummel, Leo Richardson

Tom Harrison, Martin Hummel, Leo Richardson

Martin Hummel, Goatious Foot

Martin Hummel, Goatious Foot

martin Hummel, Georgia Van Etten

martin Hummel, Georgia Van Etten

Martin Hummel, Quentin Collins

Martin Hummel, Quentin Collins

Martin Hummel, Luc Saint Martin

Martin Hummel, Luc Saint Martin

Andrew McCormack, Quentin Collins, Daniel Casimir, Shane Forbes

Andrew McCormack, Quentin Collins, Daniel Casimir, Shane Forbes

Sunday, 19th November

Quentin Collins Quartet

Pizza Express Soho Lunch Show (Sold Out)

Trumpet/flugelhorn ace Quentin Collins is mixing things up with a new band and some pulsating, soulful sounds. His latest line-up included Andrew McCormack/piano, Daniel Casimir/bass and Shane Forbes/drums. The audience was clearly ready for this one, as the band played a range of Collins’ compositions, including Peace of Silver, in tribute to the late master and performed by the Kyle Eastwood Band. It was a special one, and places Collins right back on the front foot of outstanding lead trumpeters in this country.

Relationship: Yes

Performance: Thrusting