A TTLNAGE jazz prodig in tlrc eariv '80s, TommlSmirh studicd a1 Berklee. signed to Blue Note andwaslauded as "the mosl talentcd sx star to arri\e on fher,vorld scene in years" by Gary Burton. Now director ofthe Scottish Youth Jaz-z Orchestra and a prolific andexpansive composer with his oun record label, he is aslikely to produce an ambitious, large-scale rvork as leadan edgr, post-bop jazz quartet. Kama is the latterFeaturing porverhouse drummer AIw Cosker, piano/keyboard wizard Steve Hamilton and viftuoso iix-stringbassist Kryin Glasgow, the album blends tough fusionrvith gt ntler lrish. Scotti.h. Japanese and Arabic l-olkfl1vouru

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identity Smith and co juxtapose moments of taut, .-

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a very special band.

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Evening Standard 10 Jun 2011

JAZZ

THE IMPOSSIBLE GENTLEMEN

The Impossible Gentlemen

(Basho Records)

****

Meet an Anglo-US supergroup with a twist, in that the Anglo half, pianist Gwilym Simcock and guitarist Mike Walker, are

the frontline stars in their professional prime while the Americans, bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Adam

Nussbaum, are the respected veterans in supporting roles.

The Brits also contribute all but one of the quartet's eight fine originals. Some are chamber-like, others hard-driving,

but the standard of improvisation and all-round musicianship is superb throughout. Simcock's versatility is no secret but

Walker is a revelation, covering all bases from the cool neobop intensity of Laughter Lines to the warm chorded balladry

of Wallender's Last Stand and the hot Santana-like lyricism of You Won't Be Around to See It. The day he forsakes his

beloved Salford for London or New York, other guitarists should look out. The gifted Gentlemen's album-launch tour

calls at Pizza Express, Dean Street, on Monday.

JACK MASSARIK

CD Reviews

The Impossible Gentlemen, CD review

The Impossible Gentlemen is a first-rate jazz album. Rating: * * * *

The title suggests bad behaviour, and the offstage laughter and strange howls at the end of track one (an invigorating up-tempo blast) suggest we

might be in for some. Don’t be fooled. This is simply a first-rate jazz album by an Anglo-American quartet which is unimpeachably

mainstream. One of the players is pianist Gwilym Simcock, whose occasional tendency to soft-centred musings is the album’s only

downside. That aside, it’s terrific.

Download this: Wallenda’s Last Stand

Impossible Gentlemen – review

Pizza Express, London

The word is that every night of the current UK tour by the Anglo/US

quartet the Impossible Gentlemen has been different so far, and given the technical firepower of the individuals and their swashbuckling confidence,

it seems likely. The band spiritedly collides the casual song-spinning of a Pat Metheny band with scorching postbop intricacies, notably from pianist

Gwilym Simcock, and bursts of raw electric blues from guitarist Mike Walker. With Americans Steve Swallow (bass guitar) and Adam Nussbaum

(drums) adding dynamism and vast experience, they sound even more like a world-class jazz band than on their debut a year ago.

Much of the live material came from their eponymously titled debut

album, augmented by works by the prolific Simcock and the cannily lyrical Swallow. Early on, the pianist directed an incandescent improvisation of

skidding twists, barline-vaulting long runs and classically precise figures at his own bebop-referencing You Won't Be Around To See It, as well as

exploring the flat-out phrase-swapping with Walker that ran through both of Tuesday's sets. The guitarist's Wallenda's Last Stand has a Methenyish

air, and his own lissome lines, and Steve Swallow's, resembled the same instrument at times. The tumbling Laugh Lines was a shade more muffled

and navigationally uncertain than on the album, but Walker's When You Hold Her was a masterpiece of the slow burn, from delicate guitar

chording to roaring, effects-packed drama. The second set spliced three pieces into one gripping story that opened on

an understatedly dancing groove and ended with the players crouching, watchful and sometimes jubilant, testing and baiting each other. The

formidable Nussbaum's homage to traditional blues, Sure Would Baby,

hurled Walker into Hendrix territory, and Swallow's famously cool Ladies in Mercedes can rarely have been played with more impetuous ferocity.

Gwilym Simcock/Mike Walker

Ronnie Scott's, London

Jazz supergroups are volatile concoctions, bespoke teams of virtuosi often just getting in each other's way. But the Anglo-US quartet built from

scratch this week around the untried partnership of pianist Gwilym Simcock and Salford guitarist Mike Walker, with Americans Steve Swallow

on bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums, fulfilled all its promise – and then some.

With everything from prize-winning albums to Prom concerts under his belt, Simcock's international stature is secure – but Mike Walker, though

almost two decades older, has been a peripheral figure. Yet Walker's

contribution to this ensemble was nothing short of sensational, through plenty of quiet but compellingly lyrical music, as well as some postbop

gallops and a spectacular roaring blues. With its mix of understated grooving, chiming rock/blues guitar sounds

and passages of glistening delicacy, this band recalled the early ensembles led by vibraphonist Gary Burton. Simcock set the improv bar

early on with a surging, McCoy Tyner-like solo on his own convoluted-bop theme, and Walker's fast Laugh Lines revealed his rare balance of

meticulousness, spontaneity, storytelling and tonal bite as a soloist. Walker uses effects sparingly, but an accordion-like sound warmed a

graceful ballad towards the end of the first set. Nussbaum's blues Hey Pretty Baby then launched some howling electric-blues out of a stealthy

and soft-strummed overture, and Swallow's classic Ladies in Mercedes was a vehicle for the bass guitarist's inimitably slinky solo style – with

Simcock's arrangement typically cherishing its famous riff, while

disguising its melody almost entirely. The full house listened rapt to every polished sound.

John Fordham

The Impossible Gentlemen: The Impossible Gentlemen – review

(Basho)

The Observer, Sunday 5 June 2011

When you're dealing with this level of accomplishment, generations mean

nothing. The Impossible Gentlemen are four musicians: pianist Gwilym Simcock (30), guitarist Mike Walker (48), drummer Adam Nussbaum (55)

and bassist Steve Swallow (70).Each one is a virtuoso, but that's taken for granted. It's the interplay between them that matters, the way every

nuance fits magically into the ever-changing pattern. And it's not all action and energy either; the duet between Simcock and Walker in "Gwil's

Song" is the most sensuous sound imaginable. Absorbing.

Album review: The Impossible Gentlemen: The Impossible Gentlemen

Published Date: 07 June 2011

By KENNY MATHIESON

The Impossible Gentlemen: The Impossible Gentlemen

Basho Records

**** Lurking behind the inscrutable name is an excellent Anglo-American quartet of well-

established musicians. Guitarist Mike Walker and pianist Gwilym Simcock link up with the

great American rhythm pairing of Steve Swallow on bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums in a

combination that first played together last year, and by all accounts instantly gelled on stage.

That is borne out by this debut recording, in which all four players have ample opportunity to

shine, and to lay down their own stylistic markers. Nonetheless, the music's real strength is

collective – the interaction between four diverse talents is a constant treat, whether on gentle,

exquisitely textured explorations like Walker's increasingly expansive When You Hold Her

or Simcock's Gwil's Song, or up-tempo material, exemplified by Walker's Laugh Lines or

Simcock's Play The Game. They close with Nussbaum's sinuous blues, Sure Would Baby.

Jazz breaking news: Gwilym Simcock Dazzles

With Ango-American Supergroup At Bergen

Nattjazz Festival

Thursday, 27 May 2010 06:50

His plane might have been struck by lightning on the descent to Bergen airport earlier in the

day but suitably refreshed later and raring to go pianist Gwilym Simcock was on fine form

last night in the night club setting of Sardinen in the high-powered company of fellow Brit, the

reclusive guitarist Mike Walker and American stars, electric bassist Steve Swallow and

drummer Adam Nussbaum.

The band had only come together days before but already the tricksy charts provided by the

band members, whether negotiating the reimagined changes of a well worn standard or

expanding dramatically on new material, seemed to pose no problem to the quartet. Walker

was mightily impressive on his own tune ‘Laughlines’ and his broad Northern accent when

he spoke to the crowd was as refreshing as it was impressive on his devastating Scofield-

like lines.

Nattjazz is a celebration of Norwegian and international jazz and continues until 5 June. One

of Norway’s great hopes, the trumpeter Mathias Eick followed Simcock on to the Sardinen

stage later with a two-drummer quintet which produced a moving, anthem-like swell of sound

illuminated very impressively by electric bassist Audun Erlien.

Over on the bigger stage there was a rare show by the father of Ethio-jazz vibesman Mulatu

Astatke (with British trumpeter Byron Wallen impressing in his band) who delighted the

audience with a very mellow, rhythmical set which featured Mulatu’s unique music, some of

it based on Ethiopian church music from the film Broken Flowers which was also screened

at the festival. A true one-off.

Roy Hargrove completed the evening with his current quintet, perhaps not his finest group,

but looking dapper and blowing hard he was complemented excellently by the tart-sounding

alto player Justin Robinson.

Stephen Graham

ALLABOUTJAZZ Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker, Steve Swallow, Adam Nussbaum: The Impossible GentlemenBy

CHRIS MAY,

Published: May 30, 2011

The Impossible Gentlemen

The Impossible Gentlemen

Basho Records

2011

You may not have heard of The Impossible Gentlemen, for this is

the group's first album, and you may not have heard of one of its

two chief protagonists, as he has chosen to spend most of his

career away from the metropolitan center of things. So here's a

map reference, crude and approximate, but one that gets close to

the buried treasure. Imagine guitarist Pat Metheny's trio masterpiece, Day Trip (Nonesuch, 2007), add

a pianist of commensurate genius, and you are banging on the disc's front door. It is that good.

The Impossible Gentlemen is an Anglo-American quartet which got together in 2009. From Britain,

pianist Gwilym Simcock and guitarist Mike Walker, who conceived it, and from the US, bassist Steve

Swallow and drummer Adam Nussbaum. Its London launch at Ronnie Scott's Club in May, 2010, was

generally agreed to have been one of the year's landmark events. The debut album lives up to the

considerable expectations which have preceded it, and may seal the arrival of a major new guitar

star—"new," that is, after three decades at the coalface. About this, more in a moment.

It is, of course, at least borderline offensive to liken four musical characters as strong as Walker,

Simcock, Swallow and Nussbaum to anyone else, and, in any case, the comparison needs to be

thrown away as soon as the map reference is suggested. For although The Impossible Gentlemen is,

like Day Trip, a gutsy, gloriously lyrical, guitar-led romp in the acoustic jazz tradition, ranging from the

filigreed to the full-tilt, and with a twist of fusion thrown in, it has a personality all its own.

While the first musician to be listed in the credits is Simcock, much of that personality comes from

Walker, the least internationally celebrated member of the lineup. Like Simcock, Walker, almost 20

years his senior, is from Manchester, in the north of England. Unlike Simcock, he's never left the area,

which partly explains his relative obscurity, for England's music business is still overwhelmingly

London-centric. Born in 1962, Walker came to local attention with the fusion band River People.

Asked to deputize for John Scofield in trombonist/pianist Michael Gibbs' band, he was heard by

trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, who recruited him to his big band. In the early 1990s, he toured the UK

extensively with saxophonist Tommy Smith, and has since performed or recorded with a mini-galaxy

of stars, including pianist John Taylor, bassist Dave Holland, bassist Arild Andersen, trumpeter Palle

Mikkelborg, saxophonist Tim Berne and keyboardist George Russell. Walker toured the US and much

of Europe with Russell, but he's yet to make a headline splash in his own right, either with his own or

a cooperatively-led band.

The Impossible Gentlemen should help change that. Not only does Walker share at least half the

soloing space with Simcock—occasionally playing acoustic guitar, he mostly goes electric—he also

wrote four of the eight pieces (to Simcock's three). His writing displays a penchant for odd time

signatures and idiosyncratic structures, platforms for streams of exquisite melodicism, sometimes

easygoing, sometimes urgent, always fast-flowing. Walker's lyrical gift is certainly the equal of

Metheny's, but his style has rougher, tougher edges, heard throughout the album and most lengthily

on the closing blues, Nussbaum's "Sure Would Baby."

None of this is intended to belittle Simcock's contribution, or those of Swallow (at 70 years the don of

the group) and Nussbaum. All three shine—Simcock with lyricism, Swallow and Nussbaum with

rhythmatism—but they need less of an introduction in these pages. Unexpectedly, Swallow, a regular

partner of Nussbaum's since the early 1980s, takes no writing credits.

In the iPod age, album cover semiology is in danger of becoming a lost pleasure. But the group

photos in the booklet speak clearly: here is a band which is having an absolute ball. As you almost

certainly will too, if, after finding the approximate map reference given above to be potentially

attractive, you hear The Impossible Gentlemen.

Tracks: Laugh Lines; Clockmaker; When You Hold Her; You Won't Be Around To See It; Wallenda's

Last Stand; Gwil's Song; Play The Game; Sure Would Baby.

Personnel: Gwilym Simcock: melodica (5), piano; Mike Walker: guitar; Steve Swallow: bass; Adam

Nussbaum: drums.

thejazzbreakfast

start the day just behind the beat – then catch up here

CD review: The Impossible Gentlemen

Posted on 14 June 2011 by Peter Bacon

The Impossible Gentlemen (Basho Records SRCD36-2)

The first recording by this perfectly balanced transatlantic band – guitarist Mike Walker and pianist Gwilym Simcock from this side of the pond; drummer Adam Nussbaum and electric bassist Steve Swallow from the other side – builds upon and confirms what those of us who heard them playing live in the spring of 2010 already knew: that it’s one of the most exciting and satisfying collaborations for a very long time.

Comparisons with other bands of musicians might be odious, but they are also useful when used to put across a subjective view. There are two that occur to me. One is the rather dispiriting and lacklustre sound of James Farm, a new collaborative band formed by saxophonist Joshua Redman, pianist Aaron Parks, bassist Matt Penman and drummer Eric Harland; the other is the ultimately disatisfying mismatch of Metheny Mehldau, the supergroup with the guitarist and the pianist’s trio.

The latter is of particular interest here, because Metheny Mehldau shares the same, potentially tricky instrumentation. There is a reason why few bands pair guitar and piano in predominant roles: they can so easily get in each other’s way and cancel each other out. To hear some of the problems made manifest was to hear Metheny Mehldau in concert; to hear how a guitar/piano quartet can enhance both instruments, listen to The Impossible Gentlemen.

The reasons this band works so well are difficult to explain but easy to hear – they just gel so well.

Walker has always been a favourite of mine, with elements of both Pat Metheny and John Scofield in his playing, but over the years – and he has been active on the UK scene since the late ’80s – he has developed a wonderfully rounded and personal voice – or should that be voices, since he is a master of a whole range of sounds from delicately jazzy to powerfully rocky.

Simcock is a much more recent arrival on the scene, and has quickly and justifiably risen to be considered one of the most complete pianists in the business. He thrives in this company and there is clearly a magical musical connection with Walker as the the two Brits spark off each other.

And what of the Americans? Well, Steve Swallow has the most unmistakeable bass sound in jazz and it gives every band he plays in – from the Carla Bley big bands to his own modest-sized combos – a lithe basis and a springy rhythm. Adam Nussbaum is a drummer of the incorrigible kind, a hugely talented player with an expansive style, and the ability to move from a whisper to a depth charge thump with perfect logic.

The music on this disc will be in large part familiar from that 2010 tour – Walker’s lovely Clockmaker and Wallenda’s Last Stand, Simcock’s You Won’t Be Around To See It and Gwil’s Song – and the performances have benefitted from some live development before being preserved in the studio. Their ebb and flow, the slow builds to intensity, the gentle settling from emotion to resolution – all are brilliantly realised.

The band originally toured as the Gwilym Simcock Quartet – The Impossible Gentlemen is a more accurate reflection of this four-way band of equals. There is also, for me, a particular joy in hearing Mike Walker finally getting some of the attention and acclaim he so thoroughly deserves.

The Impossible Gentlemen are currently on tour in Britain. They have already played Gateshead and Ambleside, tonight they play the second of two nights at the Pizza Express in Dean Street, London, and they then go to Colston Hall, Bristol tomorrow, the Stables at Wavendon on Thursday, Taliesin Arts in Swansea on Friday, Edge Arts Centre in Much Wenlock on Saturday, and then Southport, Manchester, Barnstaple and Dorking next week.

For full details go here. And don’t miss them: they are sensational live!

thejazzbreakfast

23 May 2010 by peterbacon

Mike Walker at the CBSO Centre yesterday (Picture: Russ Escritt)

CBSO Centre, Birmingham UK 22-05-10 Gwilym Simcock might have been the instigator, but if the composing credits fell mainly to the two British players – the other was guitarist Mike Walker – the stature of the US rhythm team – Steve Swallow on bass, Adam Nussbaum on drums – meant this was very much a band of equals.

I’m alway intrigued by at what point in a gig the band really takes flight and moves from giving a merely pleasing performance to one that will live long in the memory and always bringing a warm smile . If we’re lucky it’s in the third or fourth tune, but sometimes, this being the unpredictable world of jazz, it never happens at all, not on that night, not at the gig we’re at, anyway.

For me, this band took flight in Clockmaker, Mike Walker’s rich composition which, like all his pieces, sound both immensely complicated and yet really easy for the listener to assimilate and to enjoy. It was the opening piece of the concert, and our first taste of what four exceptional and open jazz musicians sound like when they are both challenging themselves and having a damn fine time.

Steve Swallow’s knees bent as he focussed in hard on the music on the page, Nussbaum kept eye contact with Simcock and Walker as the tune flowed from improvisation to improvisation, always in a developmental way, never merely

processional. And the two younger British men just looked so pleased to be here and making music together with these older Americans.

It was Swallow’s Real Book album, in which he wrote new tunes based on the chord sequences of standards, that Simcock said inspired his You Won’t Be Around To See It, based on Softly (As In A Morning Sunrise). On a balmy night this raised the temperature further, with Nussbaum showing his full volume range, from a snare thwacked with his considerable might, to a cymbal stroked with fingertips.

After the unoriginally titled Gwil’s Tune, it was time for two more Walker compositions, the intricate and explosive Laugh Lines, and the richly lyrical and quietly climactic When You Hold Her. Again, these are such rich compositions, full of melody and emotion and fully explored by the band.

The Americans provided a token tune each in the second half, but for the most part they seemed really delighted for Simcock and Walker to share the writing and playing limelight. Walker’s Wallenda’s Last Stand was gorgeous, with that slightly Latin feel he sometimes favours, and Simcock’s Plainsong was a sublime encore.

A guitar and piano frontline is not the easiest line-up to manage. Those of us who saw the Pat Metheny/Brad Mehldau band in Symphony Hall a few years ago will know that even for two musicians of such standing, it is by no means plain sailing. There are icebergs lurking dangerously out there. Pat and Brad could learn a lot from Gwil and Mike. They never got in each other’s way, neither did they inhibit each others’ natural style.

And, in a world where some jazz musicians can still be a little too cool, what a joy to be witness to the clear warmth and mutual respect of all the musicians on the stage.

This feels like the start of something special and I was pleased to see the recording mics out last night. I haven’t been as excited by an Anglo-American project since I first heard Julian Siegel with Greg Cohen and Joey Baron. Let’s hope it becomes more than a one-tour stand.

The band is going on to play around Europe but if you are within driving distance of either Leicester (Embrace Arts Centre tonight) or London (Ronnie Scott’s tomorrow) – so, anywhere on the mainland, in other words – I’d urge you to get along. It’s the real deal.

The Impossible Gentlemen

The Impossible Gentlemen

Monday, June 13, 2011

Reviewed by: Ian Mann

4-5 out of 5

"At last, a super-group that works. “The Impossible Gentlemen” is an exceptional album, one that combines accessibility and melodic sensibility with a high degree of musical

sophistication".

The Impossible Gentlemen “The Impossible Gentlemen” (Basho Records SRCD 36-2)

The Impossible Gentlemen is an Anglo/American super-group consisting of the British pairing of guitarist Mike Walker and pianist Gwilym Simcock together with the All American rhythm section of electric bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Adam Nussbaum. The seeds of the project were sown by Walker who had previously worked with Swallow in the Mike Gibbs Big Band and the guitarist’s “what if?” idea was enthusiastically encouraged and supported by Christine Allen of Basho Music who helped to bring the all star quartet together and co-ordinated their inaugural UK tour in 2010.

I saw the band last year when, still working under the unwieldy Simcock/Walker/Swallow/ Nussbaum appellation, they played an excellent gig at Swansea’s Taliesin Arts Centre (a performance reviewed elsewhere on this site). That first tour was a great success with Peter Bacon of the Jazz Breakfast blog site naming their Birmingham show as his 2010 gig of the year. Following the success of the tour the quartet took the material they had played into Curtis Schwartz’s studio in Sussex and cut this brilliant album, the release of which has been timed to coincide with their 2011 national tour. Somewhere along the way they have also acquired a band name, “The Impossible Gentlemen”, and the music suggests that they have also forged a strong group identity. This is a project with legs and with the potential to run and run.

Walker is the unifying force behind TIG as I shall now continue to call them. At various stages of his career he had played with all three of his colleagues and it was initially his idea to bring them together. As Walker was the the instigator of TIG it perhaps comes as no surprise to discover that he’s the main composer here contributing exactly half of the album’s eight pieces. Simcock provides a further three tunes and Nussbaum one- the fact that Swallow, a prolific composer with many classic jazz tunes to his credit, is,as yet, unrepresented only underlines the future potential of the group. Not that Swallow’s lack of involvement as a writer devalues the album, the standard of the compositions by the other three, and Walker in particular, is exceptional.

TIG’s music is best described as an intelligent brand of fusion. There’s something of the melodic sensibility of early Pat Metheny in both the the playing and the writing and the eight compositions encompass a pleasingly broad stylistic and emotional range. Even when the playing is complex and muscular there’s still a logic and intelligence about it, TIG are far too sophisticated to descend into the excesses of fusion past.

Most of the tunes on this début album featured at that Swansea show and the music on the album has a real “played in” quality. TIG commence proceedings in invigorating fashion with Walker’s rollicking “Laugh Lines”, chock full of mercurial guitar and piano exchanges and joyfully propulsive grooves. Walker and Simcock link up well, vying with each other for excellence but never getting in each other’s way as Swallow and Nussbaum negotiate the rhythmic twists and turns of Walker’s tune with aplomb. Something that was evident at the Swansea performance was just how much fun these four guys were having making music together. As if to emphasise this point producers Simcock and Walker have left the spontaneous laughter that erupted at the end of this track in the final mix.

Walker’s “Clockmaker” is an altogether more considered affair, building from the tranquillity of his solo guitar intro to quasi orchestral magnificence via the lyricism of Swallow’s liquid electric bass and the flowing, rhapsodic quality of Simcock’s piano. The poise of the writing rivals Pat Metheny at his best, and of course Walker’s own playing is excellent throughout. Nussbaum’s colourful, neatly energetic drumming gives just the right amount of support.

The epic ballad “When You Hold Her” is another excellent example of the increasing maturity of Walker’s writing. Simcock’s reflective solo piano intro sets the mood and his subsequent duet with Walker’s acoustic guitar is exquisite. Nussbaum’s brushed drums are next to be introduced as the music slowly builds in layers. Walker’s heavily sustained electric guitar then takes the piece soaring into the stratosphere before everything comes full circle and the piece ends nearly as quietly as it began. This is a hugely affecting piece of writing and playing.

Simcock’s “You Won’t Be Around To See It” reintroduces that element of playfulness. The tune is an audacious subversion of “Softly As In A Morning Sunrise” full of sophisticated harmonic and rhythmic ideas. Nussbaum’s crisp, intelligent drumming acts as the springboard for inspired solos from Walker and Simcock. It’s tricky, bravura stuff but great fun for both the players and the listener.

Walker’s last contribution with the pen is “Wallenda’s Last Stand”, a lovely homage to the German/American tightrope walker Karl Wallenda (1905-78) founder of the Flying Wallendas circus dynasty. Featuring Simcock on melodica the piece is delicately melodic and exudes an air of period charm. Simcock’s melodica evokes the sound of the tango, there’s a wonderfully lyrical solo from Swallow on his custom made five string bass and Walker’s warm lines recall the rosy tones of Pat Metheny. Nussbaum’s sensitive drumming with hands or brushes is wonderfully sympathetic throughout.

Simcock’s simply titled Gwil’s tune is another melodic gem and once again features Swallow at his lyrical best alongside Walker’s Metheny-ish guitar and Nussbaum’s economical drumming. His final contribution with the pen, “Play The Game” couldn’t be more different as Nussbaum drums up a storm and Walker turns up the heat with a scorching solo. The composer contributes an exuberant piano solo reminiscent of early Keith Jarrett and Swallow’s springy bass pulse keeps the whole thing moving forward. There are some thrilling exchanges here and also some dazzling ensemble passages that demonstrate just how accomplished this group is.

The album concludes with Nussbaum’s slow blues “Sure Would Baby” with Walker turning in a blues/rock solo of slow burning intensity. Essentially the tune is a set piece for Walker who responds brilliantly. As the initial instigator of this exceptional group it’s perhaps appropriate that the guitarist has the final word.

“The Impossible Gentlemen” is an exceptional album, one that combines accessibility and melodic sensibility with a high degree of musical sophistication. The writing is excellent and varied and the standard of musicianship superb throughout. One of the most pleasing things about this album is the fact that it should bring the talents of Mike Walker to a wider constituency, hitherto the fact that he has continued to base himself in Manchester has led to him being rather overlooked by both national and international audiences. Hopefully “The Impossible Gentlemen” will go a long way to changing all that.

At last, a super-group that works. “The Impossible Gentlemen” is a certainty for the 2011 “best of year” lists.

The group are currently on tour in the UK. I’ll be catching them at Swansea again and reporting on that for this site. The full tour listing is reproduced below. Catch this remarkable line up if you can.

The Impossible Gentlemen, Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea, 17/06/2011.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Reviewed by: Ian Mann

4 out of 5

The eponymous début recording by this Anglo/American super-group was

recently reviewed elsewhere on this site and looks set to be one of the

albums of the year. British musicians Gwilym Simcock (piano) and Mike Walker (guitar) toured the UK last summer with their American pals Steve

Swallow (electric bass) and Adam Nussbaum (drums), subsequently cutting the album “live in the studio” following a round of successful

concerts during the course of which the foursome had struck up a strong musical and social friendship and a real band identity.

The album was released to coincide with the current tour which took in many of the same venues. There was therefore a real sense of deja vu for

me as I returned to Swansea’s excellent Taliesin Arts Centre (situated on the campus of Swansea University) for the first time since this quartet’s

previous appearance there in July 2010 when they appeared under the unwieldy moniker of Simcock/Swallow/Walker/Nussbaum. The group have

since acquired a band name, The Impossible Gentlemen, and in a nod to the album artwork they took to the stage here in neatly tailored suits with

Swallow and Nussbaum also donning hats for the grand entrance, with the shades wearing drummer looking like a refugee from the Blues

Brothers.

Needless to say the playing by this all star quartet was as sharp as their suits. Most of the tunes were drawn from the new album but with one or

two newer pieces finding their way into the second set. The evening commenced with Walker’s “Clockmaker”, his solo guitar opening later

followed by a characteristically melodic solo by Swallow on his custom made five string bass. Simcock produced a gorgeously rhapsodic piano

solo and also duetted delightfully with Walker. The guitarist’s own solo

saw him mouthing/singing along to his own melody lines and occasionally striking the strings of his instrument in a less than orthodox manner.

“Clockmaker” is a work that builds from quiet beginnings to an almost orchestral magnificence. It’s an impressive piece of writing and got the

concert off to a great start. Simcock’s “You Won’t Be Around To See It” is a clever subversion of the

standard “Softly As In A Morning Sunrise”. In the hands of the “Gentlemen” it became cerebrally funky courtesy of Walker’s rock

influenced guitar solo, Simcock’s dampening of the piano strings and

Nussbaum’s colourful and sometimes humorous drum feature. After this high energy workout it came as no surprise to see Nussbaum, Simcock

and Swallow divesting themselves of their jackets, Walker lasted a couple more number before succumbing.

Walker’s “Wallenda’s Last Stand” was again introduced by a passage of solo guitar. This charming piece also featured Simcock on melodica, a

welcome additional voice that added a touch of whimsy to the proceedings. Swallow’s liquidly lyrical high register bass solo was another

delight on this lovely tribute to the high wire walker Karl Wallenda (1905-1978).

Walker’s “Laugh Lines”,which opens the album, was a tricky, high energy, meter bending workout highlighted by the dazzling exchanges between

Walker and Simcock plus Nussbaum’s climactic drum hammering. I thought the quartet might finish then and end the first set on an explosive

note but they stuck around to close with Walker’s epic ballad “When You

Hold Her”, a smouldering slow burner of a tune with the composer’s stratospheric, sustain heavy guitar solo the undoubted highlight.

The first half had been of the high standard I was expecting, my only quibble being exactly the same as last year i.e. the distinctive sound of

Steve Swallow’s bass was buried too far in the mix. During the break I mentioned this to Fran Hardcastle, one of a trio of staff from Basho

Records (including label boss Christine Allen) who were managing the tour. Fran promised to pop backstage to see if something could be done

about this but I didn’t really hold out too much hope. Set two began with an impressive segue of three compositions, two of

them as yet unrecorded, beginning with Simcock’s “Fremantle Doctor”, written after a recent visit to Australia and honouring the cooling wind

that brings welcome relief to sweltering South West Australia. The tune itself was based around a nagging phrase cum riff that was first spelled

out by Nussbaum’s hand drums and Simcock’s dampened strings. As the

tune developed we were treated to another thrilling series of exchanges between piano and guitar. It also became apparent that whatever Fran

had said at half time had been listened to and that Swallow had now achieved sonic parity with his colleagues and was much more audible. His

excellent solo exemplified the benefit of this. Thanks Fran. Nussbaum’s “We Three” took the music into a more chilled out zone with

the composer switching to brushes. When he picked up the sticks again it was to provide a link into Simcock’s mercurial “Play The Game” (sourced

from the album). The composer’s dazzling, quicksilver piano solo was matched by Walker’s Metheny-esque guitar, his dazzling, boppish single

note runs later giving way to rock and blues inflections. This three tune tour de force received a rapturous reception from an appreciative crowd.

Hitherto Simcock and Walker had shared the announcing duties but it was Nussbaum who introduced his own tune “Sure Would Baby”, the slow

blues that closes the album. Inspired by Leadbelly and a host of other

great blues performers the piece was played here last year under the title

“Hey Pretty Baby”. This featured a scorching blues guitar solo from

Walker with Simcock providing a calming piano coda as Walker, quite justifiably, towelled himself down.

Also played last year, but unfortunately not yet documented by this ensemble, Steve Swallow’s “Ladies In Mercedes” is arguably his best

known composition. It first appeared on his duo record with vibraphonist Gary Burton “Hotel Hello” in 1974 with British singer Norma Winstone

adding a set of lyrics several years later. The tune is now something of a modern standard that has entered the repertoire of many singers. But

any vocal version would struggle to compete with this arrangement that moved from Swallow’s virtuoso solo bass opening through feverish solos

from Walker and Simcock, the latter underpinned by Swallow’s playing of the tune’s insistent Latin vamp.

The Swansea crowd went crazy for this giving the group a standing ovation. Inevitably they returned for an encore, this being another as yet

unrecorded tune “Days Of Old”, this time from the pen of Nussbaum. It

transpired that the drummer had picked up on a melody being sung by his eight year old daughter. He developed it, with added harmonic advice

from his partner in rhythm Mr. Swallow, and brought it to the group. Given the origins of the tune it’s perhaps not surprising that compared to

much of the quartet’s thrillingly complex music the piece seems rather naïve. But this simplicity brought a welcome touch of contrast with the

focus fixed firmly on the beauty and simplicity of the melody. Lyrical solos from Walker and Swallow embellished the piece perfectly and Simcock’s

reintroduction of the melodica provided a particularly nice touch. Nussbaum is becoming an increasingly important composer within the

band, his simple down to earth tunes offering a good contrast to the busy writing styles of Walker and Simcock. It’s likely that both he and Swallow

will feature more prominently as composers on the inevitable second album

FRIDAY, 10 JUNE 2011

The Impossible Gentlemen @ The Sage, Gateshead Gig of the year so far, was the consensus of many and it certainly is a contender. I absolutely adored the CD but live! Within the intimate confines of Hall Two it was something else. Like so many good things it began with a 'calm before the storm' feel as Mike Walker gently picked his way around his axe. Enter piano, increasing the tension, showing us the way. Bass and drums change gear and suddenly! - we've got lift-off. No problem here at The Sage - Houston. Walker is a guitar deity - so says Mark Williams, himself not unknown among the guitarati A list. Walker can be sublime and smooth or rugged and rockfaced he knows exactly when to go into overdrive and he does it within an acceptable rate of decibels. Simcock is a pianist with technique to spare. Jarrett, Hancock maybe even a touch of Czerny are all in a mix that comes out as pure Simcock. A phenomenal player. Adam Nussbaum - a powerhouse behind the kit swinging, driving soloing adding his voice to the quartet keeping the ship afloat. Steve Swallow - laid-back and understated during the first set he displayed more authority in the second with a couple of compositions and some tasteful soloing. A harmonic rock. Four great musicians and an even greater band. For the record Level One was full and Level Two was also populated. One chap I spoke to had travelled from Wrexham to hear the band. I'm sure he thought it was worth the trip.

THURSDAY, 19 MAY 2011

The Impossible Gentlemen

Gwilym Simcock (pno); Mike Walker (gtr); Steve Swallow (bs); Adam Nussbaum (bs). Basho Records SRCD 36-2. These gentlemen are impossible to typecast. The opening Laugh Lines - a Mike Walker composition - has contrapuntal lines weaving in and around each other with an almost Bach-like lucidity but with a contemporary feel. Imagine if the Modern Jazz Quartet had discarded their funereal garb and reformed in 2011 wearing sweatshirts, jeans and trainers - the result may have been along these lines. Simcock has an awesome technique blending yet contrasting with the tasteful guitar directions of Mike Walker. I can't believe I've never heard Walker before this compelling CD. Not only does he solo appealingly but he also wrote 4 of the 8 original compositions. Simcock chipped in with 3 and Nussbaum the final Sure Would Baby. Steve Swallow and Nussbaum - the transatlantic half of the quartet provide much more than rhythmic support adding their own voices to the ensembles and solos with depth and originality. The CD is due for general release on June 6 and will also serve as an appetiser for their forthcoming tour which opens at The Sage, Gateshead on June 10. For more info go to www.impossiblegentlemen.com Lance.

MUSIC

The Impossible Gentlemen (Basho Records SRCD 36-2)

2:58pm Thursday 2nd June 2011

By Peter Bevan

This curiously titled group combines the superlative American rhythm team of Steve Swallow on bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums, with Brits Mike Walker on guitar and Gwilym Simcock on piano.

A short tour last year inspired the group to meet again to record this CD and tour more widely, starting at Sage, Gateshead on June 10. The interaction and mutual support is a joy throughout.

Review: Southport Melodic Jazz Club’s 20th anniversary concert

Jun 30 2011 by Janine Yaqoob

Top of the bill were The Impossible Gentlemen, a quartet comprising top British jazz pianist Gwilym Simcock, US stars Adam Nussbaum (drums)

and Steve Swallow (bass guitar) and Manchesterborn guitarist Mike Walker, emerging as a truly world class player in this most rarefied of

company.

Playing tunes written by each of the members, the band provided an unforgettable evening, occasionally dipping into the realms of rock super-

group (as in Nussbaum’s Sure Would Baby). Steve Swallow’s beautifully melodic Ladies In Mercedes created exquisite contributions from all four

players.

Star of the show was Mike Walker, whose contributions as a song writer

(witness The Clock Maker, Wallander’s Last Stand and Laugh Lines) and soloist were just sublime. The group received a standing ovation from the

full house audience.

Lyrical blend of four originals

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

A packed Embrace Arts Centre enjoyed a world-class performance by an international jazz group on its way to Ronnie Scott's and a European tour.

From America, superstar bass player Steve Swallow on his five-string acoustic-electric bass guitar – which can act as a second lead guitar when

needed – and Adam Nussbaum, who was the most lyrical drummer I have ever heard.

Add, from the UK, Mike Walker on tasteful electric guitar and the genius

Gwilym Simcock on piano, and together they wove a tapestry of

interlocking solos and themes.

Every number was an original, with all four band members contributing, building to make a sculpted evening's performance.

Space forces me to pick highlights: Simcock's Swallow-inspired You Won't

Be Around To See It provided the most intriguing angular theme for the

band to work from.

Walker's Laugh Lines was a witty piece, and Nussbaum's drum solo was already superb when he suddenly dropped the volume to a whisper

leaving us on tender tenterhooks.

In the second set Walker's Wallender's Last Stand featured Simcock's

Argentinean-inflected melodeon over Nussbaum's gorgeous Latin rhythm.

Nussbaum's delicate blues Pretty Baby allowed the audience and band to relax and Swallow's Ladies in Mercedes was the epitome of great soloing.

It also provided another example of Nussbaum's painterly drumming.

If only the band's name matched their sophistication!

Photo Credit: David Forman

The Impossible Gentlemen

(Pizza Express, Dean Street. Monday 13th June. Review by Chris Parker)

Devoting their first set to pieces from their eponymous Basho album, but airing

(mostly) new material in their second, The Impossible Gentlemen (left to right above:

Steve Swallow, Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker, Adam Nussbaum) utterly

charmed a full house on this, the first of their two-nights

engagement at the cellar club.

The 2010 tour by this band resulted in three out of five Jazz UK journalists voting

their gig the best of the year, and praise for their album has been uniformly warm –

'imagine guitarist Pat Metheny's trio masterpiece, Day Trip (Nonesuch, 2007), add a

pianist of commensurate genius, and you are banging on the disc's front door. It is

that good' a representative example – so they're clearly doing a lot of things right,

and their opening number, guitarist Mike Walker's 'Clockmaker', contained a fair

number of them: ease of interaction, graceful but powerful soloing, a rhythmic

buoyancy attributable in no small part to Steve Swallow's deft picked basslines, but

also to Adam Nussbaum's restless probing round the beat.

With the mellifluous, resourceful piano of Gwilym Simcock intertwining with

Walker's delicate guitar work, the bar was set high for the rest of the concert, but

Simcock's 'You Won't be Around to See It' (loosely based on 'Softly, as in a Morning

Sunrise'), Walker's 'Wallenda's Last Stand' (dedicated to the leader of a family of

tightrope walkers), his driving album-opener 'Laugh Lines' and the slow-building

burner 'When You Hold Her' maintained the musical standard, each tune drawing a

precisely appropriate guitar tone from Walker and solos of cascading but controlled

urgency from Simcock.

The US rhythm section provided most of the second set's compositions, Simcock's

appropriately breezy Fremantle Doctor' (inspired by a refreshing afternoon wind in

the Western Australia port) aside, and the consequent slight shift in emphasis, from

fluent, almost pastoral lyricism to a tenser, slightly jazzier approach, was immediately

noticeable. Nussbaum's 'Sure Would Baby' drew yet another cracking guitar solo

from Walker, Swallow's set-closing 'Ladies in Mercedes' proved a joyous romp

courtesy of its relentlessly ascending melody, and Nussbaum's 'Days of Old' (based

on a tune sung by his then eight-year-old daughter) was a tender (but surprisingly

gutsy) encore.

The hallmark of the band's album is the quartet's discernible enjoyment of and

respect for each other's playing; this live performance, assured and relaxed yet

consistently musicianly, each participant unfussily virtuosic, was simply small-group

jazz at its unequivocally enjoyable best.

Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker, Steve Swallow, Adam Nussbaum

(CBSO Centre, May 22nd 2010, second night of tour)

The new, stellar, quartet of Gwilym Simcock, piano, Mike Walker, guitar, Steve

Swallow, bass ,and Adam Nussbaum, drums, has a couple of surprises up its

sleeve.

I attended the group's second (ever) outing, at the CBSO Centre in Berkeley Street

in Birmingham on Saturday night, and, as I expected was never less than mightily

impressed by the level of technique, listening and collective musicianship on display.

Yes, the jaw duly drops. But while the music is complex, it is primarily about

expression rather than display. And what I certainly wasn't expecting at this early

stage of the band's life, was to find much on offer which can touch the emotions and

really bring out the goosebumps.

Two of these moments of sheer beauty were in the last tune of the first half, When

you Hold Her, a new composition by Mike Walker. At one point Walker and Steve

Swallow were playing a tricky, sinuous melody in octaves, in perfect lockstep,

making one poignant heartfelt voice. The emotions take over. At another point,

towards the end of the same tune, Gwilym Simcock was intoning and carefully fading

three note rising and falling motifs. Again, complete beauty. I overheard an audience

member afterwards, emerging into the foyer talking about how that tune had brought

flooding back what sounded like distant memories from over fifty years ago, of

hearing a particular piano as a child. There were similar poignant moments in the

encore, Simcock's Plainsong, which brought a touching solo high up in treble clef, a

beautifully sustained melodic line from Steve Swallow.

Mike Walker 's playing, for those who don't know it, is one of the greatest joys of

British jazz. To say he's in the league of a John Scofield or a Mick Goodrick may

mean little. But in the live situation he can lead the listener literally anywhere. There's

a capacity to play on the borders of silence, and yet with an astonishing range of

colour. And to build from there, organically to full-on Hendrix. He never disappoints.

Complete fluidity of movement around the drum kit seems like second nature to

Adam Nussbaum. He is some sort of ideal of the creative drummer who brings

astonishing vitality and freedom to the sound. I find Steve Swallow 's subtle, gentle

presence, his economy of movement and language completely and consistently

mesmerising.

Gwilym Simcock also is in his element in this group. He had spoken to me a few

weeks ago about bringing together four very distinct and individual personalities and

sounds, and was enthused, even thrilled by the prospect of the collective sound

which would emerge. I particularly enjoyed his Corea-like excursions on Mike

Walker's composition Laughlines, but there was much else to enjoy.

I hope that the only London appearance by this group, at Ronnie Scott's tonight is

packed to the seams. It should be. For those of us in the South -East there won'tbe

another opportunity to hear them until July 22nd in Dorking. There will be a radio

recording of a set in Manchester at the end of July. A CD recording is also planned.

This should be the start of something big.

London Jazz News

Review: The Impossible Gentlemen

The Impossible Gentlemen. Left to right: Swallow, Nussbaum, Walker, Simcock

The Impossible Gentlemen

(Pizza Express Dean Street, Wednesday, June 27th 2012)

Gwilym Simcock on piano, Mike Walker on guitar, Steve Swallow on bass and Adam

Nussbaum on drums came together in early 2010 to form The Impossible Gentlemen, and

have been described as a jazz super-group. Not necessarily a good thing, as super-groups

have been known to dissolve in a morass of competing egos instead of combining to achieve

shared musical goals. It is a partnership across the generations - Simcock is 31, Walker 49,

Swallow 71 and Nussbaum 56 -and is working well.

Steve Swallow plays a hollow bodied acoustic bass guitar and so good was the sound that I

heard every note he played on this gig. That’s not always the case with bass. His career goes

back to the mid-sixties and he’s played with all the greats. Similarly Adam Nussbaum, who

can name check Abercrombie and Brecker, has worked with Swallow in a trio with John

Scofield.

So what attracted such established names to join two relatively lesser known – and British –

musicians? Well, Simcock has already been hailed as a genius by no less than Chick Corea,

and I humbly second that. But there are probably many, or at least, several jazz pianists who

have technique in spades and a tremendous grasp of melody, harmony and counterpoint.

What makes Simcock stand out, head and shoulders for me, is the almost classical tone

quality he produces from the instrument. So many jazzers accentuate the percussive qualities

of the piano, bringing out, at times, a harshness which cuts through but is not exactly inviting.

Simcock has it in his fingers to produce a woody, marimba like quality when playing

ostinatos at the start of "Barber Blues", a thick warm tone when playing ballads such as an as

yet untitled piece by Swallow – and many beautiful and subtle colours in between.

Mike Walker was a revelation to me – he too has a long track record, but not always in high-

profile situations. He has, nevertheless, played with Kenny Wheeler’s big band and with

George Russell, and also covered for Scofield in the Mike Gibbs band. He is a wonderfully

fluent soloist. I loved the range of tones that he used – clean on the jaw-dropping unison head

of Laugh Lines, warm and buzzy on the fast Latin style Ladies in Mercedes and rock tones on

You Won’t Be Around To See It.

This was an absorbing night’s music performed before a packed and attentive audience. If

you haven’t already got the album all I can say is – where’ve you been? The tour continues in

Portsmouth tonight and then in Europe in July but they’re back for a few dates in the UK in

December. I don’t think I’ll hear a more memorable gig this year so they are worth travelling

a long way for.

Album number two - to be produced by Steve Rodby (interviewed here)- is being recorded in

the next few weeks – I’m in a state of aural salivation.

On Friday, June 29, 2012

London Jazz News

Review: Steve Swallow Quintet/ The Impossible Gentlemen

The Impossible Gentlemen.

Photo credit: Roger Thomas

Steve Swallow Quintet/ The Impossible Gentlemen

(Queen Elizabeth Hall, part of London Jazz Festival, November 12th 2011. Review by

Patrick Hadfield)

The Impossible Gentlemen took to the stage without one of their members – rather than

support himself, the group’s usual bass player, Steve Swallow, was replaced for the evening

by Steve Rodby.

This change in personnel didn’t seem to have distracted the others. Their music was full of

energy across a dynamic range spanning brooding, contemplative piano through gentle swing

to roaring jazz-funk. Despite the changing moods, the music had a cohesive feel often

missing from other “supergroups”, the other members – Briton’s Gwilym Simcock on piano

and Mike Walker on guitar, and superlative American drummer Adam Nussbaum on drums

– played with great sensitivity. The whole band excelled in their short set.

The Steve Swallow Quintet suffered in comparison. This was restrained, gentle music,

“chamber jazz” suited to the concert hall, but it lacked energy to fill the hall with sound.

Carla Bley on Hammond B3 organ often played the bass lines, freeing up Swallow to play

some beautiful solos high in the register, but she rarely took solos herself. Jorge Rossy’s

drumming was at times so soft to be inaudible. The music felt complex and highly structured,

giving soloists little opportunity to stretch out, and seemed set at one level when compared to

the Impossible Gentlemen’s dynamism.

On Monday, November 14, 2011

marlbank

Are you going with me?

Bassist Steve Rodby will be joining The Impossible Gentlemen when the acclaimed band

tours again this year.

Dates have still to be announced for the full tour, but the Brecon Jazz Festival in Wales has

confirmed that the band will be appearing on the closing night of the festival on 11 August

with besides Rodby in the line-up new drummer, the Chicagoan Mark Walker from the jazz

and new age band Oregon, taking Adam Nussbaum’s place.

Rodby has produced the latest Basho Records album expected this year, The Impossible

Gentlemen’s second outing for Basho records, the north London based label that’s also home

to Kit Downes, whose quintet release is a priority in early-

2013 http://marlbank.tumblr.com/post/39377045983/1683.

The bassist in the Pat Metheny Group for long periods during the last 30 years, Rodby, 58,

who was born in Joliet, Illinois, has produced records for Oregon, Eliane Elias, the Jim Hall

& Pat Metheny duo album, and Pat Metheny Trio albums among many others.

The new IG album was recorded last summer in Sussex following a four-night club residency

at London’s Pizza Express Jazz Club in June.

During that lengthy stint The Impossible Gentlemen unveiled new songs from the album they

were about to record.

Just three years old now the Gentlemen on their debut were five-string electric bass legend

Steve Swallow, distinguished former Sco drummer Adam Nussbaum, piano star Gwilym

Simcock, and north west jazz guitar cult hero Mike Walker.

London Jazz News

Podcast: Interview with Gwilym Simcock and Mike Walker + exclusive peeks

of the new Impossible Gentlemen album Internationally Recognised Aliens

Gwilym Simcock and Mike Walker spoke to us about the forthcoming album

Internationally Recognised Aliens by The Impossible Gentlemen, which will be released

this autumn on Basho Records. They have kindly given LondonJazz News, as a UK (and also

European, worldwide, and galactic) exclusive, two sneak peeks of the new CD.

They talk us through what has been happening in the band since their first album, about

working with Steve Swallow and Steve Rodby, plus the stories behind the two extracts

played here, from Heute Loiter and Crank of Cam Bay.

Musical Extracts

Heute Loiter - at 05:59

Crank of Cam Bay - at 11:24

The band is at the Brecon Festival in August and then on tour in the UK in October. Tour

Dates

Tuesday, June 04, 2013

marlbank

Impossible Gentlemen to tour new album Internationally

Recognised Aliens

Tour dates to follow the early autumn release of the Impossible Gentlemen’s second album

Internationally Recognised Aliens have been announced by their label Basho. The October

run begins in Dorking at Watermill Jazz on 10 October and continues with further

appearances at The Flavel, Dartmouth (11 October); Turner Sims, Southampton (12

October); RNCM, Manchester (15 October); The Spin, Oxford (17 October); Zefferelli’s,

Ambleside (18 October); Seven Arts, Leeds (19 October); The Arena, Wolverhampton (20

October); Pizza Express Jazz Club, Dean Street, London (21-24 October); and Royal Welsh

College of Music and Drama Cardiff (26 October).

Gwilym Simcock above left and Mike Walker, Adam Nussbaum and Internationally

Recognised Aliens producer Steve Rodby

6-06-13

How the Light Gets In

The Impossible Gentlemen

Posted by Gerry on November 13, 2011 in Music

We saw these guys in July 2010 when they were undertaking their first tour and going under

the unwieldy name of Simcock-Walker-Swallow-Nussbaum. Now they’ve adopted the

cryptic, but rather more memorable title of The Impossible Gentlemen. We saw them put an

excellent show last night at Pacific Road in Birkenhead.

The Impossible Gentlemen are a quartet of Anglo-American jazzmen who first got together

in 2009. From Britain there’s pianist Gwilym Simcock and guitarist Mike Walker, who

conceived the project, and from America, drummer Adam Nussbaum and bassist Steve

Swallow (seen left to right above). However, at Pacific Road Steve Rodby substituted for

teve Swallow

.

Steve Rodby (photo by wilcox2007)

Since the band launched at Ronnie Scott’s Club in May, 2010, they have received critical

acclaim for their live performances, and their excellent debut album, released in May, lives

up to the expectations we had after seeing them at Manchester’s RNCM. Whch isn’t that

surprising, because these guys have musical pedigree.

At Pacific Road they opened with Simcock’s composition ‘Barber’s Blue’ which we heard

first a month ago during his Trio performance at the Capstone in Liverpool. It’s a great

number, having, as Simcock explained in his introduction, some of the characteristics of the

Samuel Barber piano music that he enjoyed when he was training as a classical pianist. The

piece was inspired by his recent rediscovery of his student notes on Barber.

From there the band played nearly all of the selections that appear on their first CD

(above). This event was part of the Wirral Guitar Festival, and I guess many of the audience

had come specifically to see the guitar wizardry of Mike Walker. And although the

Impossible Gentleman meld perfectly as a team and all of them gave outstanding

performances, there was no doubt that Mike Walker is the unifying force and star of the

outfit.

Imagine a cross between Pat Metheny and Jimi Hendrix and you’re close to the sound and

artistry of Mike Walker. It’s probably fair to say that Mike isn’t that well known. Yet he has

played and recorded with jazz greats such as Steve Swallow, Kenny Wheeler, Dave Holland,

Anthony Braxton, Bill Frisell and many others. He plays regularly in the UK, Europe and

around the world, but remains resolutely based here in the north west. He was born in

Salford and built up a reputation on the live jazz circuit in the 1980s and 1990s. He teaches

at the Liverpool Institute for the Performing Arts (LIPA) and privately from his home in

Lancashire.

Mike Walker

Many of the most arresting numbers at Pacific Road were composed by Mike Walker: ‘Laugh

Lines’, ‘Clockmaker’, and ‘Wallenda’s Last Stand’, dedicated to the high-wire walker Karl

Wallenda, who fell to his death at the age of 74 on his last walk. This haunting number, and a

couple of others, featured Simcock leaning across the piano keyboard to play the melodica

with one had whilst playing piano with the other. Also featured was Mike’s

beautiful composition ‘When You Hold Her’ which begins with Simcock providing a

delicate piano intro, but later evolves into a soaring, Hendrix-like guitar solo from Mike.

As well as ‘Barber’s Blue’, Gwilym Simcock contributed the exciting ‘You Won’t Be

Around To See’ – in his words a Hammer-horror subversion of the standard ‘Softly As In A

Morning Sunrise’ – and another as yet unrecorded number, ‘Fremantle Doctor’, written after

a recent visit to Australia and honouring the cooling wind that brings welcome relief on

sweltering and humid days in that town. The band segued into this tune from Nussbaum’s

‘We Three’ which shared a similarly chilled out feel. ‘Try to imagine’, Simcock said, ‘lying

on a beach of silver sand beside an ocean of blue – just like Merseyside, perhaps’ .

Adam Nussbaum

Nussbaum introduced his own tune ‘Sure Would Baby’ by talking about how as a child he

was mesmerized by his parents’ collection of 10-inch blues LPs, featuring strange and

wonderful names like Leadbelly, Lightnin’ Hopkins and other great blues performers. The

piece featured a scorching blues guitar solo from Walker which in some respects was the

highlight of the evening.

It was a great evening, but sadly probably the last we’ll go to at Pacific Road. Faced with

having to make substantial cuts, Wirral Council is closing the venue at Christmas to focus its

cultural support on the renovated Floral Pavilionin New Brighton. Not quite the same

ambience – at Pacific Road it’s cabaret seating, so you can have a drink while watching the

performance.

Jazz Times

The Impossible Gentlemen

Jun 21, 2011 07:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Band on the Wall present the cream of British and American jazz talent - Gwilym Simcock,

Steve Swallow, Mike Walker, Adam Nussbaum - performing as the new quartet, The

Impossible Gentlemen, at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester.

'Jazz supergroups are volatile concoctions, bespoke teams of virtuosi often just getting in

each other's way. But the Anglo-US quartet built from scratch this week around the untried

partnership of pianist Gwilym Simcock and Salford Mike Walker, with Americans Steve

Swallow on bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums, fulfilled all its promise – and then some'.

Four Star review - The Guardian.

This brand new project is full of inspirational improvisational playing and they will be

performing new music written specially for the quartet by Gwilym, Mike, Steve and Adam.

A co-promotion with Band on the Wall

The Bridgewater Hall

Manchester The Bridgewater Hall, Lower Mosley Street, Manches

UK

http://www.bridgewater-hall.co.uk/performance/16327.aspx

Impossible Gentlemen, Bridgewater Hall,

Manchester 17 June 2011

Posted on June 17, 2011

It is seldom that musical formations gel quickly and instead close, intimate units are normally

formed over a considerably longer period of time. The Impossible Gentlemen are the

exception to the rule in sofar as they have only been in existence for just over a year, first

performing a UK tour in 2010. This included a prime spot as part of the Manchester Jazz

Festival at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). They then went on directly to

record their debut self title album which has met with considerable plaudits, not least from

this writer. Manchester connections are all too obvious with pianist Gwilym Simcock a

former alumni of both Chetham’s School of Music and more recently of the RNCM. Guitarist

Mike Walker is the Salford-born musician who has frequently performed in the cities jazz

venues. Completing the quartet are the veteran American pairing of bassist Steve Swallow

and drummer Adam Nussbaum. The former has played with many of the all-time greats

including Joe Henderson and Pat Metheny while Nussbaum is simply one of the most

respected and versatile drummers and has played on countless recordings, including the

prestigious ECM label.

For this collective return to Manchester, they performed a Band on the Wall presentation that

took place at the Bridgewater Hall, as part of a series of musical collaborations between the

two venues during the summer months. A fine start to the evening commenced with Mike

Walker undertaking an extended introductory solo, backed by some delicate ensemble

playing. Once the piece had ended, Gwilym Simcock then stood up, on the first of several

occasions, to enter into some friendly banter with the appreciative audience, explaining how a

given composition came about. Clearly he is an active and enthusiastic educationalist as well

as being an outstanding musician. First up was a variation on the standard, ‘Early as in a

morning sunrise’, humourously re-titled ‘You won’t be around to see it’. What the quartet

immediately conveyed here was the constant quest for musical exploration while at the same

time operating as a collective whole. This requires no little virtuosity and teamwork, but it

was self-evident how comfortable each of the musicians were in the other’s presence. Mike

Walker was in more reflective territory here, echoing the blues-inflected hues of one of his

guitar heroes, John Scofield. As would be the case throughout the evening, Simcock would

then take over soloing in imaginative bursts as a piece developed in intensity. In general the

quartet constantly switched the order of soloists and this added great variety to the

performance, and kept proceedings free of needlessly repetitive clichés. Indeed once

drummer Nusbaum was in full flow, the numbers became more jazz-inspired and Swallow

was always there behind everyone else both maintaining and propelling the band to ever

greater heights.

Travelling the globe as a creative musician can in fact serve as a major inspiration to write

and while touring western Australia, Simcock developed a new riff which was aired here with

the pianist revealing his most lyrical side. This was further illustrated on the piece

‘Wallanda’s last stand’ where the pianist deployed the use of the little known (in jazz circles

at least) melodica, a keyboard instrument that is blown via the mouth, thus creating at once a

haunting and sensitive sound. The instrument’s major practitioner was the late roots reggae

instrumentalist Augustus Pablo and it was an inspired choice by Simcock to opt for this

instrument and made for a lovely contrast with acoustic piano.

For the second part of the concert, Mike Walker introduced the opening number to the album

and one of his own compositions ‘Laughlines’, a familiar piece to those who have heard the

quartet previously, and one during which both Simock and Walker set off on an exhilarating

duo. Blues and jazz have long enjoyed a fruitful relationship over the decades and Adam

Nusbaum explained that for the following piece, the down home blues themed ‘Sure would

baby’, the band would be paying homage to some of his personal blues heroes such as

Leadbelly and Muddy Waters. At times the quartet would effortlessly shift the mood within a

number and this was perfectly illustrated on a tune such as ‘When you hold her’ which at the

outest started as the most delicate and refined of pieces, but, over several minutes, developed

and morphed into a mid-tempo groove with electric guitar featuring delightful blues licks

from Walker before the quartet returned to the quiet contemplation of the introduction.

What new directions for this formation? One posiitve direction was hinted at towards the end

by a Latin-flavoured composition penned by Swallow while driving in his car in Boston,

Massachusetts. Here and on the well deserved encore, Steve Swallow demonstrated what a

fine soloist he is with subtle accompaniment from Nussbaum. In short, this was a small-scale

demonstration in musical master craftsmanship.

Warming up the evening’s musical was local guitarist Stuart McCallum who performed solo

and was showcasing numbers from his later in the year to be released debut album. Simply

accompanied by amplified guitar and pre-recorded keyboards, McCallum demonstrated how

imaginative one musician can be and he delighted the audience with a quirky reworking of

some old, familiar themes including a lovely take on ‘Wonderwall’ from local rock heroes

Oasis. Possibly the tour de force was the sparse interpretation of ‘Amazing Grace’ while at

various points during a piece, a light Latin-style vamp would be introduced seamlessly. Stuart

McCallum will be performing at this year’s Manchester Jazz Festival on 27 July with

extended band and this promises to be a definite festival highlight. One looks forward with

some relish to hearing the debut CD.

Tim Stenhouse

The Ring Modulator

Musings about jazz, Manchester, and anything else that feels right at the time

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

CD Review: The Impossible Gentlemen

From the outside, the Impossible Gentlemen album promises

to be something a little different, its music hall psychedelia

come Escher-Magritte cover avoiding the jazz conventions of

the monochrome Nordic landscape and the uncomfortable

photo session band shots. On listening, we discover the results

of an impressive four part collaboration between UK guitarist

Mike Walker, pianist Gwilym Simcock, and the American

classics, Steve Swallow on bass and Adam Nussbaum on

drums. Walker and Simcock take on the lion’s share of

composition duties, Nussbaum contributing the one closing

track. A truly fine record it is, surely now raising the profile of the relatively unknown

Walker, who’s frustrating under-heard phenomenal guitar playing and compositional abilities

undoubtedly form the core force of this great record. Continually rising star, Simcock, is on

top form as ever. Swallow and Nussbaum once again show why they are such highly rated

players.

The incendiary paced opening track, ‘Laugh Lines’ immediately grabs you by the jugular, its

ultra precise boppy head played in unison by Walker and Simcock. An interlaced solo

follows from the same, Walker’s jagged recursive lines having a strangely disorientating

effect. The soothing introduction to next track, ‘Clockmaker’ eases any disquiet, widening

out to a warm and embracing tune statement that Swallow picks up and channels through into

a sweet high register solo, with Simcock’s sweeping harmonic flourishes then adding to the

richness. All is well in the world.

The wistful elegance of Simcock’s

opening to ‘When you Hold Her’ is a

quite beautiful piece of playing, perfectly

setting up the piece’s introspective grace.

The open arms and open heart of the tune

section slowly builds to a deeply moving

and near-heartbreaking feedback-sustain

guitar solo from Walker. This spine-

tingling encapsulation of the essence of

upstanding human dignity is an

undoubted highlight of the album.

The mood intensity is then moderated by the cheeky perkiness of ‘You Won't Be Around To

See It’. I’m not entirely at home with the tune head on this track, but all is forgiven when the

track kicks with a bit of tasty muted piano string riffing from Simcock. Walker’s solo gets

nice n’outside on us, all the while maintaining a driving forward momentum, stitched

together with the mean groove emanating from Nussbaum and Swallow.

A regular from the Walker live set, ‘Wallenda’s Last Stand’ is given a French sounding twist,

with some melodica playing from Simcock, which works perhaps surprisingly well. Walker is

especially under-stated here, the directness of the playing making way for well-crafted and

richly melodic improvisation. Swallow and Nussbaum apply just the right accompanying

balance to make the whole thing work. The unashamedly sentimental tone of next track,

‘Gwil’s Song’, nods to the very best of Metheny. First up for a solo, Swallow sounds

especially lush, continuing in the spirit of Walker’s airy melody statement.

A short introduction from Nussbaum sets up the pace for the neo-boppy ‘Play the Game’.

Following the crisp tune head, Walker delivers line after line of decentred firecracker

improvisations that seem to twist and writhe in on themselves to great effect. Swallow’s

driving bass comes through warm and strong to assist, as Simcock then takes over the reigns

with some intricate but perfectly coherent improvising.

The deep dark blues of closing track, ‘Sure Would Baby’ takes quite a different tack to the

rest of the album, the Chicago blues mood delivered by Walker’s thick overdriven tone with a

road hardened slurriness, eventually taking on an edgy outsideness. The playing here has a

depth of feel and expressiveness all too little heard in the jazz guitar sphere, much to its

detriment in my opinion.

This is a really great record, no argument. It deserves to become an Anglo-American classic.

Here’s to hoping it will. Buy it. You won’t be disappointed. The Impossible Gentlemen are

on tour right now. Don’t be a damn fool and miss them now will you? Details are on the

Impossible Gentlemen tour page.

More reviews of the record available on the Impossible Gentlemen album page.

Posted by Ade at 5:01 pm

Steve Swallow added new material to the band book performed at the Soho club with an

untitled ballad on one night, and other tunes included Walker’s ‘The Slither Of Other Lovers’

and ‘Modern Day Heroes’.

Swallow said at the time, reported exclusively on downbeat.com, the tunes for the record

“have very asymmetrical structures but keep their integrity. We have eight new tunes that

we’ve worked up in the last eight to 10 days. I have to go through that door so they seem

natural like they’re in 4/4 even if they’re not. Moving ahead, it’s a conscious decision to

extend.” SG

Steve Rodby above

Update (6/3/13): The Impossible Gentlemen tour dates in the autumn are now

understood to be 10-25 October. Founder member Adam Nussbaum will be on drums

again for the October dates.

2-03-13

Jazzwise

The Steve Swallow Quintet + The Impossible Gentlemen – Queen Elizabeth Hall, 13.11.2011

User Rating: / 0

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Tuesday, 20 December 2011 16:41

Steve Swallow’s role in The Impossible Gentlemen was filled by Steve Rodby as the group

supported its usual bassist’s new quintet. The opening set, dominated by Mike Walker’s fine

compositions and even finer guitar work, delivered an exciting blend of subtle harmonies and

what pianist Gwilyn Simcock described as “hammer-horror” pentatonic rock.

The closing intensity of the Gentlemen’s set would have been impossible to match. Rather

than try Swallow’s quintet, consciously slowing things down, opened with a trio of minimal

tunes foregrounding Chris Cheek’s saxophone. Anything lacking in intensity was

compensated in variety. A string of tunes followed, wittily dedicated by Swallow to murder-

mystery fiction, where Carla Bley’s atmospheric organ drew the group close to film music.

Swallow and Steve Cardenas then embarked on a gentle flamenco-inspired duet. Here

Swallow reached such delicate high registers that his bass and Cardenas’s guitar converged to

haunt the same tonal grounds and offer the evening’s highlight.

These two highly-divergent highly-rewarding sets, united through Swallow, were a

outstanding tribute the bassist’s versatility.

– Matt Ellis

BBC Radio 2

Jamie Cullum

Sorry, this episode is not currently available on BBC iPlayer Radio

Tue 28 Jun 2011 19:00 BBC Radio 2

The Impossible Gentlemen in Session

Duration:

1 hour

First broadcast:

Tuesday 28 June 2011

Jamie Cullum showcases his love for all types of jazz and music rooted in jazz, from its

heritage to the future.

This week, Jamie features a Maida Vale session with the Anglo-US jazz super-group The

Impossible Gentlemen, who consist of British pianist Gwilym Simcock,... Show more

Music Played

10 items

Dinah Washington and Brook Benton Baby You’ve Got What It Takes

Two Of Us, Polygram

Charlie Parker A Night In Tunisia

Bird Symbols, Collectables

Zara McFarlane Blossom Tree

Until Tomorrow, Brownswood Recordings

Ramsey Lewis Uhuru

Another Voyage, Cadet

Harry Connick, Jr. Come By Me

Come By Me, Sony

Maida Vale Session Track

o The Impossible Gentlemen You Won’t Be Around To See It (Live at Maida Vale)

Les McCann & Eddie Harris Compared To What

Swiss Movement, Rhino

Maida Vale Session Track

o The Impossible Gentlemen Ladies In Mercedes (Live at Maida Vale)

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans Make Someone Happy

Together Again, Improv Records

Grizzly Bear While You Wait For The Others feat. Michael McDonald

Single B-side, Warp

Gwilym Simcock: The Impossible Gentlemen In Session

Mike Walker: The Impossible Gentlemen In Session

Adam Nussbaum: The Impossible Gentlemen In Session.

Steve Swallow: The Impossible Gentlemen In Session.

Mike Collins

The Impossible Gentlemen, Colston Hall Bristol,

Wednesday 15th June

The the flurry of excited anticipation about this gig, evident

from a quiet buzz on my corner of Facebook world and the healthy size of the audience in

Hall 2 on Wednesday, was vindicated almost with the first gently stroked chords of Mike

Walker’s ‘Clockmaker’. His unaccompanied musing evolved into a flowing, simple melody

as the band joined in, full of pauses and little rythmic statements underpinned by sonorous

chords. Part way through Gwilym Simcock’s piano solo, full of singing, joyful phrases and

soaring runs, Adam Nussbaum cracked a delighted smile and exchanged a nod with Mike

Walker; exactly how I was feeling at that moment – ‘this is perfect, beautiful

music’. Walker’s writing has a powerful emotional force with moments of great delicacy

reflected in a number of other pieces. But this was no whispering gentle gig. There were

plenty of rocky and bluesy howling guitar solos and full on, blazing post-bop moments from

the band. Simcock’s composition Play the Game was one such, a intricate theme doubled

with the guitar full of rhythmic twists and turns. Stylistically, then there was plenty of

variation but that starting point was a marker and the delight, exuberance and passion were

there all through. That these players are individually fabulous musicians is a given, just check

out their CVs, but the collective definitely creates something here that is more than their

sum. There are plenty of other reviews about of the gigs and CD ( Fordham, Jazz Mann, Jazz

Breakfast fellow Bristol blogger), acclaim seems universal. A mini whinge about the sound in

Hall 2 at Closton is in order, the piano disappeared in the mix at times and generally it was

pretty muddy, but it would have taken a lot undermine this fabulous band. A great evening

rounded off by a blistering version of Steve Swallow’s Ladies in Mercedes to get us dancing

out the doors.

NDR

Die Gentlemen bitten zum Konzert

Sie bilden ein transatlantisches Bündnis des Jazz - "The Impossible Gentleman". Mike

Walker ist Brite und Gentleman. "Wir sind Gäste der Musik", sagt er zum Beispiel. "Ich habe

nichts dagegen, zu begleiten, solange es der Musik dient. Das ist wichtiger, als mein Ego in

den Mittelpunkt zu stellen." Dabei hätte der Gitarrist allen Grund, ein wenig anzugeben.

Davon kann sich auch das Publikum überzeugen, wenn er mit Quartett zum Konzert an zwei

Abenden im November ins Rolf-Liebermann-Studio des NDR in Hamburg kommt.

Jazz-Gitarristen werden immer gebraucht ;-)

Einst sprang Walker bei Mike Gibbs für John Scofield ein - und wurde prompt von Kenny

Wheeler für dessen Big Band engagiert. Mit Kollegen wie Django Bates, John Taylor und

Julian Argüelles war er nun im Herzen der britischen Jazzszene angekommen, tourte bald mit

George Russel international, spielte mit Anthony Braxton, Bill Frisell oder Dave Holland.

Jazz im Rolf-Liebermann-Studio

Konzert #6

Donnerstag, 22. November 2012, 20 Uhr

Freitag, 23. November 2012, 20 Uhr

Set 1: Django Bates "Beloved Bird" Django Bates (p), Petter Eldh (b), Peter Bruun (dr)

Set 2: The Impossible Gentlemen Gwilym Simcock (p), Mike Walker (g), Steve Swallow (b), Adam Nussbaum (dr)

Rolf-Liebermann-Studio des NDR in Hamburg, Oberstraße 120

Mike Walker erfüllt sich seinen Traum

Vor zwei Jahren träumte er davon, ein transatlantisches Quartett zu gründen. Eine glückliche

Fügung machte es schließlich möglich. Der US-amerikanische Bassist Steve Swallow erzählt:

"Ich freue mich sehr, dass Mike sich entschloss, mit Gwilym, Adam und mir zu spielen. Er

und Gwilym sind hervorragende Musiker, die ständig die Grenzen des Jazz erweitern. Adam

und ich stehen da eher für die traditionellen Werte. Diese beiden Pole halten wir in einer sehr

anregenden Balance."

Die Besetzung

NDR Jazzworkshop November 2012

The Impossible Gentlemen Gwilym Simcock (p)

Mike Walker (g)

Steve Swallow (b)

Adam Nussbaum (dr)

In der Tat gehören Swallow und Nussbaum zu den dienstältesten Innovatoren aus den USA,

waren schon mit allen Wassern des Jazz gewaschen, als sie in den Achtzigern im John

Scofield Trio aufeinander trafen.

Gwilym Simcock spielt auch bei dem Quartett mit. Da war Gwilym Simcock noch ein kleiner

Junge. Ein Newcomer ist er allerdings schon länger nicht mehr. In den vergangenen Jahren

komponierte er Klavierkonzerte für die NDR Bigband und das BBC Sinfonieorchester,

improvisierte mit Tim Garlands "Lighthouse" sowie mit eigenem Trio brillante, einfallsreiche

Musik und wurde bereits mit Keith Jarrett und John Taylor verglichen ("nur jazziger!").

Feuer unter den Saiten

"Wir alle mögen Motown und Earth, Wind & Fire", beschreibt Walker die 'Impossible

Gentlemen'. "Aber wir lieben auch Basie und Bach. Das kommt alles in den Topf und wir

spielen los. Ich mag das: Es gibt nicht viel Geschriebenes, es ist sehr feurig!"

Die Gentlemen bitten zum Konzert

Das Jazz-Quartett "The Impossible Gentlemen" kommt mental aus dem Herzen der britischen

Jazzszene. Im November spielen sie im Rolf-Liebermann-Studio des NDR in Hamburg.

Art: Konzert

Datum: 22.11.2012, 20:00 Uhr

Ende: 23.11.2012

Adresse:

Rolf-Liebermann-Studio des NDR

Oberstraße 120

20149 Hamburg

Telefon: (0180) 178 79 80 (3,9 Cent pro Minute aus dem Festnetz und maximal 42

Cent pro Minute aus dem Mobilfunknetz)

E-Mail: ticketshop@ndr.de

Preis: 15,- (plus Vorverkaufsgebühr)

Öffnungszeiten: Mo - Fr 10-19 Uhr

Sa 10-18 Uhr

Besonderheit: Doppelkonzert, Set 2: Django Bates "Belovesd Bird"

Anmeldung: NDR Ticketshop

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04.07.2011 22:05

The Impossible Gentlemen

von Michael Laages

Die CD "The Impossible Gentlemen" ist bei Basho Records

erschienen. Bands wie diese haben keinen Chef. Sie brauchen auch keinen. Meister sind sie alle, und jede Form von

Hierarchie wäre bloß eine Lüge für den Markt. "The Impossible Gentlemen", das vor etwas mehr als einem Jahr

gegründete Quartett englischer und amerikanischer Jazz-Koryphäen der Extraklasse, präsentiert die Kraft der

kollektiven Erfindung so intensiv wie lange kein Ensemble mehr.

Titel und Themen haben alle vier beigetragen zur Debüt-Produktion: der unerhört bewegliche US-Schlagzeuger Adam

Nussbaum, in Deutschland bekannt spätestens seit ihn George Gruntz einlud zur Mitarbeit an der Jazzoper

"Cosmopolitan Greetings" 1988 in Hamburg - und kürzlich auch wieder als Gast der NDR Bigband.

Dann ist da der englische Pianist Gwylim Simcock, dessen Senkrechtstart speziell das Hamburger Orchester wie keine

andere Formation von Anfang an begleitet hat - besonders mit der "Hamburg Suite" des Pianisten und Komponisten.

Steve Swallow Ebenfalls beteiligt ist Steve Swallow, Amerikas

Bass-Legende, verehrt nicht nur an der Seite der lebenslangen Freundin Carla Bley, sondern auch als Komponist

ungezählter feiner und sensibler Jazz-Standards. Last but not least bringt sich Mike Walker ein, der englische Gitarrist,

von dem wir hierzulande wohl bislang noch zu wenig wissen - sehr zu Unrecht, wie gerade seine Musik im Rahmen der

"Impossible Gentlemen" beweist.

Vier starke Stimmen

Von Walker ging die Initiative zur Gründung des Quartetts aus, und amüsanterweise war er mit den amerikanischen

Kollegen Nussbaum und Swallow besser vertraut als mit Simcock, der immerhin quasi um die Ecke wohnt. Die

Zusammenarbeit gerade dieser beiden "Gentlemen" ist aber besonders intensiv geraten - Gitarre und Piano gehen

speziell in den schnelleren Titeln der CD, den Spaß-, Warm- und Muntermachern sozusagen, extrem innige

Verbindungen ein.

Rasant und gemeinsam stürzen sie sich tonal aufwärts und abwärts. Sie wären natürlich nie so frei und sicher dabei,

wenn nicht der unvergleichliche anschmiegsame Bass-Ton von Swallow sie begleitete und wenn da nicht eine Ein-

Mann-Rhythmus-Maschine etwa unpassende Pausen erst gar nicht entstehen lassen würde.

Neulich war an dieser Stelle Nussbaums Schlagzeug-Kollege Billy Hart zu rühmen: als Muster des sparsam

akzentuierenden Dynamikers. Nussbaum ist so etwas wie der Gegenentwurf - er kennt und beherrscht alle Tricks, und

er zeigt das auch gerne. Wer speziell ihm über eine Stunde lang zuhört auf dieser CD, wird quasi alle Spiel-Methoden

kennenlernen, die möglich sind mit dem zeitgenössischen Schlagzeug.

Aufwärts, abwärts

Aber eigentlich gilt das ja für all diese "unmöglichen Gentlemen" - dass sie mit der jeweils eigenen Kunst ganz im

Zentrum der Moderne stehen, ebenso, dass sie es überhaupt nicht nötig haben, sich gegenüber irgendeinem Kollegen

in den Vordergrund zu spielen.

Auf einigen der Fotos im (erstaunlicherweise textfreien) Booklet grimassieren speziell Nussbaum und Swallow, als

wären sie außerordentlich unfreundliche, unzugängliche Zeitgenossen, als wäre es wirklich "impossible" für sie, wie

"Gentlemen" zu agieren. Genau das Gegenteil ist aber wahr - hier zeigt ein All-Star-Quartett, wie ungemein möglich und

erfreulich echte Gemeinschaft immer wieder ist im Jazz.

Ehrliche Reise durch die Venen eines Rockers

Rezension

Ausgewählte Juni-Neuheiten der Popindustrie

(nmz) -

Selah Sue – Selah Sue +++ Hanne Boel – The Shining of Things +++ The Impossible Gentlemen –

The Impossible Gentlemen +++ Sixx:A.M.– This is gonna hurt +++ Stevie Nicks – In your dreams

Ein Artikel von Sven Ferchow.

Ausgabe:

6/11 - 60. Jahrgang

Supergroups haben einen oft zweifelhaften Voraus-Ruf. Wenn sie dann noch aus dem Jazz

kommen, gilt Alarmstufe „Rot“. The Impossible Gentlemen sind so eine angloamerikanische

Supergroup, bestehend aus Steve Swallow, Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker und Adam Nussbaum.

Aber, der Ruf trügt. Das erste Album der vier, schlicht „The Impossible Gentlemen“ getauft, ist eine

uneitle Explosion der jazzigen Fantasien, Launen, Fähigkeiten und Überraschungen. Es klopft und

klappert, ruckt und rattert, pocht und poltert. Oft in bescheidener Einfachheit unterstellen sie sich

dem Song, der Komposition und dem Vergnügen. Jazz kann grooven. Das beweisen The Impossible

Gentlemen als Supergroup außerordentlich nonchalant. Hörhinweis: alles.

Diskografie

Selah Sue – Selah Sue (Warner, 24.06.2011)

Hanne Boel – The Shining of Things (Stunt Records, 17.06.2011)

The Impossible Gentlemen – The Impossible Gentlemen (Basho Music, 03.06.2011)

Sixx:A.M.– This is gonna hurt (Eleven Music, 23.05.2011)

Stevie Nicks – In your dreams (Warner, 29.04.2011)

The Impossible Gentlemen Debut Tunes at

PizzaExpress

Posted 7/2/2012

During their four-night club residency at London’s

PizzaExpress on June 25–28, The Impossible

Gentlemen unveiled new songs from their

forthcoming second album, which the group plans

on recording this month. Formed two years ago, the

Gentlemen are a long-established dream team

consisting of five-string electric bassist Steve

Swallow, drummer Adam Nussbaum, pianist

Gwilym Simcock and guitarist Mike Walker.

On June 26, the band had settled in nicely at the

Dean Street venue, especially after a well-attended

opening night performance.

The new tunes included a song by Swallow, who

had not contributed material to the first album. The

self-titled debut was released by U.K. indie label

Basho records and was nominated for a

Parliamentary Jazz Award earlier this year.

Swallow’s still-untitled ballad was in the mold of

Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “It Might As Well Be

Spring” but with melodic flourishes that only hinted

at the melody before delicately going off on a

completely different harmonic journey. Like much

of the band’s repertoire, the complex-sounding

romp managed to make an emotional direct

connection with the audience.

Walker also unleashed his latest tunes, “The Slither

Of Other Lovers” and “Modern Day Heroes.”

During a hilarious and surreal chat with the

audience at the beginning of the second set, he

recalled that one of his other tunes had been

inspired by a character named Humphrey, who

sojourns in the Caribbean and amuses himself by

making impromptu announcements from his

balcony to passers-by with the aid of a megaphone.

Nussbaum hit the ground running with formidable

energy and a tantalizing way of metrically dividing

compositions. Even if the songs were in 4/4, such

From left: Steve Swallow, Adam

Nussbaum, Mike Walker and Gwilym

Simcock (Photo: David Forman)

as Walker’s “Laugh Lines,” they ended up

sounding hugely unexpected with many a twist and

turn along the way. It’s the kind of heat you’d

expect from a heavily amplified jazz-rock player,

but Nussbaum doesn’t need the wattage. He has a

deceptive subtlety that drives the band into

surprising territory.

In an earlier conversation, Nussbaum explained that

his association with Swallow started in 1980 when

he was playing with John Scofield, and although

Nussbaum was at pains to explain how different

Walker’s approach really is, there is an uncanny

flow to Walker that certainly recalls “Sco.”

DownBeat sat down with The Impossible

Gentlemen over dinner in the restaurant above the

PizzaExpress jazz club before the band played the

second night of their residency.

How did Gwilym Simcock first get on your

radar?

Steve Swallow: I heard an arrangement of my tune

“Ladies In Mercedes” from this tape that singer

Norma Winstone sent me. I did some things with

Mike Walker before The Impossible Gentlemen,

with Mike Gibbs on big band tours and with

saxophonist Julian Arguelles. We were kind of

aware of each other.

You didn’t write any tunes for the first album.

Have you for this one that you’re about to

record?

SS:Yes, there’s a ballad. It’s something I wrote

between December and March just past,

specifically for these guys with their voices very

much in mind.

You’ve been quoted as saying you want your

tunes to be ones that anyone would be able to

whistle. Are your tunes for this new record like

that?

Mike Walker: It’s as if you’re just listening to

something you can sing along to, but the structure

is not simple. It can be tricky when you play it.

When I write that way, I have to look at it

afterwards, and then I realize the complexity. I’m

bringing a new tune to the session, “The Slither Of

Other Lovers.”

Adam Nussbaum: The tunes shouldn’t sound

unnatural…

SS: They have very asymmetrical structures but

keep their integrity. We have eight new tunes that

we’ve worked up in the last eight to 10 days. I have

to go through that door so they seem natural like

they’re in 4/4 even if they’re not. As a band we do

reflect our life’s history, and moving ahead, it’s a

conscious decision to extend.

AN: We’re from different generations and different

countries. You can’t deny your roots and point of

view but we’re able to find the common ground,

although it’s not like “Kumbayah” all the time.

Who came up with the name for the band?

Gwilym Simcock: Mike and me came up with the

name The Impossible Gentlemen. We dreamed it

up after a long Skype conversation, and whittled it

down from a very long list of names!

—Stephen Graham

The Impossible Gentlemen - THE IMPOSSIBLE GENTLEMEN

[Basho Records]

June 18, 2011

The Impossible Gentlemen - THE IMPOSSIBLE GENTLEMEN -(MP3)- [Basho Records, 2011] – Album Review -

Last year I was introduced to and blown away by the music of British composer/pianist Gwilym Simcock’s “Blues Vignette.” On this occasion, I’m thrilled to present you to another splendid project by this truly amazing composer titled “The Impossible Gentlemen” just recently release on Basho Records.

“The Impossible Gentlemen” is comprised of eight lyrically explosive gems which vary in depth, style and texture. Of course, this is why I adore composer Gwilym Simcock’s music. This album features four wonderful players from two generations Simcock (30) on piano, along with guitarist Mike Walker from Manchester (Born in 1962), veteran bassist Steve Swallow (70) and drummer Adam Nussbaum (55) rounds out this cast of intriguing players.

“Laugh Lines” the first of four compositions pen by guitarist Mike Walker opens the session. This jewel appropriately sets the pace with tenacious interplay that is possibly a pathway for the ensemble to begin with what I describe as simply intoxicating dexterity displayed by these seasoned players.

The bluesy undertones of “Clockmaker” draw you into the intimate side of Walkers compositional voice. The melody is quite simple yet it moves with grace and spontaneity to give room for his cohorts to explore the underlying qualities hidden in the core of the music which swells generously beyond expectation.

The versatile Simcock composes the first of three contributions titled “You Won’t Be Around To See It.” At

first, his sound took me in an unlike direction I originally encountered on “Blues Vignette.” Of course, this is without a doubt a welcome journey because he’s able to make an attractive transition compositionally which he channels his voicings with a plethora of distinctive and thought-provoking nuances.

On “Wallenda’s Last Stand,” Walker’s mesmeric and breathtaking tone is unexpectedly plush. The irony of it all, his morphing touch is reminiscent of another fascinating guitarist beckons you into this atmosphere that fits comfortably in this unrestrained musical landscape. “Gwil’s Song” penned by Simcock mirrors the harmonic and melodic textures of the aforementioned piece confirms why they’re collaboration works seamlessly.

Once you hear “Play The Game” there’s no question why the legendary Chick Corea has given Simcock the highest honor and respect to his talent and gift as composer and player. This piece holds it’s on collectively to

give this infallible cast an opportunity to spread their proverbial wings with exquisite and furious interplay that

calls for the attention of anyone who loves music to be engulfed their sound.

The blues intense “Sure Would Baby” by drummer Adam Nussbaum is absolutely a great way to close the set. The variety and versatility of songs embodied throughout is blueprint for those who might otherwise decide to play it safe is a signature by this ensemble to say it’s alright to do your thing artistically! “The Impossible Gentlemen” the project is worth the price of admission. Although there’s nothing impossible for these artist to achieve with this jewel, it encompasses a compelling tapestry of diverse and challenging songs and equally as important it gives plenty of room to those who play them. –Rob Young | Reviewer

Buffalo News.com

The Impossible Gentlemen: The Impossible Gentlemen

By Jeff Simon

News Arts Editor

Published:July 20, 2012, 12:00 AM

How can you not love this hands-across-the-sea Anglo-American jazz group—at least a little anyway?

Especially when its first uptempo quartet burner “Laugh Lines” ends with the band, quite literally, laughing (with pleasure at its own virtuosity no doubt)? And its liner notes include this pro forma declaration of intent: “This recording was made after the four of us had sat together in countless vehicles, had eaten mounds of pub food at myriad scarred tablesandhadwishedeachotheragoodnight’s sleep in the lobbies of endless hotels, both swank and seedy. We’d come to talk easily with one another and this ease was in the music as well.”

You can say that again.

In its completely unassuming and unpretentious way, this is one of the happiest guitar-piano-bass-drum quartets to come along in a long while.

Guitarist Mike Walker’s tune “When You Hold Her” is as unabashedly romantic as “Laugh Lines” is as unabashedly giddy showing off.

What’s so merry about this disc for American jazz hardcores is that these seem to be the best and most relaxed circumstances we’ve heard drummer Adam Nussbaum and bassist Steve Swallow—bulwarks of the jazz intelligentsia for 30 years—in a very long time.

Pianist Gwilym Simcock is the baby of the group. Guitarist Walker, too, is of a different jazz generation than Nussbaum and Swallow.

It’s an ancient jazz cliche that all generational and cultural differences vanish when like-minded musicians get together. You’ll seldom hear it proven more breezily than it is here.

http://www.buffalonews.com/entertainment/gusto/music/disc-reviews/article956895.ece

DRUMHEAD

Fusion Jazz, uncategorized — July 20, 2012 7:28 am

Half Notes: The Impossible Gentlemen – The Impossible Gentlemen (2012)

Posted by S. Victor Aaron

UK guitarist Mike Walker got this capital idea to put together a quartet with Americans Steve Swallow (el. bass) and Adam Nussbaum (drums), and enlisted young piano talent and fellow Englishman Gwilym Simcock to round out the group. Coming on the heels of a successful mini-tour in the spring, their self-titled debut album is every bit the display of individuality, coaction and composition you might expect from these cracker jacks. With seven of the eight originals written by either Walker or Simcock and both of them producing the album, this album might be considered more Anglo than American, but the Yankee rhythm section weren’t brought on as spectators, and the long-running Swallow-Nussbaum team couldn’t be that if they wanted to: we’ve scoped out the handiwork of this pair before on a scalding live date from 1981. The Brits form a formidable force themselves, as the maneuvering they do together and around each other are as much fun to listen to as the discreet, contemporary compositions which are rooted at least somewhat to post-bop jazz. Walker’s lines are very fluid — the solo on “Clockmaker” makes that clear — and generates a good, pleasing tone, lifting up a solemn ballad like “When You Hold Her.” When they chuck the subtleties and play balls-out on the hard-swinging “Play The Game (YouTube below), it’s just as persuasive.

http://somethingelsereviews.com/2012/07/20/half-notes-the-impossible-gentlemen-the-impossible-gentlemen-2012/

BASHO THE IMPOSSIBLE GENTLEMEN: From the opening notes, you can’t help but think this bunch really has something on the ball. Then you pay a little more attention to the packaging and see that this is an international jazz super group with about a million years experience between them. That’s why they can sound like anything from a 50s piano trio to a cutting edge progressive group---because that’s where their various chops have been scattered along the way. Joyful playing with nothing standing between the music and the listener, this stuff is so cool it can turn anyone into a hipster in a flash. Check it out, these pros not only know the way, they laid the new cut road in the first place. 36 Volume 35/Number 262 July 9, 2012 MIDWEST RECORD CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher Copyright 2012 Midwest Record

Rochester City 19th Sep 2012

CD Review: The Impossible Gentlemen

"S/T"

Basho Records

by Ron Netsky

It’s fascinating to consider the way a group’s name and the album art can affect the way you

listen to the music. The artwork throughout the self-titled album by The Impossible

Gentlemen owes a great deal to the painter René Magritte. So when the first tune, “Laugh

Lines,” by the group’s guitarist Mike Walker, opens with furiously fast and impossibly

intricate melody lines, you are immediately caught up in a surreal world.

The album calms down with the next tune, “Clockmaker” (also by Walker), but even that has

its own interweaving musical gears. By the time you get to “You Won’t Be Around To See

It” and “Play The Game” a few tracks later, both by the group’s pianist, Gwilym Simcock,

the complex lines by Simcock and Walker tell you you’re definitely through the looking

glass.

Aside from Simcock on piano and Walker, guitar, The Impossible Gentlemen are Steve

Swallow, bass and Adam Nussbaum, drums. Although it is Simcock and Walker who most

often take the spotlight with breathtaking solos, both Swallow and Nussbaum contribute

mightily to the overall intricacy and excellence of the album.

The majority of the tunes are by Simcock and Walker with Nussbaum contributing one.

Aside from the uptempo compositions that dominate there are several ballads, including the

beautiful “Wallenda’s Last Stand” (Walker), which nicely evokes a melancholy bygone

circus act, and Nussbaum’s languid and gorgeous mid-tempo song, “Sure Would Baby.”

Impossible Gentlemen, The: The Impossible Gentlemen

What do you get when you put together the talents of bassist Steve

Swallow, pianist Gwilym Simcock, guitarist Mike Walker, and

drummer Adam Nussbaum? Well, The Impossible Gentlemen of

course! Hailed as the 'Anglo-American jazz supergroup' by some,

The Impossible Gentlemen certainly have the pedigree to back up

that statement, and their self-titled debut more than lives up to the

accolades.

Opener "Laugh Lines" busts out of the gate with some intense, complex lines from Walker

and Simcock, while Swallow & Nussbaum burn like mad underneath. It's an impressive start

to the CD, and if you like complex yet majestic jazz, this track will hook you right in.

"Clockmaker" is a more traditional jazz piece, complete with some lovely melodies and

Simcock's wonderful piano lines. This segues into the emotional "When You Hold Her", a

heart tugging piece that features a yearning, rock tinged guitar solo from Walker. The band

gets into some serious post-bop on the ominous "You Won't Be Around to See It", a Simcock

piece that smolders and burns, featuring some biting guitar from Walker and the pianists

serpentine melodies. The guitarist really lets loose on the wild "Play the Game", unleashing

some monstrous blues-rock solos while Simcock furiously lays down the melodies amidst

some thunderous rhythms from Swallow and Nussbaum. They close it out with Nussbaum's

"Sure Would Baby", a dark number featuring some molten rock solos from Walker amidst

intricate rhythms from the rest of the band. I was reminded of some of Terje Rypdal's classic

material on this one!

This is dramatic, challenging, but most importantly, very fun to listen to stuff here from The

Impossible Gentlemen. It's not often that these so called 'supergroups' live up to expectations,

especially in the jazz world, but this one certainly does. Make sure you don't miss out on this

fine CD.

Track Listing 1. Laugh Lines (Walker) 5:13

2. Clockmaker (Walker) 9:15

3. When You Hold Her (Walker) 11:03

4. You Won't Be Around To See It (Simcock) 7:35

5. Wallenda's Last Stand (Walker) 7:30

6. Gwil's Song (Simcock) 8:42

7. Play The Game (Simcock) 7:37

8. Sure Would Baby (Nussbaum) 6:30

Added: July 28th 2012

Reviewer: Pete Pardo

Score: Related Link: Band Website

Hits: 146

Language: english

THE IMPOSSIBLE GENTLEMEN

Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker, Steve Swallow and Adam Nussbaum (Basho Records)

Surely one of the hidden gems of 2012, "The Impossible Gentlemen" is an awesome debut by

a jazz quartet made up of four powerful musicians from the United Kingdom and North

America.

At the center is pianist Gwilym Simcock of Great Britain, whose dazzling work on the

keyboards was gaining a larger international following even before this project came along.

Free-wheeling, intensely creative guitarist Mike Walker, who also hails from Great Britain,

came up the idea for the band at the Manchester Jazz Festival in 2009. Bassist Steve Swallow

and drummer Adam Nussbaum, both from America and musical partners for nearly 30 years,

provide a great complement.

This is a quartet that swings and bops, but in a modern way while also maintaining a

traditional feel. All eight gorgeous songs are penned by Simcock or Walker.

There are plenty of intriguing, odd time signatures and back rhythms, and there are a number

of times the foursome steps back for delicate, heartfelt (but not overly sentimental) moments.

The music is at times searing, complex, and lush, with go-for-the-gut, heartfelt melodies.

The Impossible Gentlemen are great individually. And they're great as a team.

-- TOM HENRY

Ottawa Citizen

The Impossible Gentlemen (Basho)

The Impossible Gentlemen

Who are the Impossible Gentlemen, you ask?

Two Brits (guitarist Mike Walker and pianist Gwilym Simcock) and two Americans (bassist

Steve Swallow and drummer Adam Nussbaum), that’s who.

While we haven’t seen or heard much of their group on this side of the Atlantic Ocean, the

band, since its inception in early 2010, has become a darling of the British jazz scene, toured

in Europe, and even won the best jazz ensemble prize at the most recent Parliamentary Jazz

Awards.

Its debut disc reflects the somewhat larger input of the Brits — Walker, who was the band’s

prime mover, contributes four tunes while Simcock wrote three. Closing the disc is

Nussbaum’s slow, gritty blues Sure Would Baby. But the impact of the music is very much

the result of a cohesive, democratic band in which every member is pulling his weight and

watching everyone else’s back.

After hearing the opening moments of the disc’s first track, Laugh Lines, I thought, “Ah —

it’s going to be this kind of album.” Walker’s opener begins fast and tense and a long,

dizzying melody for guitar and piano unison follows. Very convincing high-energy playing

ensues.

But the other tunes reveal other facets of the group’s musical personality. Walker’s mostly

waltzing Clockmaker and Gwil’s Song, by Simcock, are unabashedly lyrical, rolling

songs. Not coincidentally, they feature nice turns by master melodist and band elder Swallow

on electric bass.

The disc’s longest track luxuriates in a similar mood. Walker’s When You Hold Her begins

with a lovely, self-contained piano introduction before Walker on acoustic guitar and

Swallow state its theme together. The tune swells into something grand over time, without

getting too big. Its 11 minutes go by too quickly, as you might find in this illustrated

YouTube version:

Wallenda’s Last Stand is a loping Latin tune with Simcock adding some melodica. It’s a good

change of pace.

The remaining tunes — Simcock’s You Won’t Be Able To See It and Play The Game, and

Sure Would Baby — are power plays, at times dense and note-y but always justified by a

strong sense of purpose. On Nussbaum’s greasy, stretched out minor blues, Walker uncorks

some Scofield-like howling and scratching. It might not be that gentlemanly, but it’s just right

for the tune. Here’s a live version of that tune:

One surprise for me with the disc: there are no pieces by Swallow, a tunesmith of the highest

order. I see, however, that the group has played his songs in concert:

Amazing Smooth and Jazz

The Impossible Gentlemen – The Impossible Gentlemen

November 21, 2012

Cross the Chick Corea Acoustik Band with the Yellowjackets, and you might get something

that sounds like The Impossible Gentlemen.

The quartet of Gwilym Simcock on piano, Mike Walker on guitar, Steve Swallow on bass

and Adam Nussbaum on drums bring four unique talent in a cross-Atlantic group. Simock

and Walker are from the United Kingdom, with Swallow and Nussbaum from the United

States.

The quartet sets things off in blistering fashion with “Laugh Lines.” A bit of fusion

blended with contemporary jazz, the track features all four players. Piano and guitar

are in unison for the high-speed melody. They’re complemented by the spirited play of

bass and drums.

“You Won’t Be Around to See It” is another that captures that mixed-media spirit. The

group employs several stop-time phrases. About a minute and a half into the song,

things get quiet, and a soulful groove takes over, led by Walker. The intensity gradually

picks up, with piano, bass and drums equally involved.

A few tracks are closer to pop-jazz or blues, but regardless, The Impossible Gentlemen

work well, from the soloists to the entire ensemble. Cohesion and a sense of joy make for

an hour’s worth of listening pleasure.

Rating: 9.5/10 (2 votes cast)

Rating: +2 (from 2 votes)

The Impossible Gentlemen – The Impossible Gentlemen, 9.5 out of 10 based on 2

ratings

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The Impossible Gentlemen zdobywcą

Parliamentary Jazz Awards 2013

Pianista Gwilym Simcock i gitarzysta Mike Walker reprezentujący zespół The Impossible Gentlemen 8. maja podczas uroczystej gali w House of Commons Terrace Pavilion z rąk Moiry Stuart odebrali nagrodę dla Najlepszego Zespołu Jazzowego brytyjskiej Parliamentary Jazz Awards.

Formacja, której skład tworzą basista Steve Swallow, perkusista Adam Nussbaum, pianista Gwilym Simcock i gitarzysta Mike Walker powstała w 2010 roku. Rok później ukazała się ich debiutancka płyta „The Impossible Gentlemen”. Zespół właśnie przygotowuje się do wydania kolejnego albumu, który zostanie wyprodukowany przez Steve Rodby i ukaże się pod szyldem Basho Records we wrześniu tego roku, który muzycy promować będą w październikowej trasie koncertowej po Wielkiej Brytanii.

Brytyjskie Parliamentary Jazz Awards organizowane są przez All Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation

Group. Nagrody fundowane przez Phonographic Performance Limited oraz Jazz Services przyznawane są w dziewięciu kategoriach: Jazz Musician of the Year, Jazz Album of the Year, Jazz Ensemble of the Year, Live Jazz Award, Jazz Journalist of the Year, Jazz Broadcaster of the Year, Jazz Publication of the Year, Jazz Education Award i Services to Jazz Award.

Ostateczna lista kandydatów została wybrana w internetowym głosowaniu za pośrednictwem portalu Jazz Services, a zwycięzcy wyłonieni przez członków All Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group.