Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton 08-10-2016 The Anglo-American quartet had expanded to a quintet since their last visit here, and if the Jazz @ The Arena audience couldn’t expand further due to having reached capacity for this lovely, intimate venue, then they made… Read More ›
(Basho Records) The announcement that the transatlantic quartet was adding a saxophonist conjured up in the imagination a substantial change in the sound of the band. Would the British co-leaders, guitarist Mike Walker and pianist Gwilym Simcock, be settling in… Read More ›
Reviewed by John Watson Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton UK 31-01-2015 There’s a chemistry among the finest groups that is unique to jazz, an extraordinary telepathy between the players combined with a selfless desire to allow the music to grow organically –… Read More ›
Search this site for the name Mike Walker and you’ll find loads of highly complimentary words about this guitarist based in the North West of England. I find it hard to articulate just how much musical reward the man has… Read More ›
Jazz At The Arena, Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton UK 20-10-2013 All jazz groups incorporate solo improvisations, when one player explores the theme and his/her imagination to make a spontaneous creation in the here and now while the rest of the band… Read More ›
(Basho Records SRCD 43-2) The coming together of the young British pianist Gwilym Simcock with the slightly older fellow Brit, guitarist Mike Walker and the US drummer Adam Nussbaum, together with the positively ancient – and I mean that in… Read More ›
CBSO Centre, Birmingham UK 01-12-2012 Well, it wasn’t quite what I expected. With a second album talked about and a European tour coming to an end, I expected to hear a lot of new music from this transatlantic supergroup of… Read More ›
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… Read More ›
As You Like (Jazzeyes 010) Some distorted guitar sounds signal the beginning, and soon we’re running with a version of Jerome Kern’s All The Things You Are stripped of its lovey-doveyness and instead used as a rhythmic work-out for harmony… Read More ›
Here is electric bassist Steve Swallow from the gig with Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker and Adam Nussbaum at the CBSO Centre on Saturday. It’s Russ Escritt’s choice for his pic of the week. Russ has hundreds more like this –… Read More ›
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 –… Read More ›
Of the many young jazz players who have emerged from UK music schools in the first decade of this century, surely a contender for brightest and highest shooting star must go to pianist Gwilym Simcock. The young Welshman took his… Read More ›
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