JAF Trio, JAF Trio, WeJazz ***

What works better on this release by Danish-Finnish band JAF Trio is when the trio go a little more up tempo eventually on 'Something New'. Neither avant-garde nor toothsomely melodic the trio gain traction when they break free of the fairly easy …

Published: 17 Jul 2023. Updated: 2 months.

jaf

What works better on this release by Danish-Finnish band JAF Trio is when the trio go a little more up tempo eventually on 'Something New'. Neither avant-garde nor toothsomely melodic the trio gain traction when they break free of the fairly easy to compute originals. A sax, bass, drums trio (saxist Adele Sauros, bassist Joonas Tuuri and drummer Frederik Emil Bülow are the trio members) as an entity has its limitations given the pressure it puts on the lead instrument and usually works best when that main instrument takes over completely given a flood of ideas and the sheer weight of their playing personality. That doesn't quite happen here but it's perfectly listenable to anyway. Most of the tunes are by Bülow, the pick is that quirky uptempo number mentioned earlier. JAF Trio, photo Sonja Vainionpää

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Rye eye strong vocals element in the Rye International Jazz and Blues Festival mix including Ruby Turner and Laura Mvula

Ian Shaw - in the Rye mix, above - has Greek Street Friday out soon from which 'To Be Held' is drawn. The latest in our focus on top jazz ''human scale'' festival line-ups coming along soon we turn a Rye eye to August's festival in East Sussex …

Published: 17 Jul 2023. Updated: 2 months.

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Ian Shaw

  • Ian Shaw - in the Rye mix, above - has Greek Street Friday out soon from which 'To Be Held' is drawn.

The latest in our focus on top jazz ''human scale'' festival line-ups coming along soon we turn a Rye eye to August's festival in East Sussex and the Rye International Jazz and Blues Festival - a remarkable line-up coming together given that the town, full of cobbled lanes and interesting venues but hardly a teeming metropolis, has come up with something special given strong curation and taste.

Running from 24-28 August culminating on the late-August bank holiday Monday on its last day, venues include the Grapevine, Ship Inn, William the Conqueror, Lookout, St Mary's Church, Balfour Winery, Old Bell and the Brewery Yard club Laura Mvula, Ruby Turner, Ian Shaw, Claire Martin, Mario Biondi, the Brand New Heavies and Joe Stilgoe are some of the big names heading to Rye, a festival this year particularly strong on state of the art classic jazz vocals spreading across several stylistic relatable areas that span soul, gospel and the classic Great American Songbook bebop and beyond terrain. The Rye festival website has full details. Ruby Turner top. Photo: press.

Listen to Ruby's deeply stirring version of the Dan Penn and Chips Moman classic 'The Dark End of the Street'. If you are a Solomon Burke fan as down marlbank way we all are then Ruby takes her place at that celestial table to the manner born given the apropos expressiveness and style affinity in the Birmingham icon's story telling genius entering the holy roller domain so powerfully.