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IAN
BERRIDO
REVIEWS
THE BOBBY
WELLINS
QUARTET
GIG
THE WELLINS QUARTET AT
THE BRITISH LEGION HALL
Wellins Wows
Tenor sax player Bobby Wellins, who came to Marlow Jazz Club on Tuesday May 24th
with his regular Quartet, deserves to be a National Treasure. Bobby was part of the
legendary Stan Tracey group, whose recording of the jazz tribute to Dylan Thomas’
‘Under Milk Wood’ is recognised as being a landmark in British jazz, and showing the
Americans that the Brits could play jazz as well as they could. Now in his seventies,
Bobby has lost none of his touch. His wonderful tone, that attractive edge to his
improvisations that always comes as a nice surprise in his solos, and his great
inventiveness – they were all there in abundance. The Quartet reads like a Who’s Who
of British jazz luminaries – Spike Wells on drums, Andy Cleyndert on bass and John
Critchinson on piano. During the evening Bobby captivated his audience with some of
the tunes on his new album ‘Time, Gentlemen Please’. ‘Quando, Quando,Quando’
sashayed past us in a nice Latin tempo; ‘I’m Wishing’ made us wish the tune didn’t
have to stop; and ‘It Never Entered My Mind’ was a real gem, a slow ballad that
seduced us completely with that sultry, husky Wellins tone that has become his
trademark. The supporting musicians also showed their class. Spike Wells, a cheeky
drummer who picks up on the riffs other players are laying down, gave several fine,
cliché-free solos during the evening; Andy Cleyndert proved what an all-round bassist
he is with creative solos, as on Jimmy Witherspoon’s ‘Sweet Lotus Blossom’; and John
Critchinson, a man who clearly revels in the high-wire act that is improvisation,
captivated us with the skill and style of a master craftsman. For me the highlight was
Bobby their version of ‘My Funny Valentine’, which avoided the usual ballad treatment
and changed tempo and pace with the ease, grace and suaveness of the jazz
equivalent of Fred Astaire. Contrary to the new album’s title, Bobby doesn’t seem to
have any intentions of calling ‘Time’, and based on this performance, long may he
resist any impulse to do so!
IAN BERRIDO
‘Time Gentlemen, Please’ is on Andy Cleyndert’s Trio label – TR587