Barber, Bilk and Ball
Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
30.3.2010
8/10
Living legends of the jazz world brought fond memories of nights at the Picton Hall and the Mardi Gras Club in fifties Liverpool when they played the Philharmonic Hall
First to grace the stage was the revered Chris Barber, 80 in April, with his 16 strong ‘big’ band, a far cry from the small Barber New Orleans Band he formed in 1949 at the age of 19. Over the years, Chris Barber's Jazz Band evolved into the Chris Barber Jazz and Blues Band, a rich eight-piece group, blending brass, reeds, and electric guitar into a unique and unmistakable mix of blues and jazz
But is was the newer big band that he now tours with, blasting out favourites from the Duke Ellington days such as Bourbon Street Parade, Jubilee Stomp and Merry Go Round. However, no concert would be complete without his worldwide hit Petite Fleur played with nostalgic brilliance by clarinettist Zoltan Sagi who also wowed on the sax.
Barber can still hit the notes and his singing voice shows no let up, but he is a little out of breath when chatting between numbers, rushing his words, so that we don’t quite catch all he is saying. But who cares. For his age, and the years he has given to jazz one can only feel honoured to see this great musician still touring.
Acker Bilk, also 80, with his Paramount Jazz Band seemed a tad frail and was helped along with his six-piece combo when trying to remember the next offering on the set list. But as he was very ill in 1999 and 'retired' from touring it’s a miracle we can still see him on stage today. It seems you can't keep a good man down, and late in 2000 he was back on the road again. In 2001, he was awarded an MBE for services to music. Acker, now grey haired but with his trademark beard played with the same signature deep, quivering clarinet. Due to his illness he had a member of the Chris Barber band on stage to help him out
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The set included the rousing Memphis Blues, the slow mellow Wabash Blues, and the old favourite If I had You, though he joked that it would be If I had You in A flat. In fact Acker told many genuinely funny jokes, all delivered in his soft Somerset accent. When it came to the well-known Stranger on the Shore he announced it as Strangler on the Floor keeping up the fun element to the whole set. This is the piece that brought him fame in he 60s when he originally wrote it for clarinet, for his young daughter. and originally named "Jenny" after her. He donned his iconic black trilby to deliver the piece, but tweaked it here and there so it seemed as fresh as when he had the hit.
The final act was the highly regarded Kenny Ball who is also 80 this year. It’s 50 years since he formed Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen and he also has fond memories of playing Picton Hall and the Mardi Gras in the the late 50s. He had many nostalgic memories of those days and was genuinely glad to be back in Liverpool. So much so that the final offering from the band was All You Need is Love that went down a storm in this Beatle obsessed city. But earlier he and the band blasted out hits such as Samantha and Midnight in Moscow along with another worldwide hit Sukiyaki. The set also included a jazz version of a Bach classic and some scats singing.
It was a privilege to see these three octogenarians on stage together. One wonders just how much longer they can tour and give pleasure to the thousands of jazz-lovers that still fill the auditoriums wherever they play.
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