Crockatt, Sam Quartet - Mells Bells (CD) |-

British tenor saxophonist Sam Crockatt brings the energy and immediacy of his quartet to Whirlwind Recordings on 'Mells Bells', an album of peppy live-feel studio performances which illuminate and elaborate on the leader's eight original compositions. Crockatt (a member of London-based Loop Collective) collaborates with many of today's increasingly successful contemporary jazz and improvisational artists, particularly revelling in the focus of this empathetic working quartet with colleagues Kit Downes (piano), Oli Hayhurst (double bass) and James Maddren (drums). Recorded over a single day off the back of a couple of successful concerts, newly-birthed concepts merge with older themes-in-waiting to create a distinct and exciting spontaneity. Title track "Mells Bells" offers a glimpse into the saxophonist's creative process. The initially cacophonic and then swirling beauty of church bell peals, witnessed from a vantage point above his Somerset home village, provided the inspiration for an outing which highlights this ensemble's creative vibrancy and free spirit; clanging and chiming with both celebratory and audacious ebullience, it loudly proclaims the heartiness of the current British jazz scene. Sam Crockatt's robust and characterful tenor voice - stemming from an appreciation of the sound worlds of (amongst others) Dexter Gordon, Joe Henderson and Lee Konitz - is authoritative yet synergetic, his writing frequently inviting the freedom for musical diversions to flourish. Personnel: Sam Crockatt (tenor saxophone), Kit Downes (piano), Oli Hayhurst (double bass), James Maddren (drums)

• Format Detail: CD Digipack
• Format: CD
• Label: Whirlwind Recordings
• Catalog Number: CD-WWR-4681