Record Reviews

NEIL ARDLEY ~ MIKE TAYLOR REMEMBERED DUSK FIRE 103 (Barcode: 5065001032011) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1973 Released: 2007 The short and tragic life of pianist / composer Mike TaylorFind albums by this artist, an eccentric genius fallen victim to mental illness / drug abuse, which proved self-destructive and led to his death at the age of 29, is surely worthy a script adaptation for a Martin ScorseseFind albums by this artist movie. Sometimes referred to as “the Syd BarrettFind albums by this artist of British Jazz”, Taylor had close ties with a relatively small group of musicians, like Graham BondFind albums by this artist and the members of his Graham Bond OrganizationFind albums by this artist, which included Jack BruceFind albums by this artist and Ginger BakerFind albums by this artist – soon to be founders of CreamFind albums by this artist. Many people will be surprised to learn that three songs co-written by Ginger and Mike appear on Cream’s Wheels Of FireFind albums with this title album (“Pressed Rat And Warthog”, “Those Were The Days” and “Passing The Time”). Another one of his superb songs – “Jumping Off The Sun” – was recorded by ColosseumFind albums by this artist and appears on several of their albums. Although known intimately by very few people at the time, the legend lives on and periodically the flame of interest is rekindled among the modern British Jazz fans, like in the case of reissue of his only two existing recordings: PendulumFind albums with this title and TrioFind albums with this title. Even fewer people are aware of the spectacular tribute album recorded by Taylor’s musician friends three years after his death. Recorded under the musical direction of another British Jazz legendary figure, composer / arranger / bandleader Neil ArdleyFind albums by this artist, who discovered Taylor’s genius immediately and scored some of his compositions for the New Jazz OrchestraFind albums by this artist when Taylor was still alive. Unfortunately the concert, which was to feature NJO and Mike’s trio never materialized, since Taylor (already very ill at the time) simply missed the gig. Nevertheless Ardley continued to use Taylor’s music as part of the regular NJO repertoire and suggested to Denis PrestonFind albums by this artist, owner of the legendary Lansdowne Studios in London, where most of the pivotal modern British Jazz was recorded, to produce a tribute album to Mike Taylor’s musical genius. Preston, who recorded the two Taylor albums, needed no persuasion and funded the complex and costly project with no hesitation, considering it a most appropriate gesture. Ardley assembled a group of 20 musicians to record this project, sharing the scoring of the music for a large ensemble with others, who were close to Taylor and new him well, like Howard RileyFind albums by this artist, Barbara ThompsonFind albums by this artist and Dave GellyFind albums by this artist. One of the tracks is based on a previously unreleased Taylor quartet recording, with the ensemble overdubbed on top of the original recording, which makes Taylor’s participation in this project almost “in person” as well as “in spirit”. The list of the participating musicians reads like the who’s who of modern British Jazz and includes among others: Ian CarrFind albums by this artist and Henry LowtherFind albums by this artist on trumpet, Chris PyneFind albums by this artist and David HorlerFind albums by this artist on trombone, Ray WarleighFind albums by this artist and Stan SulzmannFind albums by this artist on saxophone, Peter LemerFind albums by this artist and Alan BranscombeFind albums by this artist on piano, Chris LaurenceFind albums by this artist and Ron MathewsonFind albums by this artist on bass, Jon HisemanFind albums by this artist on drums and of course the divine Norma WinstoneFind albums by this artist on vocals. I can’t think of a more appropriate tribute than this one, full of love, dedication and music genius by all the people involved. Considering the fact that this album combines the genius of Taylor’s Jazz composition with the genius of Ardley’s Jazz scoring / arranging, we get (in mathematical terms) a genius squared result – a rare event indeed. Recommending this album would be somewhat similar to recommending someone to read some Joyce or see a van Gogh – completely superfluous. I’m sure you get the drift by now!

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MICHAEL GARRICK ~ LATE AUTUMN SUNSHINE MY ONLY DESIRE 008 (Barcode: 5052442029557) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1973 - 1978 Released: 2025 This is an archive live album by British pianist / composer / bandleader Michael GarrickFind albums by this artist, recorded for broadcasts by the BBC. The album presents eight tracks, recorded five years apart during two sessions, each presenting four tracks. The first session from 1973 features Garrick leading a sextet with vocalist Norma WinstoneFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Henry LowtherFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Art ThemenFind albums by this artist, bassist Dave GreenFind albums by this artist and drummer Trevor TomkinsFind albums by this artist. The second session from 1978 features Garrick leading an octet with Winstone, Lowther, trombonist David HorlerFind albums by this artist, saxophonists Tony CoeFind albums by this artist and Alan WakemanFind albums by this artist, bassist Jeff ClyneFind albums by this artist and drummer John MarshallFind albums by this artist, in short the crème de la crème of the British Jazz scene in the 1970s. All the tracks are original compositions by Garrick, one of which includes lyrics by Winstone. Two of the tracks were never previously available in any other recorded version, which of course makes them especially unique for Garrick’s completists (like your truly). Of course the entire materiel is previously unreleased. As usual for BBC recordings, the sound quality is absolutely spotless. The music is, as expected, absolutely Godly, which considering Garrick’s extraordinary songweaving capabilities and the level of the musicians involved, is not surprising. Although based on solid written themes, it offers a lot of Freedom and improvisation possibilities, which at times is pretty close to Free Jazz, but never quite crossing over. A separate chapter could be written about Winstone’s marvelous contributions, but of course I have already written about her great talent repeatedly, including the reviews of the albums, on which some of this music was released originally, like “TroppoFind albums with this title”, where two of the tracks from the first session originate from. It is especially gratifying to see this particular album released, since Garrick somehow never really achieved the recognition of his extraordinary talent during his lifetime, and struggled to continue and create brilliant music by running his own label “Jazz AcademyFind albums on this label”, when releasing Jazz albums by major record companies fell out of grace and profit. For me he always was one of the greatest heroes of the British Jazz scene, a man of great talent and extraordinary wit. Sadly, I had only met him in person sporadically and we did correspond hectically. His death, way to early (in 2011) saddened me greatly and my only solace is the fact that I have all his recorded material in my collection. Overall, this is a rare jewel of British Jazz history, which is suddenly and unexpectedly available thanks to the dedication of Jon GriffithsFind albums by this artist of the My Only DesireFind albums on this label label, who has a natural gift of surprising us with such marvels, for which we are, as usual, grateful.

Updated: 04/01/2026Posted: 03/01/2026

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