HOME Links Gig Calendar Instruments Amplification
The Bristol years.
Back in Brighton, I had met and played with a guitarist called Chris Kenny. He told me about the jazz scene in Bristol. Spirit Level, Sphere, the Old Duke, Bristol Bridge; these bands and venues were, he told me, world class! I had also heard about several movers and shakers on the South West jazz scene from a freesheet I had picked up somewhere or other. So, in mid 1982, I decided to check out Bristol.
One organiser was a chap called Dave Thorne, whose wife, Pat, ran a wholefood shop. After wandering around the town a bit, I traipsed across Bristol to find them. Dave wasn't there, but Pat gave me a cup of coffee, and we talked for a bit. They became my first Bristol connection. It was at Dave and Pat's that I first met John Wickes, (who has published recently a book about British jazz). What an enthusiast.
Before long, I moved to Bristol. I found gigs, a regular one in the Piano bar in Clifton, and in pubs around the town. At the time I was signing on the dole,. Every Monday, after signing on, I would visit Fred Bartley, a violin dealer on Christmas Steps, just off the Centre in Bristol. I would play all his fiddles. I tried to get them to sound the same, to get my sound out of them. When it was time for me to go, Fred would bring out what he thought was a Lupot violin, and ask me to play it. It was a deep red instrument, but rather worn. It sounded great
Around this time I had the great good fortune to try a Stradivarius violin, a beautiful Long Strad from the early 1690's. My father also was a double bass repairer, he often worked on instruments from the Halle Orchestra in Manchester. One of the players was very friendly with the leader of the orchestra, the late Martin Milner. When he heard I played, he said he'd bring the Halle's Strad round for me to try, next time I was in Manchester. So one day he did. I played his fiddle, and he played mine. He liked mine so much that when he found out that I went busking with it, he dashed out to his car and tried to give me a modern English fiddle, one of three that he had with him. But old Dad put me off.
The Strad was glorious in the upper registers, but I found it a bit thin on the G-string. I noticed that Martin hardly used the G when he tried my old violin, but went flying around in the stratosphere.
Another great influence was Mike Britton, at that time from Bath. I think Mike is one of the finest guitarists there is. He has an incomparable sense of harmony, and a wicked sense of wit. I learned more, practically, about the music from him than anyone else.
Sitting in all over Bristol, I played with almost everyone in town. I did a record with Henry's Bootblacks. Pianist Tim Richards (of Spirirt Level fame) asked me to do some work with him, and from there I formed a quintet with him, Andy Sheppard, Tony Orrell on drums, and Pete Maxfield on bass. Some of those gigs were superb, even though I was still really at the beginning of my apprenticeship. Andy Sheppard was a joy to play with. He has such a concept of melody, lovely fluid lines that seem to project on forever. Another top sax player in Bristol at that time, was Jerry Underwood.
I also had a stint with a Louis Jordan style band called The Glee Club. That had the drummer Clive Deamer (who has since worked with Hawkwind, Portishead and Roni Size).
But after about four years, I felt I had worked with everyone in the area, and needed to move on.
So I had a crack at the Smoke. I borrowed some money from the Bank, bought Fred Bartley's 'Lupot', and then I moved to London.
Soon to come: Graham's time in London