243

THE BEST OF JAZZ/POP

Photo: Claire Martin.

It seems everybody wants to be a jazz singer nowadays. People of all ages turn up at 'open mic' sessions to perform their party piece. But why this sudden eruption of would-be vocalists? Maybe because singing looks easier than playing an instrument, although it isn't. Or maybe it's because there are so many good jazz singers in Britain to inspire them. There's Stacey Kent, Tina May, Claire Martin, Clare Teal, Barb Jungr, Anita Wardell, Sheena Davis, Cathie Rae and plenty more. Until recently, the guys had fewer role-models, but then along came Jamie Cullum whose career received a mighty boost when he was signed by Universal. Of course, Universal didn't actually discover him; he already had a CD out on the smaller Candid label. This is the way it works in jazz and has done for decades. Since the end of the Second World War, every major figure in jazz - Parker, Davis, Coltrane - has first appeared on a small label run largely on enthusiasm and flair. So that's where to look if you're seeking the next wave of outstanding jazz musicians. Take, for instance, the astonishing Soweto Kinch, who won this year's Mobo Award for 'best jazz act'. He is a phenomenal saxophonist, but his musical imagination and the facility with which he juggles his ideas are simply mind-boggling. His CD, Conversations With the Unseen, is on Dune, a label operated out of a single office in Harrow. Some of the most impressive British jazz of the past year has come from Scotland, in particular from Caber, another shoestring label, in this case run by drummer Tom Bancroft. Three Caber releases were quite outstanding, those by pianist Dave Milligan, bassist Mario Bacuris and trumpeter Colin Steele.

Photo: Clare Teal.

And then there is saxophonist Tommy Smith, Scotland's one-man music industry, whose own label, Spartacus, came up with a couple of gems, a series of duets between Smith and pianist Brian Kellock and a set by Smith's own sextet. The deftest movers this year, though, were producers The Neptunes, and in particular Pharrell Williams. Not satisfied with masterminding all the prettiest R&B productions, Pharrell cropped up in his charges' videos, playing drums and showing off his tattoos, and finally released his own single.