Mike Barry’s XXL Jazz Band, 7/01/2014

The Farnborough Jazz Club proudly presented MIKE BARRY’S XXL JAZZ BAND on Friday, 7th February 2014.  The band’s leader and trumpeter Mike, had with him reeds player JOHNNY ROGERS, trombonist REX O’DELL, pianist GRAHAM BARTON, double bassist ROGER CURPHEY and drummer PAUL BUDD.   Our audience certainly jazzed it up on the dance floor!  Everyone said what a fantastic band and consequent evening it was, whether dancers, or not.  Now let’s tell you how the evening’s fun occurred.  My first jotting was of ‘Basin Street Blues’.  Mike sung this one and Roger played double bass with a bow, gorgeous (the playing – not Roger – although he is too, ha).  Rex sang ‘Everybody Loves My Baby’.  Then that great song ‘Saint Louis Blues’ came next (which was said to have inspired the Foxtrot dance).  It was sung by Rex, with Johnny playing sax.  Then Johnny sang ‘Keeping out Of Mischief Now’.  He has been suffering with tonsillitis, but he did a marvellous job.  Now the next song was called ‘My Bucket’s got a Hole in it’, famed by Hank Williams and later in 1970 by Louis Armstrong.  Mike and Rex sung in harmony, managing to interject a bit of ‘You Keep a-knocking, But You Can’t Come In – fantastic.  Mike then sang ‘Marching through Georgia’.  After that, Graham featured on piano, with his brilliant composition of boogie woogie and we named it ‘Graham’s Boogie’.  Everyone got up to dance and all of us completely let our hair down too.  Fancy following that, but Rex did, by singing, in the inimitable style of Louis Armstrong, to ‘Aint Misbehaving’ and then to put the icing on the cake came ‘Dr Jazz’ sung by Lil Hardin (Louis Armstrong’s second wife) nah, I’m sure they announced it wrong, surely it WAS Johnny, sounded like Lil though!  What a lovely lot of fun. Next date for Mike’s XXL Band is 26th September 2014.

Hope to see as many as possible next Friday.

Diane and Keith

‘Aint Misbehaving’ – (m) Fats Waller & Harry Brooks, (l) Andy Razaf (1929)
‘Basin Street Blues’ – Spencer Williams (1926)
‘Dr Jazz’ – Joe ‘King’ Oliver & Walter Melrose (1926)
‘Everybody Loves My Baby’ – (m) Spencer Williams, (l) Jack Palmer (1924)
‘Graham’s Boogie’ – Graham Barton (2014)
‘Keeping out Of Mischief Now’ – Thomas ‘Fats’ Waller (circa 1920’s, r.1937)
 ‘My Bucket’s Got a Hole in It’ – Clarence Williams (1949)
‘Marching Through Georgia’ – Henry Cray Work (1865)
‘Saint Louis Blues’ – W.C. Hanley (1914)