“I couldn’t play, couldn’t laugh, couldn’t lie down even. It was a disaster!”

When his mum’s dog fell into the canal the next few moments would prove a crucial turning point in Jay Phelps’ career as a jazz musician. The dog got into trouble in the water and, reaching out for the panic-stricken animal, Jay threw himself to the ground . Happily the dog was unharmed but once the fuss had died down it became apparent that the trumpeter had broken a rib.

“Oh lord! I couldn’t play, couldn’t laugh, couldn’t lie down even. It was a disaster!” Jay recalls. “I had to take time out and, luckily, a friend who lived in Thailand was kind enough to loan me her apartment overlooking the sea, complete with a piano. I started to work on new music and, out there, away from everything, I began to feel free.”

The result was an album – Free As The Birds – that somehow manages to include straight ahead jazz alongside bossa nova, contemporary vocal jazz and soul and even the odd free blowout. It’s a surprisingly splendid combination and in many ways it’s a scrapbook of Jay’s musical life past, present and future.

“It’s a transitional album” he acknowledges, “Between one me and another … It had been seven years since my previous album and in that time I kind of didn’t have anything to say. I’d been in (MOBO-winning improvisational band) Empirical where we’d all concentrated on being original. I was only 25 when I left and I felt I needed to get a grip on the roots, play standards. That’s when I released (debut album) Jaywalking – you can hear lots of traditional influences in that – and I became a fixture on the London scene. It was a great training ground, running the late night stuff at Ronnie Scotts every week and so on, but city life was getting stagnant and I needed to hear more different music.”

That need drove him to cut loose, touring the world with Latin outfits Ed Motta and Banda Black Rio as well as theatre work with Peter Brook, a stint on the New York scene and a few months in Brazil. And, when it came to that convalescence in Thailand, it all came together in his music which, thanks to funding from the Arts Council, he was then able to turn into reality.

“Their support was so important – I literally was able to do what I want, where I want, with the musicians I wanted, and see that music flourish to the point where I was completely happy with it.”

Perhaps the most radical surprise in the music is Jay’s voice – he sings on soulful Angel and (in Portuguese) on the title track. It wasn’t something he took to at once:

“It takes a leap of confidence every day! I wrote the songs for someone else to sing but people encouraged me to give it a go and it seems to work. Interestingly, it’s made me a better trumpeter, given me a more vocal approach to playing.”

And, of course, there are excellent examples of singing trumpeters like Chet Baker and Louis Armstrong to inspire him.

He’s settling back in London, for a while at least, so he can promote the album – including an upcoming gig at The Lantern in a double bill with amazing pianist Zoe Rahman. He’s also following up on a number of other projects like his hip-hop collaboration NBOC and there’s even talk of a feature film role. It seems his life has opened up in a big way since that poor dog fell into the canal.

“Yes!” he agrees. “The album title – Free as the Birds – it’s about how I’ve found a point where I most felt free, and seen the ‘me’ a bit. It’s pretty good!”

The Jay Phelps Quartet is appearing in a double bill with pianist Zoe Rahman at The Lantern, Bristol on Sunday June 4