Review: Bristol Jazz Festival – Pee Wee Ellis Tribute/Festival Jam, Bristol Beacon Foyer/Bamalam

So – it was back, the Bristol Jazz Festival. Back in the Beacon Foyer, back for a solid weekend. Sadly one important part of the Festival’s life could not be back – legendary funk and jazz saxophonist Pee Wee Ellis, patron and supporter since the event’s first days, who passed away in 2021. His energy and warmth both on and off stage would be greatly missed, but his tireless encouragement of other players means that his legacy will live on. It was a fitting tribute to the great man that the opening night of the Festival was dominated by an all-star tribute from musicians who had all learned from him, worked with him and loved him.

Josh Arcoleo, Jonny Bruce and Ruth Hammond (pic: Tony Benjamin)

Things opened with the formidable rhythm machine of Laurence Cottle (bass), Mark Mondesir (drums), Denny Ilett (guitar) and Gareth Williams on piano, plus a brass line-up featuring Ruth Hammond (baritone sax), Jonny Bruce (trumpet) and Josh Arcoleo in the crucial tenor sax role. Having learned from Pee Wee as a young teenager (before rising up through the UK jazz scene and beyond) Josh’s combination of precision stabbing and liquid flow was a classic evocation of funk greatness, notably on Pee Wee’s Sticks.

Anders Olinder, Lizzie Dean, Jerry Crozier-Cole, Andy Tween, Laurence Cottle (pic: Tony Benjamin)

Sticks was one of the super-tight numbers that built up to the arrival of vocalists Lizzie Dean and Ian Shaw, the former announcing herself with a powerhouse performance of the Esther Phillips blues classic Cherry Red, the latter seizing a funked up version of Wonderful World. Ian gave it the full Van Morrison treatment before Gareth Williams unveiled a grippingly concise and expressive jazz-funk piano solo. They had been joined by guitarist Jerry Crozier-Cole, Anders Olinder on keyboards and Andy Tween drumming and Lizzie’s rendition of Natural Woman proved a highlight of the evening, with Anders’ classic Hammond vamping behind Jerry’s country-soul guitar and the perfect Wrecking Crew grooves coming from Andy and Laurence Cottle’s bass.

Gareth Williams, Lizzie Dean, Ian Shaw and Josh Arcoleo (pic: Tony Benjamin)

It’s widely known that Pee Wee and James Brown co-wrote Cold Sweat, the first proper funk number, and hearing it played with a tightly sparse arrangement and the two vocalists’ interplay made it clear how much Prince’s music owed to that funk foundation. Mark Mondesir’s lean and mean drum solo was a perfect blend of old-school and contemporary jazz percussion. Then as things drew towards a close Pee Wee’s greatest hit The Chicken saw all eleven musicians on stage for a grand thrashing climax. Ian then finished things with the slow and portentous reading of I Feel Good that was always the late saxophonist’s sign-off number. It was all well received, of course, by the lively crowd and proved the perfect way both to honour a sadly absent friend and to open what promises to be a fine weekend’s jazz.

George Cooper, Nick Malcolm, Will Harris, Jonny Bruce, Andy Hague and Matt Brown – jamming (pic: Tony Benjamin)

Jonny Bruce must have nipped over the road pretty sharpish to join in the jam session in Bamalam where the house band closely resembled the Jazz Defenders, albeit with drummer Matt Brown joining Will Harris (bass), George Cooper (keys) and Nick Malcolm (trumpet). At one point a third trumpeter – Andy Hague –  joined Jonny and Nick for a brilliant workout of Bobby Timmons’ Moaning’, their distinctly different styles of play working together and drummer Matt letting rip with some big Art Blakey fills. It was classy stuff – and all for free!