Music / Jazz
The Kasabian Connection
Trumpeter Gary Alesbrook has been a leading light around the Bristol music scene for a few years, notably with his Neo-soul band The Duval Project. Naturally there was a lot of local interest in his debut jazz album Jazz In Movies but, more impressively, advance orders started coming in from all over the world: hardly par for the course for a self-produced jazz CD.
While he’s deservedly proud of the music he’s recorded with his quartet the ever-diffident Gary is the first to admit that one special guest name in the album credits explains those global sales: Kasabian frontman Tom Meighan, who sings Willy Wonka’s touching ballad Pure Imagination. Really? How come?
Tom Meighan (far right) with Kasabian – Ian Matthews is second from left
Gary Alesbrook: It was his idea! We were sat in a bar on tour and I told him about this project. As soon as I mentioned Pure Imagination Tom went: ‘Oh my God – let me sing that!’. We’d had a few beers so I kind of assumed it wasn’t really going to happen but then he mentioned it again …
is needed now More than ever
It probably should be mentioned that Gary has been a sideman on Kasabian tours for over ten years and the band’s drummer Ian Matthews is a long-time friend, hence the connection. But if Tom Meighan singing a show song on a jazz album is a surprise the even bigger one is how convincingly he does it.
GA: If I’m honest it panicked me a bit, we’d recorded everything else when he turned up and he did his take in an afternoon. But I think the song is perfect! It very much suits Tom and he was absolutely going for it – he’d clearly worked on it a lot and I know he loves the movie.
There’s another impressive Superstar performance on the album from singer-songwriter Phil King, fresh from a tour of the Lloyd-Webber musical about Jesus, singing Burt Bacharach’s Alfie. Again, it’s a West End belter of a performance that might surprise fans of his more honeyed soulful style.
GA: With Phil we recorded it two ways, firstly real soft and then in the show style: Phil’s voice was so powerful we had to get a special attenuator to tone it down for recording! It was worth it, though.
Gary in flugelhorn action
Guest vocalists aside, the real star of the album has to be Gary’s trumpet and flugelhorn playing which has a beguiling light-touch to it reminiscent of past masters like Clark Terry and Chet Baker. He’s quick to acknowledge the ‘retro’ feel of the album as a whole.
GA:It all harks back to what I listened to when I first started to play. I didn’t want to be too serious, I wanted it to be playful and accessible. Above all I wanted it to have real swing – not enough people do that, so that was why I picked the people I did. George (Cooper, pianist) is so talented, and it was great to work with Scott (Hammond, drums) again.
Gary (far left) in Duval Project
Funnily enough, there’s even a Kasabian connection with on of the instrumental tracks: a deeply atmospheric rendition of Ennio Morricone’s Death Theme from The Untouchables.
GA: There’s an obvious Italian link through Sergio (Pizzorno, Kasabian vocalist) and when I first went on tour with them in 2006 he took me aside and we watched The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and he said ‘When you play – think Ennio Morricone! That mariachi trumpet …’
You can get Jazz in Movies as a CD or download from Gary’s website and he is showcasing the music, with Phil King’s vocals, at Fringe Jazz on Wednesday, July 11
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