Reporter: Tony Sheldon
Date online: 12/06/2008

On a tour of the country from Scotland to Worcestershire and in between Kent's ‘Papa Joe’s All Stars’ stopped off in Rochdale on a chilly evening.

Led by drummer Gerry Card, the band played an interesting acoustic mix, but with a guest trombonist and bass player, and a new clarinet recruit, the band lacked cohesion,. Although the musicians were all top class, it felt often like a jam session of jazzmen giving their individual ‘all’ and hoping to finish together.

I must be sounding like ‘an old hack’ as I felt that top cornetist Ken Sims missed too many notes and overall it was not the best of professional performances.

Card opened the gig with his vocal version of “Way Down Yonder” and later sang “C.C. Rider”, a blues number which sounded ‘decidedly green’.

“Old Fashioned Love” produced a neat trombone intro from Sid Bailey, some intricate bow bass work from Brian Lawrence and a clever banjo solo from Andy Maynard. The rarely played “Dusty Rag” featured clarinettist Ian Turner with trombone and "Willie The Weeper" with clarinet solo didn’t weep enough and Sims vocal with mini solos on bass and trombone didn’t have that ‘oomph’ usually associated with “Dark Town Strutters Ball”. I put the sluggish first set down to a late arrival from North Shields.

A much better second set had Sims' cornet leading with “Too Busy” and then vocalising with “St James Infirmary Blues”, “ Flat Foot” brought a solo drum led rhythm with some fine clarinet and integral bass play, followed by Turner’s clarinet and vocal in the plaintive “Darkness On The Delta”.

The sweet clarinet and sliding trombone accompanied Card’s vocal rendition of “I’ve Got The World On a String” and a storming Sims arrangement of “Marching Through Georgia” brought the time to imbibe.

Into the final hurdle with “Jazz Me Blues”, followed by Turner’s clarinet solo “Katie” composed and dedicated to his daughter with Card brush-drumming the rhythm.

A multi-contribution in a fine arrangement of “Beale Street Blues” gave way to Sims’ powerful cornet interlude driving Oliver’s “Frogymore Rag”. Turners vocal and clarinet with trombone solo had us “Over In The Glory Land”, before Sims’ scat vocal and cornet and the rest of the band turned “Ill Do Anything For You” into a rousing finale.

February 2008