Cardwell, Stephenson, Edwards and Sanders

Went to the fortnightly Fizzle night at The Old Moseley Arms last week. I'd seen the rhythm section of Mark Sanders and John Edwards before Christmas and was really impressed. Last time they featured two sax players but this time they had Euan Stephenson, a keyboardist, currently at the University of Birmingham, and Phil Cardwell, a trumpeter who has recently graduated from the jazz course at the Birmingham Conservatoire.
Cardwell started tentatively and looked slightly out of his depth (he later proved this intitial judgement premature, to say the least). The rhythm section were very strong, with Sanders echoing Peter Fairclough's fine work with Keith Tippett, constantly changing the timbre of his playing, not merely for effect, but to continuously complement and push the other players on.

Towards the end of the second set, the piece lost its intensity as Sanders began to coerce the players into a place where they seemed to all want to go to. As Edwards brilliant picked out sustained long notes in one minor key and Stephenson played flutteringly around the same notes at the top end of his keyboard (on a vibraphone-esque setting), Cardwell's Evan Parker-like playing suddenly came out of nowhere and punctured the tranquility with soulful blasts and heart-wrenching squeals, whilst Sanders masterfully cut accross everything with his crescendos and rubato playing. It was sublime and the audience were stunned and launched into massive applause as the piece came to a close. The players seemed shocked and they seemed to suggest that it wasn't planned. The piece reminded me of Spring Heel Jack and their work with Parker (Evan and William), Shipp, Bennink and Kenny Wheeler. I'd been discussing with Mike Hurley, Fizzle's organiser, just a few weeks before about the link between Spring Heel Jack and where i'd like to be musically and now Sanders et al had just reflected it perfectly for both of us.

Update: I spoke to Sanders after the gig and told him that Pete Fairclough had taught me at college. He sort of said, 'Oh yeah', seemingly in recognition but I thought to myself that as with a lot of musicians around Birmingham, he probably didn't have a clue ( I must stop pre-judging people...). Anyway, Sanders was grateful for my encouraging comments and that was that. I have just found out that both Sanders and Edwards regularly play with Evan Parker! They are giants on the London Improv scene! They have both played with Spring Heel Jack! On records I own! I could have explored all of this with Sanders if i has done my research prior to the gig like I should have done. Gutted!

Jazz, Improv,
Evan Parker, gigs