Music Spoken Here

Tristan Banks - View From Above album launch
2023-04-27 20:00 - 23:00 (Europe/London) | The Marr’s Bar, 12 Pierpoint Street, Worcester, Worcestershire, WR1 1TA, United Kingdom
Brazilian vibes delivered with relentless energy from drummer Tristan Banks!
Drummer/composer Tristan Banks draws on over 30 years of experience as a sideman for many grammy award winning and multi-platinum selling artists (Roy Ayers, Steve Winwood, Dave Valentin, David Gilmour, Beverley Knight, Hexagonal, Peter King, Lewis Taylor, Guy Barker, Marcos Valle, Liane Carroll, Mike Lindup, Terry Callier, Da Lata, Jim Mullen, Carleen Anderson and Mayra Andrade).
Mixing influences from jazz, latin and fusion, Banks’ debut album View From Above is a unique combination of high-octane virtuosic performance and sublimely melodic composition. Banks unifies his long standing musical friends Latin-jazz pianist John Crawford (Airto Moreira, Giovanni Hidalgo, Snowboy, Roberto Pla), Davide Mantovani on bass (Lisa Stansfield, Tony Allen, Zoe Rahman, Jim Mullen, Andy Sheppard, Jason Rebello, Alex Wilson, Jean Toussaint and a whole heap of world-music collaborations including Baaba Maal, Mulatu Astatke and Nana Vasconcelos) and Tom Barford on sax. Tom is the 2017 Kenny Wheeler Prize winner and co-leads AuB with Alex Hitchcock, James Maddren, and Ferg Ireland, who released their debut album on Edition Records in May 2020.

Laimu / Loz Ruston Quartet
2023-03-30 20:00 - 23:00 (Europe/London)
Seductive, soulful vocals over fresh, jazzy grooves along the lines of Greentea Peng, Cleo Sol and Hiatus Kaiyote
Bristol 6-piece Laimu meld a unique brand of jazz and contemporary soul, channeling wide spanning influences to deliver heavy grooves, dusty horn lines and laidback hip-hop influenced beats led by raw and heartfelt vocals.
Their debut EP ‘Circles’ has received amazing radio support across BBC 6 Music, BBC Radio 1Xtra, Jazz FM (YolanDa Brown’s Tune Of The Week) and Rinse FM via Jyoty. Previous releases have also been playlisted on Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide FM.
Laimu have also gained a great reputation in the live circuit, supporting artists such as The Hot 8 Brass Band and No Go Stop, as well as performing at UK festivals such as Farmfest, El Dorado, Jazz Stroud, Shindig and Wonder Fields.
Laimu are Lucy Sparks (vocals), Matt Hill (trumpet), Austin Shepherd (guitar), Laurence Fazakerley-Buglass (keys), Andy Vincent (bass) and Pete Catada (drums).

Support from Loz Ruston Quartet
This show includes a support set from Worcestershire’s own Loz Ruston Quartet, playing on the funky groove side of jazz! Featuring Loz Ruston (guitar), Iain Elliot (bass), Carolyn Evans (sax) and Rich Gibbs (drums).

Robert Castelli & BOOM!
2023-03-02 20:00 - 23:00 (Europe/London)
Get carried away into the world of Afro-Cuban music, West African rhythms and jazz rock of the 70s and 80s
Hailing from New York and now living in Barcelona, drummer Robert Castelli is a busy international sideman that has also been playing with various configurations of his BOOM project for several years. His latest album Party at One World Plaza brings together Latin rhythms, funky grooves and contemporary jazz in a delightful expression of his musicianship. You will not be able to sit still for this one!
For this show Robert is joined by Francesco LoCastro (guitar), Marco Marconi (keys) and Jonny Wickham (bass).

Yolanda Charles' Project PH
2023-02-18 20:00 - 23:30 (Europe/London)
Currently recording their first album Acid Funk, Project PH plays a diverse range of original funk-fusion and R&B-influenced tunes full of soul. Their musical variety has drawn comparisons to Parliament/Funkadelic, Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters, Prince, Yes, Return to Forever, as well as Don Blackman, John Scofield, and even the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Their talent is exceptional and their music will have you engaged from the first to the last note.

Project pH is a group of musicians brought together by session bassist Yolanda Charles. Yolanda is well-known to music fans and industry professionals worldwide. In 2020, she was awarded an MBE for her services to music. She has spent her career performing live with artists such as Hans Zimmer, Squeeze, Robbie Williams, and Paul Weller, as well as recording with BB King, Mick Jagger, Dave Stewart, and Queen, to mention a few.
The band features the skills of London-based guitarist Nick Linnik, who provides a stunning display of highly compelling soloing as the newest member of the band. The dynamic and versatile Laurie Lowe on drums, is known for his work as part of the Preston, Glasgow & Lowe trio as well as a myriad of names in the UK jazz scene. Pianist Hamish Balfour brings a wide range of experience as a composer and arranger. His training in both classical and jazz as well as as a dance music producer, gives him the perfect mix of skills for the band sound. The voices of the band are provided by the superb soulful delivery of vocalists Paris Ruel and Adeola Shyllon.

Rosie Frater-Taylor
2022-12-22 20:00 - 23:00 (Europe/London)
With two albums and a European tour in the bag, ‘one-to-watch’ Rosie Frater-Taylor brings her own blend of jazz, folk and soul to Worcester.
23-year old singer, songwriter and guitarist Rosie Frater-Taylor combines her subtle, melodic voice with accomplished yet playful guitar in songs that blend jazz harmonies and folk storytelling with a youthful, uplifting freshness. Think Joni Mitchell meets George Benson, influenced by growing up in the 2000s.
Following the release of her second album ‘Bloom’ last year (Jazz FM’s featured Album of the Week), Rosie and her band have been touring the UK and European jazz festivals and playing top clubs including Ronnie Scott’s in London, La Note Bleu in Monaco and New Morning in Paris.
Rosie caught Gilles Peterson’s attention a while back – “An artist I have fallen in love with, musically speaking”. She played his We Out Here festival this year and Think About You made his Top 100 Tracks of 2021. Jazzwise Magazine and Guitar Magazine have both marked Rosie as ‘one-to-watch’.
Rosie is joined by Tom Potter (Young Drummer of the Year 2016) on drums and Dave Edwards on bass.

Resolution 88
2022-11-03 20:00 - 23:00 (Europe/London)
Music Spoken Here are proud to present Resolution 88! If you like Herbie Hancock’s 70s work with the Headhunters, you’re going to love these guys! Band leader Tom O’Grady on Rhodes and synthesizers is joined by Tiago Coimbra on bass, Ric Elsworth on drums, Alex Hitchcock on tenor sax and Oli Blake on percussion.

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With the release of their first three albums, live shows supporting Snarky Puppy, Roy Ayers, Marcus Miller, Stanley Clarke, Larry Mizell & the Blackbyrds, Butcher Brown, the Yellowjackets and a Lockdown Session live stream at Ronnie Scott’s last year, Resolution 88 have established themselves as one of the UK’s leading exponents of funk jazz. Their music is synonymous with the beautiful sound of the Fender Rhodes.
“Resolution 88 … this is an exciting young band from Cambridge who take their influence from the immensely important, barrier-breaking mid 70’s funk jazzer Herbie Hancock & the Headhunters – they’ve come out of nowhere at the last minute! There’s absolutely no-one around at all like these guys at the moment!” Craig Charles (The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show)
Check them out at https://soundcloud.com/resolution88 and on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/Resolution88
Doors 8pm. Downbeat 9pm

Tom Ford
2022-09-29 20:00 - 23:30 (Europe/London)
Birmingham’s own in-demand contemporary session guitarist and Berklee College alumni Tom Ford fuses elements of jazz, neo-soul, Latin and hip-hop with his band packed full of emerging UK talent. Following performances at Ronnie Scott’s last year, Mostly Jazz Funk & Soul Festival and the release of his debut album The Tennis Champions in March, Tom brings his band to Worcester for a night of innovative, diverse and provocative music.

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£10 adv / £12 on the door
Tom Ford majored in Jazz Composition and Performance at Berklee College of Music. He has worked across the spectrum with the likes of The Jonathon Silk Big Band, Chris Dave & The Drumhedz and British soul / jazz / hip-hop band Trope to name a few. He is no stranger to playing the UK’s top jazz venues (Ronnie Scott’s, 606 Club and Pizza Express) and jazz festivals (Cheltenham, Glasgow, Mostly Jazz Funk & Soul). Tom is endorsed by JJ Guitars.
The rhythm section features Nathan Shingler (Young Drummer of the Year 2019) just off the back of playing with Alfa Mist at the O2 Academy in Brixton and Daisy George on bass. Daisy has been busy in the London jazz scene for several years working with artists such as Poppy Ajudha and Jas Kayser. She showcased her solo project at Ronnie Scott’s earlier this year.
The lineup is completed by composer and multi-instrumentalist Parthenope Wald-Harding on sax. Hailing from Leeds, Parthenope is a classically trained violinist and folk-fiddler as well as a creative saxophonist. Meanwhile Simon JNR (also from Birmingham) steps up to the mic with his energetic stage presence and slick, witty, rhythmic raps.
Doors 8pm. Downbeat 8:45pm

Project PH
2022-06-23 20:30 - 23:30 (Europe/London)
Currently recording their first album Acid Funk, Project PH plays a diverse range of original funk-fusion and R&B-influenced tunes full of soul. Their musical variety has drawn comparisons to Parliament/Funkadelic, Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters, Prince, Yes, Return to Forever, as well as Don Blackman, John Scofield, and even the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Their talent is exceptional and their music will have you engaged from the first to the last note.

GET TICKETS

Project pH is a group of musicians brought together by session bassist Yolanda Charles. Yolanda is well-known to music fans and industry professionals worldwide. In 2020, she was awarded an MBE for her services to music. She has spent her career performing live with artists such as Hans Zimmer, Squeeze, Robbie Williams, and Paul Weller, as well as recording with BB King, Mick Jagger, Dave Stewart, and Queen, to mention a few.
The band features the skills of Australian Kim Murray, who offers a display of vibrant sound-crafting and compelling soloing as lead guitarist. The dynamic and versatile Laurie Lowe on drums, is known for his work as part of the Preston, Glasgow & Lowe trio as well as a myriad of names in the UK jazz scene. Laurie’s presence in Project pH brings the full range of the compositions to life. Pianist Hamish Balfour brings a wide range of experience as a composer and arranger. His training in both classical & jazz and as a dance music producer, gives him the perfect mix of skills for the band. The voices of the band are provided by superb International vocalists Paris Ruel and Adeola Shyllon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ7_JbOQ1N8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCmB-7C1Gss

Yolanda Charles FUNK ULTRA
2022-05-26 20:00 - 23:00 UTC
Taking you back to the time when music was driven by the bass riffs that hooked you in and drums that got you up on your feet.

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A night of live music performed by FUNK-Ultra brings you a repertoire of songs by Cameo, Pleasure, The Meters, Teena Marie, Rufus & Chaka Khan, James Brown,The Fatback Band and many other classics from the best era for Funk, RnB and Soul. There is something for everyone who loves music at its finest and funkiest.
FUNK-ULTRA are a new 6-piece band of professional musicians formed and led by bassist Yolanda Charles. Yolanda has over 30 years experience that includes recording and performing with Paul Weller, Robbie Williams, Marcella Detroit (of Shakespears Sister), Sinead O’Connor, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, BB King, Dave Stewart, Queen, Squeeze & Hans Zimmer. In 2020 Yolanda was awarded an MBE for her services the UK music industry!
Gareth Brown brings his extensive drumming experience to the show. You have no doubt already heard his work with Craig David, Rihanna, Kelly Rowland, Omar, Ms Dynamite, Mica Paris, Will Young, Alexandra O’Neil, Donna Summer, Shalamar, Frank McComb, Alesha Dixon, Paloma Faith.
Kim Murray (guitar) and Hamish Balfour (keyboards) complete the rhythm section. Their list includes work with legacy bands such as Odyssey, Temptations, The Sherelles, Boney M and Joyce Sims.
Decosta Boyce (vocals) known for his work as a solo artist and with 70’s legends Heatwave, Adele, Beverly Knight, Omar, Texas and Alexander O’Neil. Decosta is joined on vocals by young and beautifully talented Leanne Sandy.
