Ronnie Scott's Jazz C

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JAZZ THIS CHRISTMAS

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OR CALL: 020 74390747

‘Hugh Masekela Returns...‘

Europe’s Premier Jazz Club in the heart of Soho, London

Cover artist: Hugh Masekela

Artists at a Glance

Tues 1st - Thurs 3rd: Fri 4th: Sat 5th:

Sun 6th Lunch Jazz:

Sun 6th: Mon 7th - Sat 12th: Thurs 10th:

Steve Cropper Band

Randy Brecker & Balaio play Randy In Brasil Terence Blanchard E-Collective

Atila - ‘King For A Day’

Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra

Kurt Elling Quintet “The Beautiful Day” Late Late Show Special: Brandee Younger: A Tribute To Alice Coltrane & Dorothy Ashby

Salena Jones & The Geoff Eales Quartet

Dean Brown - Rolajafufu

Bettye LaVette

Sun 13th Lunch Jazz:

Sun 13th: Mon 14th - Tues 15th: Wed 16th - Thurs 17th: Fri 18th - Sat 19th:

Sun 20th:

The Home Secretary Amber Rudd came up with a wheeze the other day that all companies should publish how many overseas workers they employ. I, in my naivety, assumed this was to show how much we relied upon them in the UK and that a dumb-ass ban or regulated immigration system would be highly harmful to the economy as a whole. Apparently I was wrong, it was just more pandering to the Brexit crew.

Marcus Strickland Twi-Life Charlie Hunter: An Evening With

Charlie Parker On Dial: Presented By Alex Webb

Oz Noy

Mon 21st:

Ronnie Scott’s Blues Explosion Hugh Masekela Alice Russell

Pete Horsfall Quartet

The Last Poets

Tues 22nd - Wed 23rd: Thurs 24th - Sat 26th:

Sun 27th: Mon 28th: Tues 29th - Wed 30th:

An additional side effect of Brexit is that we now have a low strength pound against the dollar, and we, as an importer of USA bands, are being hit. The bands we bring over from the USA are getting less $ for their £’s fee which in the medium and long term is possibly going to affect our ability to attract the talent.

TBA Maxi-Jazz & The E-Type Boys

Ronnie Scott’s has a workforce of over 100 if you include all the part timers and I guess that a good 80% are ‘overseas’ workers. This will be typical of most London hospitality businesses and has been the case for decades. Overseas workers are vital to the industry, they add expertise, variety, interest and are terrific workers. Ronnie Scott’s loves having the rainbow of nationalities that make up our workforce .

Thurs 1st:

Maxi-Jazz & The E-Type Boys Curtis Stigers

Curtis Stigers

Fri 2nd - Sun 4th:

Sun 2nd Lunch Jazz:

Mon 5th - Sat 7th: Thurs 8th - Fri 9th: Sat 10th:

Sun 11th: Mon 12th - Wed 14th: Thurs 15th - Sat 17th:

Sun 18th: Mon 19th - Fri 23rd: Sat 24th - Sun 25th: Mon 26th - Tues 27th: Wed 28th - Thurs 29th: Fri 30th:

Motown Christmas Revue: Natalie Williams Soul Family Joe Stilgoe Band – Get Ready For Christmas Absolute Earth Wind & Fire: Performed By Serpentine Fire!

Celebrating Sinatra! With Iain MacKenzie And Swing City

Celebrating Sinatra! With Iain MacKenzie And Swing City Motown Christmas Revue: Natalie Williams Soul Family Ray Gelato & The Giants

Jazz At The Movies ‘Swinging Christmas’ With Joanna Eden

Ronnie Scott’s Blues Explosion Ray Gelato & The Giants Club Closed Liane Carroll’s Christmas Turkey Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra Christmas Special Booker T Jones

Black Tie NYE Party!

As I see it a vote to leave the EU was a direct attack on Ronnie Scott’s. One simple question and so so many consequences.

We ran a limerick competition as part of our Jazz Industry quiz recently, here’s the winner entry:

“Great Scott!” Said Ron on a gig This Brexit thing must be a rig. I don’t give a damn, Ron... it was that David Camer-on... and he was balls-deep in a pig.

Sat 31st:

Booker T Jones, Ray Gelato Giants and the Ronnie Scott’s All-Stars!

Ronnie’s NYE Cocktail Party feat. TJ Johnson and the sounds of New Orleans! Funky Nation NYE Special! DJ Paul Trouble Anderson, Perry Louis & Jazzcotech, Mike Vitti

Booker T Jones

Upstairs at Ronnie’s (early): Upstairs at Ronnie’s (late):

Sun 1st - Thurs 5th Jan:

Genius. Simon Cooke MD Ronnie Scotts

Booking: ronniescotts.co.uk Tel: 020 7439 0747 Contact: [email protected]

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TUES 1ST - THURS 3RD NOV: Doors 5.30pm & 9.30pm (two shows) £45 - £60

STEVE CROPPER BAND

Steve Cropper (guitar) Lee Finkelstein (drums) Rusty Cloud (B3)

FRI 4TH NOV: Doors 6.30pm & 10.30pm (two shows) / £25 - £42.5

James Haggerty (bass)

RANDY BRECKER & BALAIO PLAY RANDY IN BRASIL

Legendary guitarist, A & R man, engineer, producer, songwriting partner of Otis Redding, Eddie Floyd and a dozen others plus founding member of both Booker T and the MG’s and The Mar-Keys, Steve Cropper was literally involved in virtually every record issued by Stax from 1961 to 1970. Such credits assure Cropper of an honoured place in the soul music hall of fame. As co-writer of (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay, Knock On Wood and In The Midnight Hour,

Randy Brecker (trumpet) Joäo Mascarenhas (piano/keys) Sergio Brandao (bass) Leonardo Susi (drums) Marco Bosco (percussion)

SUN 6TH NOV: Doors 6.00pm / £25 - £40

RONNIE SCOTT’S JAZZ ORCHESTRA

Led by award-winning saxophonist and band-leader Pete Long, the RSJO is one of the UK’s finest Big Bands and features the cream of UK talent. Featuring classy arrangements of classic jazz numbers and Here they present the “The Story So Far...” featuring the music of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, The Rat Pack and Benny Goodman.
World-class hard-bop and jazz trumpeter equally at home with jazz, fusion, funk or even sophisticated pop. He played with the likes of Horace Silver, Billy Cobham and Larry Coryell before finding fame with his brother Michael in the legendary funk and fusion outfit the Brecker Brothers in the 70s. For these shows as Brecker revisits his Grammy Award winning album ‘Randy in Brasil’. Expect samba kissed contemporary jazz, mellow funk and beautifully crafted tunes from a modern master and a top-class band.

Cropper is in line for immortality and more recently has found an even wider audience as a member of the Blues Brothers Band.

Cropper is in line for immortality and more recently has found an even wider audience as a member of the Blues Brothers Band.

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SAT 5TH NOV: Doors 6.00pm (& 10.30pm fri/sat only) £25 - £45

TERENCE BLANCHARD E-COLLECTIVE

Terence Blanchard (trumpet) David Ginyard Jr (bass) Oscar Seaton (drums) Charles Altura (guitar) Fabian Almazan (piano)

With more than 29 albums and multiple Grammy Awards and nominations to his credit, renowned New Orleans trumpeter, composer and bandleader Terence Blanchard unveils his ambitious E-Collective. Drawing on inspiration from Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew period they eschew the traditional soloist/accompaniment approach of jazz in favour of a more looselimbed style featuring continuous improvisation from each band-member. The individual solos are more prominent, but never overwhelm the music'scollectiveapproach. Fromfree, extended improvisationtoagroovethatdrawsonfunkand R&B. Music for the heart, soul, mind and feet!

MON 7TH - SAT 12TH NOV: Doors 6pm & (10.30pm fri/sat only) / £40-£60

KURT ELLING QUINTET: “THE BEAUTIFUL DAY”

Kurt Elling (voice), Stu Mindeman (piano/organ), Ulysses Owens Jr. (drums) Clark Sommers (bass) & John Mclean (guitar)

Arguably the greatest male jazz singer of his generation, GRAMMY Award-winning Elling is a super-star who has spent the last fourteen years at the top of the Down Beat Critics poll. As the Guardian commented his “rich, chewy baritone... his easy-swinging, ring-a-ding-ding delivery and his staggering jazz chops turn him into a kind of Sinatra with superpowers”. Elling is a renowned artist of vocalese-the writing and performing of words over recorded improvised jazz solos. The natural heir to jazz pioneers Eddie Jefferson, King Pleasure and Jon Hendricks, Elling has set his own lyrics to the improvised solos of Wayne Shorter, Keith Jarrett and Pat Metheny. Elling tells rich stories about exotic places, cultures and times and appears here in support of his new album called ‘The Beautiful Day’ which is Kurt’s first holiday album.

SUN LUNCH JAZZ 6TH NOV: Doors 12 noon - 4pm / £12 - £15

ATILA - ‘KING FOR A DAY’

Featuring Atila (vocals), Gabriel Latchin (piano), Tom Farmer (bass), Josh Morrison (drums),

Colin Oxley (guitar). This thoughtful and entertaining show is a fresh look at the life and work of

the timeless Nat King Cole. Sunday lunch available to order.

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DEAN BROWN - RoLaJaFuFu

Dean Brown (guitar) Marvin "Smitty" Smith (drums) Linley Marthe (bass) Bernard Maseli (electric vibraphone) Mateusz Pliniewicz (violin)

THURS 10TH NOV: Doors 10.30pm / £12 / £6 concessions

Jazz-rock renegade guitarist Dean Brown unleashes expansive, all-star roller coaster ROLAJAFUFU with a stellar band that features legendary drummer ‘Smitty’ Smith and rising star bassist Marthe. Guitarist and composer Dean Brown has always done things his way. Nowhere is that in greater evidence than on ROLAJAFUFU, his fifth album as a leader. The title is a playful acronym that encompasses rock-Latin-jazz-funk-fusion, the universes Brown explores on his diverse, kinetic

LATE LATE SHOW

MON 14TH - TUES 15TH NOV: Doors 6pm / £35 - £50

SPECIAL: BRANDEE YOUNGER: A TRIBUTE TO ALICE COLTRANE & DOROTHY ASHBY

BETTYE LAVETTE

Bettye LaVette (vocals) Brett Lucas (guitar) Darryl Pierce (drums) Alan Hill (keys)

Brandee Younger is an American harpist who's known for sharing the stage with Jazz royalty Jack DeJohnette and Ravi Coltrane, laying down tracks with Grammy-Winning rapper Common and artist/producer Ryan Leslie, as well as bringing to life the Classic Impressionistic work of Maurice Ravel. Her ability to feature the harp in genres of music where the instrument is often absent demonstrates her cross-reaching ability as a musician. For tonight’s very special Late Late Show she pays tribute to the everlasting influence of two great harpists, Alice Coltrane whose unique take on Spiritual jazz has influenced everyone from Flying Lotus to Matthew Halsall and the great Dorothy Ashby whose soulful recordings for Cadet have

James Simonson (bass)

recording and with these blistering live shows. Expect funky fusion at it’s finest.

Three time Grammy nominee Bettye LaVette is an interpreter of the highest order. Whether the song originated as country, rock, pop, or blues, when she gets through with it, it is pure R&B. She gets inside a song and shapes and twists it to convey all of the emotion that can be wrought from the lyric. In 2016, her most recent CD, Worthy, has garnered her a third Grammy nomination. She also received the Blues Music Award for Best Soul Blues Female Artist. Although still not a household name, the fans, critics and artists have nothing but high praise for her live show and her interpretive vocal skill. She is one of very few of her contemporaries who was recording during the birth of soul music in the 60s and is still creating vital recordings today.

influenced trip-hop and beyond. Unmissable.

SUN LUNCH JAZZ 13TH NOV: Doors 12 noon - 4pm / £12 - £15

SALENA JONES

Salena Jones (vocals), Rob Barron (piano), Jules Jackson (bass), Pete Cater (drums) Classy

club favourite who first played at Ronnie Scott’s in 1967 who has sung with Louis Armstrong, Hank Jones, Ray Brown, Sarah Vaughan, Maynard Ferguson, Mark Murphy to name a few. Sunday

lunch available to order.

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WED 16TH - THURS 17TH NOV: Doors 6pm / £25 - £42.5

MARCUS STRICKLAND TWI-LIFE

Marcus Strickland (saxophones) Mitch Henry (keys) Kyle Miles (electric bass) Charles Haynes (drums)

FRI 18TH - SAT 19TH NOV: Doors 6pm & 10.30pm (two shows) / £40 - £60

CHARLIE HUNTER: AN EVENING WITH

Following a series of sold-out shows with Chris Dave and the Drumhedz at Ronnie’s for the 2014 London Jazz Festival, multi-reedist and beat-maker Marcus Strickland returns with his trailblazing new Twi-Life band. Described by Strickland as a “refuge for trying out my wildest ideas”, Twi-Life combines fluid improvisation, deep grooves and Stricklandproduced beats to create a genre-defying synthesis of soul, jazz-funk and R&B. For these shows, Strickland assembles the talents of some of America’s most innovative and unpredictable artists to perform tracks taken from his current Blue Note / Revive Records release, Nihil Novi produced by the phenomenal Meshell Ndegeocello.

Charlie Hunter (guitar) Bobby Previte (drums) Yelfris Valdes (trumpet) Kieran McLeod (trombone)

Remarkable American seven-string guitarist with the unique ability to play both bass and chordal guitar lines simultaneously - this needs to be seen to be believed! Hunter draws from influences across the musical spectrum but with strong jazz, blues and funk tendencies. For these, his first UK shows in eight years, he’ll be joined by legendary drummer Bobby Previte and a horn section playing music from his recent Decca Records album ‘Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth!’ Expect rollicking blues, Meters-style funk and hard-edged rhumba all under-pinned with a solid groove.

OZ NOY

Oz Noy (guitar) Jimmy Haslip (bass) Keith Carlock (drums)

“It’s Jazz, it just doesn’t sound like it.” This is how virtuoso guitarist Oz Noy describes his intoxicating blend of jazz, funk, rock, blues, and r&b. Named “Best out there guitar player” by Guitar Player magazine. Since his 1996 arrival in New York, Oz has made a huge impact on the local and international music scene. His unique style has broken all the rules of instrumental guitar music by focusing on the groove and he appears here in support of his recent album “How Gives A Funk”.

Twi-Life combines fluid improvisation, deep grooves and Strickland-produced beats to create a genre- defying synthesis of soul, jazz-funk and R&B.

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TUES 22ND - WED 23RD NOV: Doors 5pm & 9.30pm £60 - £85

HUGH MASEKELA

Ramapolo Hugh Masekela (flugelhorn / lead vocals) Abednigo Sibongiseni Zulu (bass guitar) Francis Manneh Edward Fuster (percussion / backing vocals) Cameron John Ward (lead guitar / backing vocals) Johan Wilem Mthethwa (keyboards / backing vocals) Lee-Roy Sauls (drums / backing vocals)

MON 21ST NOV: Doors 6.00pm / £25 - £42.5

RONNIE SCOTT’S

Legendary South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela has come to be known as a living legend. In 1968, his single ‘Grazin’ in the Grass’ went to No. 1 on the American pop charts and was a worldwide smash elevating Hugh onto the international stage. His subsequent solo career has spanned 5 decades, during which time he has released over 40 albums and has worked with such diverse artists as Harry Belafonte, The Byrds, Fela Kuti, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and the late Miriam Makeba. Yet still, at 77 years, he shows no sign of slowing down. His voice has long spoken out in his country’s struggle for civil rights, whilst his soaring, joyful trumpet sound brims with warmth and bristles with elements of township jazz, hip-hop and funk. Universally considered one of the world’s all-time greatest horn players, he remains, in the words of the Independent: ‘a musician of phenomenal grace and power... still blessed with a voice that can strip the leaves from the trees.’

BLUES EXPLOSION

Line-up (subject to change without notice) Marcus Bonfanti (guitar/vocals) Tony Remy (guitar) Paddy Milner (piano/vocals) Frank Tontoh (drums) Nick Cohen (bass) Winston Rollins (trombone) Derek Nash (saxophone) Paul Newton (trumpet)

Co-led by pianist/vocalist Paddy Milner and explosive funk, blues and jazz guitarist Tony Remy (Incognito, Annie Lennox and Craig David), the electrifying Blues Explosion specialises in blues music from Chicago to the Delta, West Coast and British. Expect blues classics from Eric Clapton, BB King, Freddie King, Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, Albert King, Peter Green, Howlin’ Wolf, Robert Cray amongst others

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SUN LUNCH JAZZ 20TH NOV: Doors 12.00pm / £12 - £15

CHARLIE PARKER ON DIAL: PRESENTED BY ALEX WEBB

'Charlie Parker On Dial' is a thrilling journey through a key period in alto saxophone legend Charlie Parker's recording career, taking us session by session through his years (1946-47) with Ross Russell's

Dial label, narrated by Alex Webb. Sunday lunch available to order.

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THURS 24TH - SAT 26TH NOV: Doors 6.30pm (& 10.30pm Fri/Sat only) £25 - £45

ALICE RUSSELL

SUN 27TH NOV:
Doors 6.30pm / £25 - £40

THE LAST POETS

Umar Bin Hassan (vocals), Abiodun Oyewole (vocals) & Babatunde (percussion)

A rare appearance by spoken word legends The Last Poets, often hailed as the first ever rap group. Grown out of the civil rights movement in the late 60’s, The Last Poets are modern day greats with withering attacks on everything from racists to government and to the bourgeoisie. Their spoken word albums preceded politically laced R&B projects such as Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On and foreshadowed the work of hard-hitting rap groups such as Public Enemy.

Hip-hop history officially started in Harlem on May 16th, 1969 (Malcolm X’s birthday). Imprisoned after refusing to fight in the Vietnam War, Jalal Mansur Nuriddin began to blend spoken-word verse with street-corner beats, and befriended fellow inmates Umar Bin Hassan and Abiodun Oyewole. Upon their release, they named their trio The Last Poets after the work of a South African writer who predicted violence would destroy the current, last generation of poets. The group would soon electrify audiences both the Apollo Theater and on local television, capturing the attention of producer Alan Douglas, known for his landmark sessions for Duke Ellington, Charlie Mingus, and Eric Dolphy. The group debuted in 1970 with the album The Last Poets, considered the first hip-hop album of all time, followed in 1971 with This Is Madness landing them on President Nixon’s Counter-Intelligence Programming list! Both discs scored high on the album and R&B charts thanks to their arresting fusion of politically outspoken lyrics and inventive percussion. Listen to these records today (as reissued by Light in the Attic