The local trumpet player and composer Nick Dewhurst surrounded himself with a stage full of other talented performers when he appeared at the Lichfield Jazz and Blues Festival.
Played trumpet and guitar as well as arranging and composing much of the music, Nick was joined by Sam Craig on tenor saxophone, Beth Fisher-Dewhurst on alto saxophone, drummer Carl Hemmingsley, bassist Paul Robinson and vocalist and keyboard player Tom Lindsay.
With a sound that borrowed as much from funk, rock and pop as they did from jazz and big band music, they placed an emphasis on a steady groove aimed at the audience’s feet, and soloing that was fun, impressive and stylistically suitable.
Much of the opening set was written by Nick, with blues and jazz being pushed to the fore. Blues For Dave was – as its title suggested – a stinging, bluesy refrain from the saxophones and guitar.
The pace was slower for the ballad of Serendenhof Serenade, and Tom Lindsay was given a good vocal warm-up during Fly Me To The Moon and Billy Strayhorn’s Take The A Train.
The piano and bass lines of Follow the Fox and Fusion Line were both catchy and provided a strong backdrop to the solos that featured.
Much more of a party atmosphere was in evidence during the second half, with the Hawaiian shirts that the group wore being particularly eye-catching.
Songs by the likes of Dua Lipa, Moloko and Daft Punk were given a fitting jazz twist, while Street Life by The Crusaders bought the tempo down and showed some more restraint from the six players.
The dualling saxophones and trumpet that featured in the coda of Stevie Wonder’s I Wish were a great way for this concert to finish.