THE talented jazz singer Lydia Rae and her quartet returned to play at The Hub at St Mary’s for a third time.
With pianist Ben Shankland, double bassist Thomas Marsh, drummer Reece Downton and guest singer and saxophonist Ollie Stockley, they performed songs from the classic American songbook, their own arrangements of jazz classics by Miles Davis and Charlie Parker, and a number of originals.
With serious soloing from all of the musicians and a telling foray into musical theatre songs to show Ollie at his best, the set list was a little different, but still managed to range from jazz to blues, swing and a bit of pop music.
They performed standards such as The Street Where You Live and If I Were A Bell, mixing with originals like So Dearly Wanted and the soft ballad An Angel Watches Over Me, which was a showcase for Lydia’s vocals.
An upbeat reading of the jazz standard Billy’s Bounce was a showcase for saxophone. The vocal and band arrangements of Miles Davis Four and Charlie Parker’s Ornithology were very well received by the near capacity audience.
