The Righteous Jazz, by The Mechanicals Band

The Righteous Jazz

by The Mechanicals Band

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1.	Horns of the Morning 03:25	buy track
2.	Days 02:31	buy track
3.	Mr Bleaney 03:56	buy track
4.	Long Lion Days 03:47	buy track
5.	For Sidney Bechet 03:33	buy track
6.	This Be The Verse 02:34	buy track
7.	High Windows 03:08	buy track
8.	The Trees 02:10	buy track

about

The latest offering from The Mechanicals Band stems from their Arts Council England funded and Philip Larkin Society supported music and theatre piece of the same name, all about the hugely influential poet and librarian Philip Larkin (1922-1985).

A selection of Larkin’s poems is given a vocal melody and a musical body by the double bass, guitar, viola, violin and drums of the band, with the occasional addition of trumpet, and serve to take the words off the page and into our ears in an altered but faithful form that evokes elements of classical, folk and jazz music elements but creates something altogether new.

Of the 8 pieces featured on this recording 5 were featured in the stage show The Righteous Jazz which was performed in the poet’s hometown of Coventry and in his city of residence for 30 years, Hull.

It is with the assistance of the Help Musicians UK’s ‘Do It Differently’ fund that the group have been able to complete and present this album during the testing year of 2020 when their beloved work of performing live has all but disappeared.

The opening number, taken from Larkin’s first published collection ‘The North Ship’ is used by the Philip Larkin Society’s podcast ‘Tiny In All That Air’ to open and close each episode.

The inception of the record came when guitarist and vocalist for the band, Wes Finch was living in Hull. An initial batch of songs was written, and recording began in the city Larkin lived and worked in for many years. After relocating to his, and Larkin’s city of birth Coventry, The Righteous Jazz stage show was developedand performed in both Coventry and Hull.
The making of the record was then recommenced and completed at Gighouse studios in Warwickshire during 2020.

The recordings feature the vibrant and hard-working presence of John Parker’s double bass (Nizlopi, The Willows, Ward & Parker and many more). The lush and resonant viola of Katrin Gilbert intertwines with the precise and melodic violin of Jools Street.
All is underpinned by the solid and sympathetic percussion of Ben Haines who also took lead mixing duties on the record.

Birmingham Conservatoire graduate Dani Blanco Albert pays homage to the New Orleans style of jazz music on the track ‘For Sidney Bechet’, the only poem Larkin wrote explicitly about his first love, music.

“I can live a week without poetry, but not a day without jazz,” said Larkin. The band can only hope that the author of these words would not find offence in this combination of the two, in their offering ’The Righteous Jazz’.

This is a beautiful, natural sounding collection of songs, that give a new platform to experience a small selection of the magnificent poetry of Philip Larkin.

credits

released January 25, 2021

All words by Philip Larkin
Music for tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 & 8 by Wes Finch
Music for tracks 3 & 7 by Jools Street

Guitars & Vocals- Wes Finch
Drums & Percussion – Ben Haines
Upright Bass – John Parker
Viola – Katrin Gilbert
Violin – Jools Street

Trumpets- Dani Blanco Albert

Recorded by Drew Coleman in Hull and by Andie Thompson at Gighouse Studios, Warwickshire. Mixed by Ben Haines. Mastered by Andie Thompson.

A selection of these songs featured in an Arts Council England and Philip Larkin Society supported music and theatre project called ‘The Righteous Jazz’ developed in 2019.
This recording was made possible with assistance from the Help Musicians UK ‘Do It Differently’ fund and by our supportive fans. The Mechanicals thank them both for their support.
All permissions obtained from Faber & Faber/The Larkin Estate.

www.mechanicalsband.com

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The Mechanicals Band Royal Leamington Spa, UK

mechanicalsband.com

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