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Tony Lakatos

Gypsy Colours

Skip Records SKP 9062-2

Like klezmer, East European gypsy music is not only a rich, multi-faceted tradition in itself, but also a source of jazz the significance of which is increasingly recognised.

The name Lakatos is almost synonymous with this latter process; in addition to the saxophonist/leader Tony, this vibrant and varied album also features pianist Szakcsi Bela Lakatos (a member, alongside Tony, of Arnie Somogyi's Improvokation), violinist Roby (familiar from his visits to Ronnie Scott's) and drummer Andras.

Acoustic guitar, cimbalom, vocals and bass complete the sound palette, and the resulting music, ranging from classic melodies from which jazz improvisations naturally spring, through plaintive folk songs and potent mixes of csardas (a fast Hungarian dance) and bebop, to a Django Reinhardt composition ('Troublant Bolero'), is both irresistibly zesty and deeply emotionally rooted. Lakatos himself describes the music as a 'thrilling cultural encounter' between traditional music and modern jazz, and whether his band is providing 'mouth bass' under his tenor solos or racing through murderously fast dance tempos with apparently effortless grace, it's easy to agree with his assessment.