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June 2007
gig reviews

London Jazz Orchestra
Geoff Gascoyne Quintet
Ayanna Witter-Johnson
Earconnector
FatCat Organ Trio
Gary Husband
Nikke Yeoh and
Cleveland Watkiss

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June 2007 gig reviews by Chris Parker

Nikki Yeoh and Cleveland Watkiss

Thursday 28 June

'Mesmerised' is how I see I predicted the audience would be by the 'Mutual Serenade' provided by Nikki Yeoh and Cleveland Watkiss. Beginning with a solo demonstration of all his considerable vocal skills – range, flexibility, skill in the selection of tonal colour and sheer musical wit – Watkiss did indeed mesmerise a largeish but scrupulously attentive audience with a tour de force involving the occasional use of repeat effects but otherwise relying entirely on the rich timbre of his delivery and the fertility of his imagination.

With skilful use of his electronics and a matchless mic technique, Watkiss can reproduce everything from the sound of dub reggae to bebop-style scat and all things in between, and when he was joined by Yeoh, whose resourcefulness and power as a pianist is matched by her accessibility and ease as a performer, the music was at once playful and serious, adventurous (Watkiss's reach occasionally exceeds his grasp, but jazz is arguably supposed to be about such risk-taking) and entertaining.

Drawing most of their inspiration either from plaintive soul or jazz scat (with the odd excursion into personal takes on the likes of Billy Strayhorn's precocious plaint, 'Lush Life'), Yeoh and Watkiss triumphantly achieved that most difficult of balancing acts: imbuing a performance with unassuming virtuosity.

 

 

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