Leeds College of Music – Archive Recordings

Between 1995 and 1998 I attended Leeds College of Music as a student on their B.A. (Hons) Jazz Studies course. That’s right: I have a degree in jazz music. They were happy times, even though I realised very early on – like, in the queue to register on the first morning – that I was never going to be as good a player as most of the others I was there with.

So I played to my strengths, majored in composition, and did a lot of recording. What you see below is a lot of what I recorded over that time.

I’ll add a blanket apology here for lack of track titles, band personnel details and misspelling!

Final Recitals

Part of the assessment for the degree was a performance in front of several lecturers. This was held in the Recital Room of the college, and often students invited family and friends along. I think the length was 30 mins if you majored in improvisation, 20 mins if you majored in composition.

I realised that this was for many the culmination of their 3 years in Leeds, so I set up a cottage industry recording these recitals and producing CDs. I think I charged £10 or £20 – I didn’t make a lot of money! But I did get to listen to a lot of friends playing. Plus, 20-odd years late, we have this record of that time.

Adrian Sinclair

Band members:

Adrian Sinclair (tpt, flg)
John Hensman (gtr)
Terry Allingham (sax)
Jamil Sheriff (pno)
Wayne Matrous (bs)
Al Gubbins (dms)

Tracks:

Alex Cardy

Band members:

Alex Cardy (saxes)
Dominic Haslam (pno)
Adrian Knowles (bs)
Dave Newby (dms)

Tracks:

Alex Oliver

Band members:

Alex Oliver (tbn)
Phil Collins (pno)
Huw Molloy (sax)
Adrian Knowles (bs)
Tim Brickell (dms)

Tracks:

Andy Hesketh

Band members:

Andy Hesketh
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Bill Sutton

Band members:

Bill Sutton (pno)
Rob Leake (ten)
John Cuthill (tpt)
Nigel Slee (bs)
Gideon Marcus (dms)

Tracks:

Chris Taylor

This is me, but it is a source of eternal regret that only two of the four pieces I played have survived. The original CD of my recital was lost in the mists of time.

Band members:

Chris Taylor (tbn)
Leon Stevens (pno)
? Terry Allingham (sax)
? Tom Gledhill (bs)
? Al Gubbins (dms)

Tracks:

Almost Blues (composer: Chris Taylor)
Lover man

Dan Goldman

Band members:

Dan Goldman (pno, keys)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Dan Wood

Band members:

Dan Wood (pno)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Gareth Hall

Band members:

Gareth Hall (tbn)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

James Cheetham

Band members:

James Cheetham (pno)
Tim Brickel (dms)
Adrian Knowles (bs)

Tracks:

Jamil Sheriff

There were a handful of people in my year at college who everyone knew would do well. Jamil was one of those. Good to see him use his talents to help new generations of jazz musicians.

Band members:

Jamil Sheriff (pno)
Adrian Knowles (bs)
Al Gubbins (dms)

Tracks:

John Cuthell Jr

Band members:

John Cuthell Jr (tpt)
Richard Ormrod (ten, bs clrnt)
James Corry (alt)
Phil Collins (pno)
Nigel Slee (bs)
Al Gubbins (dms)

Tracks:

Leon Stevens

Only one track remains of my good friend Leon’s recital. I remember the shock when I recorded this: wow, he plays keys and bass really well – and he can sing, too!

Band members:

Leon Stevens (pno, voc)
Kenneth Higgins (bs)
Sam Hobbs (dms)

Tracks:

Track 1

Nancy Hunter

Nancy was very highly respected by students and staff, and her all-star band for this recital is proof.

Band members:

Nancy Hunter (voc)
Nikki Iles (pno)
Gary Boyle (gtr)
Jenni Molloy (bs)
Tony Faulkner (dms)

Tracks:

Sarah Garrett

Band members:

Sarah Garrett (voc)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Terry Allingham

I remember Terry’s recital well. He’d printed programmes including a little biography of himself. Everyone else realised he was treating the recital as a proper concert, not just ‘playing tunes in a room’.

Band members:

Terry Allingham (saxes)
Paul Carroll (gtr)
Phil Collins (pno)
Colin Sutton (bs)
Ali Pryde (dms)

Tracks:

Wayne Pollock

Band members:

Wayne Pollock (pno)
Dave Newby (dms)
Tom Fry (bs)
Hugh Lloyd (ten)

Tracks:

Gigs

Wherever possible I grabbed my portable recording gear, set up a couple of microphones, and recorded gigs I went to. Why not capture those sounds for the moment they existed? Over the years I’ve enjoyed going back to these recordings to remember happy times.

Buddy Childers & Conte Candoli: Live in the LCM Bar

This was a really special gig. Childers and Candoli, two highly respected musicians from the States, had been invited over to talk to students and play some gigs. Earlier in the day they had sat in the recital room, the place full of eager students, and chatted about their experiences. They would drop in things like “Remember that day we were at Miles’ house… I think Chick Corea was there too”.

I’d set up my mics and Buddy came over and asked me to hang on to his camera and take some photos. Clearly he was enjoying the experience as much as the students were. They played some tunes, joking and having a grand old time and inspiring Al, Tony, Graham and Tom to play their very best. It remains one of the best gigs I’ve ever been to.

Band members:

Buddy Childers (flg)
Conte Candoli (tpt)
Al Wood (alt)
Graham Hearn (pno)
Tom Marks (bs)
Tony Faulkner (dms)

Tracks:

Richard Ormrod Quintet: Live at the Corn Exchange

Band members:

Richard Ormrod (sax, bs clrnt)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Rob Mullarkey Band: Live at the Civic Theatre Bar

One wintry night in 1996ish the Civic Theatre bar, which was the defacto bar for the old CLCM college, hosted several bands. Robin Mullarkey from the year above me, who has gone on to become a very popular and successful musician, put this band together of pretty much the best student musicians in the college at that time.

Band members:

Rob Mullarkey (bs)
Russell van den Berg (sax)
Martyn Kaine (dms)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Tenterhooks: Live at the Civic Theatre Bar

Another band from the wintry night in 1996ish. I’m afraid I don’t know the band members.

Tracks:

Smokin’ Goats: Live at the Civic Theatre Bar

One more band from the 1996 Civic Bar music-fest. I don’t know the band members, and the announcements use their ‘funk stage’ names.

Tracks:

Trombosis: Live in Leeds

This gig was at the Victoria Hotel behind Leeds Town Hall, probably part of some festival or other. Trombosis was a trombone quintet run by Trevor Vincent. The band hadn’t run for several years as they didn’t have enough trombonists, but with an influx of 6 or more trombonists in my year (including me) the band was viable again.

Band members:

Dave Williamson (tbn)
Alex Oliver (tbn)
Chris Taylor (tbn)
Mike Jackson (pno)
Other band members not written here, but Trevor does announce them during one of the pieces

Tracks:

Concerts

Concerts I’ve classified separately to gigs, partly to help break this big web page up, but also as they were generally posher – often involving ticket sales.

Al Wood CLCM Big Band: Live at the Square Chapel, Halifax

I played occasionally for the Al Wood Big Band, and this gig was one of the echoiest (is that a word) I’ve ever done. I remember sitting there at the end of the trombone row with my bass trombone, headphones on, mixing desk at my side. We played two CDs worth of music, but one of the CDs was in a player that got stolen from my parents house in about 2001. So this is all we’ve got.

Band members:

Nancy Hunter (voc)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

CLCM Duke Ellington Repertory Orchestra: Live at Dewsbury Minster

I think my parents were involved in setting up this gig. I remember the band being crushed into an area not really designed for a big band, and me balancing the mixing desk across two pews!

Band members:

Nancy Hunter (voc)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Sangam: Live at CLCM Leeds, 26th November 2002

A few years after I left college my very good friend Milan Lad, who sadly passed away a number of years ago, took his band Sangam to play there. I was invited along as techie, and recorded the gig.

Sangam were, in my opinion, one of the most exciting bands in the UK at the time. Milan’s album Dreams continues to be a wonderful work, featuring performances from people like Jason Rebello. I wish Milan had got more recognition before he died for his talents in composition, arranging, and drawing the best musicians to support him. Rest in peace, Milan.

Band members:

Milan Lad (gtr)
Sylvan Richardson Jr (bs)
Inder ‘Goldfinger’ Matharu (perc)
? Jonathan Gee (pno)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

CLCM Students

I recorded a few ‘official’ concerts involving students from the college. Few details remain of band members, but what I can get I’ve put down here.

Jazz Composition Showcase 1998

This was a concert at the end of the final year to showcase the compositions by students finishing the jazz course. None of my pieces made the grade!

Jazz Spectrum 1998

To be honest I can’t remember if this was 1998 or 1997, but the concert was put on to show off the range of jazz music being written and played.

Studio sessions

While I wasn’t doing a sound engineering course, by 1998 I was working in a recording studio when I wasn’t at college. I wanted all the great music happening around me to be recorded: put the players and the sound engineers together, sounds obvious, right? These following recordings were all studio sessions I was involved with in one way or another.

Chris Coull Quintet

Band members:

Chris Coull (tpt)
Other band members unknown

Tracks:

Laura Fowles Band

Turns out Laura has had a very successful career playing sax live alongside DJs. What a great way to keep the art of improvisation alive. Laura Fowles (vocals, sax?), other band members unknown

Unknown Swing Band

I have no details about this band at all, but it’s good to hear that the traditional forms of jazz were also being played.

Richard Lapington Group

Richard Lapington (gtr), other band members unknown.

Tony Faulkner Jazz Orchestra

The Tony Faulkner Jazz Orchestra was the main experimental big band in college, a vehicle for Tony’s wonderful writing and arranging skills, as well as supporting pieces by students. I remember several sessions in the studio which were always hard work but fun.

Composer: Tony Faulkner

Samba Piece (I think this was composed by Tony)
Untitled Waltz
Wishes

Composer: Chris Coull

Chris composed this epic jazz setting for the story ‘Jonathan Livingston Seagull’. I’m afraid I don’t remember who the narrator was.

Composer: Chris Taylor

This is one of the pieces I submitted for my composition assessment.

Sapphira (lead trombone: Dave Williamson)

Composer: Catherine Sikora

Waltz
Statement (guitar: Paul Carroll)

Composer: Ola ? (sorry, forgotton Ola’s surname)

Band’s Too Big

Composer: Andy Hesketh

I remember recording these pieces so Andy could hand them in as part of his composition assessment. In return Andy came to my studio and played guitar on a couple of tracks for me.