After last months quite suberb sell out evening featuring these incredibly talented musicians, I am delighted to repeat the show.
Celebrating the music of Lionel Hampton, born 100 years ago, April 1908, died aged 94 in 2002.  Whom with Benny Goodman performed and recorded some of the finest ever jazz & enjoyed enormous popularity.  Their band was the first racially integrated jazz group to record and play before wide audiences.  Lionel Leo Hampton was the first real jazz vibraphone player.  Benny Goodman is hailed as the greatest jazz ‘reed’ player, saxophones, clarinet.  Their compositions include Vibe Boogie, How High the Moon, Moonglow, Memories of You, I Got Rhythm, Stompin’ at the Savoy, Stardust, Airmail Special, to name but 8!  Band leader of tonight’s quartet is the illustrious vibraphone player, Alan Grahame.  On the very last Parkinson Show, Parky shared clips of his favorite bits, including a musical interlude with Oscar Peterson playing with Alan Grahame.  Alan began his professional career with the Jerry Allen Quartet, he spent eight years with ATV’s midday show Lunch Box and provided music for hundreds of shows including The Two Ronnies, Benny Hill Show, Morecombe & Wise, Crackerjack and the Top of the Pops TV orchestra.  He has toured and recorded with many popular singers including Tom Jones, Englebert, Vince Hill, Andy Williams, Tony Bennett, Peggy Lee and Shirley Bassey.  Alan’s children have his musical DNA, Lisa is a saxophonist with Jools Holland’s Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, son Pete a multi instrumentalist and composer.  Ken McCarthy on piano, a sensational jazz musician having toured and recorded with ALL the greats, also Vince Hill’s musical director.  Mike Wills on Clarinet, a multi instrumentalist & one of Britain’s most in demand jazz reed players.  The Crooked Billet’s favorite double bass player Andy Crowdy adding the deeper notes !  This is guaranteed to be an exception evening.  Four of Britain’s finest jazz musicians paying homage to Lionel Hampton & Benny Goodman.  Definitely not be missed. 

Full regular menu - £10.00 music cover charge (bargain !)

I am excited and thrilled to welcome these genuine East European Gypsy Jazz musicians to the Crooked Billet.  With Bodan Chomenko on accordion from the Ukrain, Piotr Jorden on violin from Poland, Jez Cook on Maccaferri guitar and Andy Crowdy on double bass.  I saw Zvuk Bazaar at the Cambridge Folk Festival, they took the crowd by storm with their truly outstanding musicianship: passionate, melancholy, toe-tapping, foot-stomping, dramatic, fast and furious, moody and expressive.  It’s a real scoop to persuade these guys to play at the pub.  A truly awesome evening is guaranteed.  Most of the Gypsy Jazz we have at The Crooked Billet has its roots in Russian Folk music.  As Russian Gypsies they travelled across the Western block and through Europe, their influence and style had a marked effect on other cultures music.  The song / tune “Black Eyes” or “Dark Eyes”, a jazz standard for all The Crooked Billet jazz groups is in fact a Russian Folk song.  With all the dash, fire and excitement expected of Russian music, these sensational virtuoso musicians are guaranteed to provide an exceptional evenings entertainment.

Full regular menu. - £8.00  music cover charge

SOLD OUT

For further details on this simply superb boogie pianist go to www.benwaters.com

You may have caught them recently on tour and the radio.  The Groanbox Boys are the American duo, Cory Seznec and Michael Ward-Bergeman.  The two play a highly unique blend of what they call Old Time Mountain Gypsy World Folk Blues Music on accordion, acoustic guitar, banjo, harmonica and odd pieces of percussion, including their self-made “Freedom Boot”.  Their foot-stompin’ sound features unconventional arrangements weaved together by tight vocal harmonies sung with raw intensity.  Cory plays fingerstyle and flatpacking guitar, clawhammer, plectrum, and three-finger banjo, and blues harmonica.  Michael plays the accordion, hammering out a deep, full bass and accompaniment with his left hand, and authentic melodic lines with his right.  Banging out the percussion with their feet using a “stompbox” and a set of “ghungroo” (Indian ankle bells), their performances are marked by a rich, distinct sound and unending energy.  To grasp the uniqueness one has only to look at their unconventional blend of instruments, including the fretless gourd banjo – a deep, funky instrument modeled on the banjos played by the slaves on southern plantations – and their homemade Freedom Boot.  “The Boot” is the Groanbox Boys’ synthesis of rhythm sticks used around the world in myriad folk music traditions.  It is constructed with a large dowel with 420 bottle caps screwed on to it, a black boot fastened at the bottom, and topped with Bolivian goat toenails, rings, Guatemalan worry dolls, a Thai good luck phallus, and other mementos from their travels.  A shimmering golden scepter with an astounding percussive ring, the Freedom Boot draws a crowd like nothing else, and gets people dancing in no time flat.
“Utterly Entralling.  This is music that goes deep into the roots of popular music.  Mixed in here is West African Griot songs, Deep South blues, Nashville harmonies, Eastern European gypsy dances, even a touch of English Morris Dancing . . . . . Dig underneath the fingernail of modern popular music and you will get to the quick.  There – in the raw, living tissue – is where you’ll find the Groanbox Boys.  It’s not a show.  It’s life.” – Ben Chu, The Independent  

Full regular menu - £8.00 music cover charge

I’m delighted that the Ding Dong Daddios return to the Crooked Billet, many of you enjoyed them on New Years Eve at the pub, a memorable evening, standing ovation with everybody demanding more. These guys are absolutely amazing.  The Ding Dong Daddios bring you the most toe tapping tunes from the swing heydays of the 40’s and 50’s.  Get ready to take a Choo Choo Ch’boogie runaway train with Five Guys Named Mo all the way to Mac the Knife, passing through Istanbul (not Constantinople) on the way.  Their rendition of ‘Top Cat’ is legendary. This jumpin’ and jivin’ 4-piece swing band perform suitably suited and booted 1940’s style double bass, guitar, percussion and trombone.  The Ding Dong Daddios music is party music, up tempo and highly entertaining.  I cannot recommend the evening enough, they always go down a storm wherever they play.  To hear excerpts from their albums and further details visit www.dingdongdaddios.com.  They are so good we’re talking about booking them for our New Years Eve Party – so definitely worth checking out if you’re thinking of coming along this year.

Full regular menu - £10.00  music cover charge – Don’t miss it!

Regulars to the Crooked Billet’s What’s On diary Martha and her fabulous woodwind quartet will enchant with genteel eighteeth century chamber music.  The quartet are regular players at Kensington and Blenheim palace.  Their programme will include a selection of Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven and Bach with lighter pieces from the great classical works, all performances in period costume.

Unhinged, Unplugged, Unrehears

Many have enjoyed shows by Otway or Willy playing separately at the pub.  Otway and Barrett grew up in Aylesbury, released their first record ‘Misty Mountain’ at 18.  They have endured a turbulent musical partnership over the years with more splits than Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.
Their  enormously successful first album produced by The Who’s Pete Townsend was a huge hit, legendary appearances on The Whistle Test and Top of The Pops followed.  Further chart success with Cor Baby That’s Really Free, Beware of The Flowers Coz I’m sure they’ve gonna get you yeah!, Headbutts & Geneva followed (& of course Otway’s recent solo top hit Bunsen Burner).
Otway and Barrett gained a cult following, toured America with Sting and The Police, headlined Reading Rock Festival, Cambridge Folk Festival and Cropredy.  U2 were John and Willy’s support band on tour.
I am delighted we have persuaded John and Willy to unite for this very special evening.  Unhinged, unplugged and unrehearsed: an informal evening, enjoy their wit, comedic spark and all the hits performed acoustically.

Full regular menu - £15.00 music cover charge.