Concert Date: 30th October
What a privilege it was for the Lake District that Zeffirellis in Ambleside was able to host the final concert of his European tour. Even more special when Locke and his Group only played two UK dates, having played Ronnie Scott’s Club in Tuesday and then making the long journey up north.
Zeffirellis really is becoming one of the foremost venues in the UK. Boasting an excellent grand piano, good acoustics, and an intimate space that lends itself to an informal atmosphere where one feels among friends. This point was not lost on Joe, who when welcomed onto the stage, expressed just that sentiment explaining that he felt that it was a fine venue in which to end his two and half week tour.
Playing some of the music from his most recent album, the excellent 2023 release Makram, the vibraphonist brought with him Jim Ridl on piano and bassist Lorin Cohen from his New York group and on drums was Scotland’s very own Alyn Cosker to complete a quartet that was positively sizzling. The level of empathy was evident from the off, all the more remarkable considering that Cosker played the music for the first time live the previous night at Ronnie’s.
In a conversation during the break, the drummer said to me that he had spent a couple of days staying in Kendal (not far from Ambleside, and on route from Scotland) to learn the music as he had wished to be free to play the music as opposed to reading it on the gig.
And play the music the quartet did indeed. Two scintillating sets that took in original material from Locke and Jim Ridl, and a wonderful run through of Sonny Rollins’s ‘Airegin’ featured some fiery playing and interaction between Joe and Alyn Cosker.
Unfortunately, the opening number ‘Dear Life’ and the title track of Locke’s 2004 album with his 4 Walls of Freedom (featuring another Scot with Tommy Smith on tenor saxophone) was slightly marred by technical issues, but did give an indication of the quality of the music that was to follow.
After the briefest of delays the music resumed with the Locke’s composition ‘Makram’ with its Middle Eastern flavour. Pianist Jim Ridl took the first solo making it totally clear as to why the vibraphonist wants him in his group.
This can also be said of bassist Lorin Cohen who was a tower of strength on double bass (which he had played exclusively throughout the tour to date) and on a borrowed electric bass that Cohen seemed to be happy to play. The electric instrument brought a new sound to the band, and a depth and agility in Cohen’s hands that propelled Jim Ridl’s ‘Blues Evocation’ in fine style, and locking in neatly with Alyn Cosker.
The music wasn’t all fast, furious and blurred mallets, and Joe is an endearing and natural raconteur. His stories and anecdotes between numbers were amusing, and where the stories had a significant impact or meaning, the vibraphonist’s passion and emotion was felt by the audience.
Locke spoke movingly and compellingly about his admiration for the American Protestant minister and social activist the Rev. Dr. William Barber, backing this up with an equally emotive ballad titled after one of Barber’s quotations, ‘Is There a Heart in This House?’. This raw emotion was again to the fore in Joe’s moving words in tribute to the late Vic Juris, and in his composition ‘Song for Vic Juris’ with a beautiful outpouring of melody easing into a gentle swing before once again returning to a slow ballad.
Bringing out the full sound of his vibes in a luxuries floating melody beautifully underpinned by double bass, Locke’s ‘Safe and Sound at the Edge of the Milky Way’ was something quite special with excellent solos first by Locke and followed by pianist Jim Ridl. The concert concluded with a piece that Locke dedicated to his manager, Nadja von Massow titled ‘Blondie Roundabout’ (you’ll have to ask Joe about the title!), an energetic piece that again featured solos from vibes and piano, with Alyn Cosker’s skilful drumming and the electric bass of Lorin Cohen getting into a deep groove and dialogue. Cohen also takes a fine solo that brings out all the subtleties that a master bassist will bring out of the electric instrument
The enthusiastic and appreciative audience requested an encore, and Joe duly obliged with a solo piece for vibes that left us all spellbound with its delicacy and lyricism. Truly a memorable concert from the Joe Locke Group that will linger in the memory until we can tempt Joe back to the Lake District to weave some more of his magic.
