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Moving In the Fast Lane  Fresh from performing with the Bad Plus, and with a new album to be released on his own Keywork Records and forthcoming tour, saxophonist Paul Towndrow is gearing up to move into the fast lane. Nick Lea tries to keep up. After his success at the World Saxophone Competition in Montreaux in the summer of 2003, saxophonist, Paul Towndrow, was suddenly the name on everybody?s lips. ?I was just over-awed at the time? Towndrow recalls, ?I was given the opportunity to play with Geri Allen, Bob Hurst and Eric Harland at the Montreux Jazz Festival. I was saying, ?What, there?s a better prize than this??? Nearly two years on and after the initial fuss has died down, Towndrow is now firmly based back in his native Scotland and is set to release his new CD Out Of Town on his own Keyworks Records. ?Recording this CD was filled with all sorts of new challenges for me compared to my debut album ?Colours?.? explains the altoist. ?For one thing I think that it is important for each recording to represent a development, improvement and sense of moving forward. Also, the fact that the CD features all new original compositions added to the sense of responsibility in a way. In addition to all of the artistic factors, Out of Town is the first CD for my new label, Keywork Records, the setting up of which was a big challenge in itself. This was a real multi-faceted learning experience for me.? This is a trend that is becoming more common amongst musicians, with the number of musician led labels springing up every which way. Great for the artist who has more control over their own work, but surely one that also presents further challenges and demands on one?s time. ?Sure it does,? agrees Paul, ?but partly what prompted me to set up Keywork Records was a bad experience with a previous independent record label. Release deadlines were overshot by months and I ended up doing all the publicity for the CD myself. In the end, the album did quite well for a first outing and received some very kind support from the media. As a result, I just thought ?I might as well go the whole hog and do it myself?. I am always inspired by musicians who work hard on the business side of things. Tommy Smith is a great example and he was extremely generous with his time when it came to giving me advice on setting up my own label.?  The new album also sees some personnel changes, with Steve Hamilton taking over at the piano form Paul Harrison on the earlier disc. So, I wanted to know is this now his regular working band, and how does the change of musicians has altered your overall concept of the quartet sound that e is looking for? ?The success of any recording is dependant on the quality of the individual musicians on the session and how they interact as a unit.? Paul continues ?I feel very fortunate to have worked with three great talents on this recording. I have been a great fan of Steve Hamilton?s playing for many years and when he returned to Scotland after a long stint in London I was delighted that he agreed to do some gigs and this recording with me. Alyn (Cosker) and I have been playing together since we were teenagers ? and I never get bored listening to him. He?s a very powerful, creative and intelligent musician. Mike Janisch and I studied at Berklee at the same time, although we never played together there, and he got in touch with me when he moved to London and we?ve done quite a bit of playing since. He has a great sound and concept on the bass and a great ear. On Out of Town there are some great moments of interaction in the rhythm section, and a lot of my favourite bits of the CD are when I?m not playing!?Like fellow Scot, Tommy Smith, and of course current band mate pianist Steve Hamilton, Paul had the opportunity to at Berklee College in Boston. So, I enquired, had he always harboured an ambition to be a musician? ?I think I realised I wanted to be a jazz musician when I was around 14 years old. I was, and still am, very lucky to have extremely supportive parents who, without objection drove me to endless band practices, gigs and concerts and put up with years of my practicing scales, harmonics and multiphonics upstairs in my room!? And what about his experience at Berklee? ?Absolutely fantastic? enthuses Paul ?Berklee is just a big cauldron of music and there is a lot of music going on there almost constantly. At any given time you?ll be able to find someone to jam with. For me it was a period of intense practice and private study ? some days in the winter it was still dark when I went into my practice room and already dark again by the time I came out.?  This is not an uncommon response amongst players that have studied at the Boston college, closely followed by stories of how nerve-racking it can be with not just the number of students and new environment, but also the incredible level of musicianship amongst on display. Fellow saxophonist, Tommy Smith, always recalls how intimidating his first few days at Berklee were. So, was this was a similar experience for Paul, and who did he study with at this time at the college? Paul?s response if typically positive, ?It was a great experience for me. I studied privately with George Garzone who is probably the biggest un-sung giant of the tenor saxophone. Through his teaching and playing he has been a great influence on many of today?s top players. You?ll hear a lot of his influence in the sound of tenor players like Mark Turner and Seamus Blake. I was also lucky enough to start at Berklee at the same time as Joe Lovano began teaching there ? he?s just an inspiration on every level.?So, who else has an influence on the Towndrow sound? ?I?m a huge John Coltrane fan and have around 35 Coltrane CDs in my collection. My favourite albums are mostly from his later period on the Impulse! label and include A Love Supreme , Sun Ship, Crescent and Live at Birdland.? What no alto players? Paul laughs ?Of course, but Coltrane is the main man. Although I have recently toured with the Bad Plus playing music from the Ornette Coleman album, Science Fiction. It was a really liberating musical experience. I think the Bad Plus are great ? they?ve got a really fresh concept and a pretty unique sound. I think they?ve taken the piano trio format to a whole different place.? And moving forward Paul is equally as enthusiastic and positive about his future plans and forthcoming tours. ?My aim is to be touring and playing around the UK and Europe as intensively as possible? he explains, ?so look out for forthcoming dates by logging onto my website. I?ll also be looking to put out my next CD on Keywork Records some time next year. In addition I will be touring this Autumn with saxophone quartet, Brass Jaw (www.brass jaw.co.uk) , so look out for that too. Keep up to date with Paul Towndrow?s live dates at www.paultowndrow.com. |
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