When in need of a Top 10 Jazz Playlist for the Après Ski Bands YouTube channel who else to call upon but comedian, writer, actor, radio & TV presenter – and mega jazz enthusiast! – Marcus Brigstocke! Marcus was more than happy to send through his favourite jazz hits to ASB HQ today and for that we say mountainous Thank You!
Personally, this is a style of music that’s very close to my heart. I was named after Miss Fitzgerald herself (no I don’t have her talent for singing!) and grew up listening to my dad’s jazz collection as well as him playing and practising the trumpet. I’ll be honest, it wasn’t – and still isn’t! – the most thrilling of practise sessions to listen to on a daily basis. However, the pride of seeing my dad absolutely smash a Miles Davis or Chet Baker number at a gig, always makes those hours of listening to arpeggios worth while! To this day, I still love managing to catch my dad gig when I head back in the U.K. (That is, of course, when global pandemics aren’t putting a stop to live music..!)
I first met Marcus Brigstocke in 2017 during an Alps’ comedy tour we were running with Taking The Piste. He was backstage when I overheard him discussing his love of jazz with a fellow comedian. I could immediately tell that this was no laughing matter. There was some serious jazz chat going on – and Marcus clearly knew his stuff! My immediate thought was that my dad would love to be a part of this conversation. He’d be all over it. In fact, ironically, I associate having a deep knowledge of jazz, with laughter.
My dad’s got the ability to expertly utilise, what I call, ‘A Knowing Jazz Laugh’. Maybe it’s because he’s a musician who has studied and performed jazz for many years. But when he hears some ridiculously obscure and clever chord progression or the quickest and most subtle of nods to a rare, underground jazz piece, he’ll project one loud burst of laughter as he acknowledges this moment of genius. In the meantime, the rest of us are still trying to get to grips with the complexly timed middle 8! Or middle 16. Or middle 28… The detail, time signatures and bridges are beyond me. But the enjoyment of jazz ‘for jazz sake’ definitely isn’t.
So if you know any jazz fans, why not send them a link to Jazz ‘O’ Clock’ With Brigstocke. They might be someone who has ‘A Knowing Jazz Laugh’, someone who just loves listening to this genre of music because it’s vast and oh so brilliant, or they’re someone who you think needs a bit of jazz attitude in their life. After all, jazz is a bit like life itself.