Category: entertainment and leisure news

LIVE music nights start up again at the Social, Wellington Street, in Thame on Thursday nights from tomorrow (February 1).
Local band, The Powders will be headlining the event- they recently played main support at Aylesbury Showcase, Hobble on the Cobbles to John Ottway, and will be promoting their debut album ‘Just By Breathing in. These masters of songwriting, play with passion and energy – make sure you catch The Powders on Thursday.

Main support will come from Tim Matthews, a favourite act now at the social, a great singer/songwriter complete with band. Tim a great songwriter and performer.

The opening act is GRK, a girl fronted group with a great voice, and some great songs; they will be performing an accoustic set for us on Thursday as their keyboard player is away.

Three great bands for the usual door entry of only

JAZZ concerts are to resume at The Players Theatre in Nelson Street, Thame, on Wednesday, February 7, at 8pm. Now under a new promotor, the first of these concerts will feature trombonist, Roy Williams, who was voted Top Trombonist for four years running in the 1980s, by Jazz Journal International.
Roy was born born in Manchester and self taught, after some disastrous early lessons as a boy when his teacher told him: “Look Roy, we?re wasting each others time ? why don?t you try something else?”. Of course he persevered and over the years has played with the bands of Terry Lightfoot, Alex Welsh and Humphrey Lyttleton. He has toured and recorded with many musicians and is much in demand at jazz festivals all over the world.

Supporting Roy will be The Alvin Roy Quartet. Alvin too has built up an enviable reputation with frequent broadcasts on BBC Radio 2’s Jazz Club and has toured and recorded extensively around Europe. The quartet is made up of Alvin on clarinet, Rod Kelly on piano, Thad Kelly on bass and Martin Hart on drums.

A great night is in prospect for all mainstream jazz fans. Tickets cost

The 20th Concert Jazz Gig is a Romantic Jazz night out on Wednesday, February 14, at its new home, Thame Snooker Club, St Andrews Court, Wellington Street, Thame; Jazz on Cue ? with Balls!

Remember Tubbs! – The SIMON SPILLETT Quartet.
The Quartet will be playing a “Tribute To Tubby Hayes” programme, including many of Tubby’s own compositions. This will also include music written by Tubby which was never recorded on commercially issued albums – something of a coup!

Featuring :-
Simon Spillett – Tenor Sax
John Critchinson – Piano
Alec Dankworth – Bass
Spike Wells – Drums

Reviewing Simon’s quartet for The Evening Standard, Jack Massarik observed that “though born in 1974, a year after Hayes death at 38, Spillett has absorbed the master’s saxophone style to an uncanny degree” and encountering the quartet and “hearing them play Tubby Hayes originals like Off The Wagon and Song For A Sad Lady was like time-travelling back to the future” as Simon “produced a whole compendium of high-precision Hayesian licks”.

Simon Spillett – Musician, Tutor, Composer and Jazz Writer, has been described as “a fiery saxophonist in the mould of the late Tubby Hayes”, and it is Hayes who his work is most often said to recall, observers noting that Simon shares a fondness for fast tempos and sheer desire to create exciting no holds barred jazz. Indeed, Simon’s quartet pays tribute to Tubby’s genius at its club and concert performances, reprising some of Hayes own compositions, those associated with him and originals written by Simon dedicated to the spirit of the late great saxophonist. Tubby remains Simon’s favourite jazz musician but he also loves and admires the work of many other saxophonists, including John Coltrane, Evan Parker, Stan Getz, Ben Webster, Dick Morrissey, Don Byas, Peter King, Stan Robinson, Branford Marsalis, Danny Moss, Sonny Rollins, Paul Gonsalves, Wayne Shorter, Alan Skidmore, Hank Mobley, Johnny Griffin, Zoot Sims, Joe Henderson, Bobby Wellins, Dexter Gordon, Al Cohn, Ronnie Scott, Junior Cook, Stanley Turrentine and Bob Berg.

More info on: www.jazzeddie.f2s.com ? download a Poster for your Office, Shop, Car or Home Window

Ideal concert jazz no smoking, no babble, just good clean straight ahead blowing session for Music Aficionados.

Tickets

THE Community/Social Working group of the 21st Century Thame Partnership is to launch regular, weekly sessions for young people at The Social in Thame.
Following a very successful pilot session last month, that included live music from local, young bands, the official lauch will take place next Tuesday, January 30, from 6.30pm ? 9.30pm. This first session will be a band night with the following bands performing:

Proliem
Rob Lowen (formerly with the Thunder Lemons)
The Young?s Plan

If any other bands would like a slot, they are invited to contact Michele Pethers by e-mail: info@crashrecords.co.uk.

Entrance will be

PRESENTED BY THAME CHRISTIAN VIEWPOINT
Photo courtesy of: http://www.aogusma.org
IN 2005, Rob & Jo became the first married couple to achieve the ultimate adventurers’ ambition when they climbed the ‘Seven Summits’ (the highest mountains on all Seven Continents) and skied to both the North and South Poles together.
What makes their story even more remarkable is that they achieved all this while Rob was in remission from his second bout of cancer.
You can come and meet them when they will be in Thame showing slides, pictures and some film, as well as recounting some of their exploits.

VENUE: St.Mary’s Church, Thame.
DATE: Friday, 2nd February
TIME: 7.30 – 8.00pm Exhibition
( Wine will be served)
8.00pm Presentation
(with interval for Dessert)
TICKETS:

TICKETS for the preview screening of Charlotte?s Web, featuring the voices of Julia Roberts, John Cleese, Robert Redford and others, are now on sale at just

FOLK fans can revel in the delights of local folk band, Clipperdown, who will be performing at The Players Theatre in Nelson Street, Thame, on Sunday 21st January at 7.45pm.
This popular and highly respected Aylesbury based group has a distinctive style and play a wide range of music for the purist and occasional folk fan alike.
Members of the group are Rod Puddefoot, singer, harmonica and songwriter, Terry Cartmell, guitar, concertina and harmonica and Jonathon Tinn on the fiddle.
Rod has written many songs about the local area and will be sure to include ?Thame Fair? and ?The Inns of Aylesbury? (which includes 48 local hostelries, no doubt personally checked by the group).
Tickets cost

LAST minute gig booking at the social in Thame today, Thursday, January 18, so come on down and witness the birth of a great local singer songwriter, Tim Matthews.
Tim will open the night with an accoustic set and then after a short break will break into a full band to rock the venue with the Tim Matthews band.
Only

CRENDON Chamber Orchestra’s next concert will be an opportunity to hear one of the greatest English string pieces.
The programme, on Saturday, February 3, at St Mary’s Church, Thame, 8pm, includes one of the best loved works for string orchestra, the Introduction and Allegro by Edward Elgar – this year marks 150 years since his birth. A further highlight of the evening will be the String Symphony No 12 by the child prodigy, Felix Mendelssohn, written when he was only 14 years old and drawing heavily on the music of Bach.

Other works in our programme include:

* Sibelius ~ Suite Champetre
* Walton ~ 2 pieces from Henry V (written for the
film)
* Grieg ~ The Death of Ase & Anitra’s Dance from Peer
Gynt Suite

Tickets

THAME artist, Alan Kidd, is currently showing some of his landscape work at the Obsidian Art Galler, in Aylesbury.
The exhibition, which includes the work of 30 artists, is called: Views of Buckinghamshire and the Chilterns, and runs until February 11.

The Obsidian Art is at Layby Farm, Stoke Mandeville, HP22 5XJ