It was a dark and stormy night…

Meanwhile, somewhere in Kansas, a young boy was growing up. Which did not, to any material degree, affect last week’s B Team Jam Session at all. (see Footnote)

As all those who fancied themselves indispensable to the entertainment of the great unwashed laboured up the highway to far-off Halls Gap, the rump presented themselves to the blistering judgements of the Gold Street Boudoir di Bossa . An afternoon of fine ballad mangling ensued. Obviously a quieter affair, with the likes of Mssrs Chaos, Haircut, the Divine Miss S and the Gentleman hisself all up the Gap.

Actually, some of the music was rather good

A dark and stormy night at the Royal Standard

It was raining so hard when we got there, that one would doubt the band turning up, let alone anyone else – but turn up they did, and the few hardy souls who braved the weather got to hear La Myskova at her best – another night of latin and swing, delivered with panache, with yet another different line up.

A Fete Worse Than Death

Ah, the St Pete’s Box Hill Church Fete, for the fourth year running (or in the Captain’s case, the fifth). It wasn’t bucketing down when we got there, it was bucketing horizontally. It was cold, it was wet, we was miserable. A surprisingly large crowd turned up anyway.

Discretion being the better part of valour, we ditched the outside venue, and set up along side the book fair in the Church. Great acoustics, and a great singer (Joys) aided our cause – certainly seemed to go down well, and the old boys taking the money for the book fair said they did heaps better than last year.

The Jam Session last week – got it wrong again…

As I was saying only last Friday, “And next week? Probably no one will turn up. Unless you do.. ” How wrong can you be! At least 33 musicians must have heeded the call, two of them, possibly, as a direct result of reading the newsletter and realising that attending a jam was marginally less painful. To put it in perspective, this is now the second busiest Jam session we have recorded since 2008 (the busiest was 35 musos for the Captain’s birthday bash).

The early warning signs were there (4 saxophones with -ists attached by 4.30) and by about 5.30 we were out of control… But what a great afternoon it turned out to be.

What’s On: Friday Night Live at the Royal Standard

Annie Smith was so good that the Captain Chaos Quartet attracted another standing room only crowd – ably supported by Michael (drums), Ivan (bass), the Captain and meself. At the end of the night a lot of peeps came up to say how much they enjoyed it all (alcohol is a wonderful thing) followed by the landlord Frank cutting short the four week trial period.

What’s On: Saturday at some ungodly hour of the morning

Ungodly hour indeed. Actually, God may well be there, as we are backing up from Friday night for a 10.00am start at the Annual St Peter’s Anglican Church Fete, with the Captain Chaos Quartet supporting Joys Njambi in her first jazz gig. God knows what the locals will make of that, as he tends to know everything, does he not?

From Stan

Hi jazz fans

Halfway through October and I still haven’t told you about my gigs for this month! Been so busy. The “Breakout” monthly gig at Farouk’s Olive (711 High St Thornbury) will be on October 22 at the usual time of 5 to 7pm. Only $5 to get in and fine drinks at the bar. Great modern jazz too.

Hope to see you there.
Stan van Hooft
0437 232 506

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RAB Zimmerman Awarded MVP in Scandi Grand Final

Rock on! Legendary singer-songwriter Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday, October 13.

Dylan, 75, won “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition,” the Swedish Academy, which chooses the recipient, said in a press release. A short list of nominees was not revealed.

The 12-time Grammy winner is the first American to win the prize in over two decades. Novelist Toni Morrison was recognized for her work in 1993.

Jam Session goes off at the Colliwobble Chop House and Basement di Bossa

It is always best not to think, but if you did, you might wonder why we can never assume that many people, some of them musicians, some delusional, most both, and the rest in search of social lubricant and light but essentially malicious gossip, will turn up on any given Sunday.

The Vicar’s sermon must have run to a few extra pages at Matins, because we started with very few in the Gossip Shop, and it stayed that way for quite a while. Then, as can happen, they started pouring through the door, all deserving of extra playing time and getting it – until we could, as is now habitual, entice Glen (Il Duce to those in the know) from behind the bar to tell us to turn it down. In anglo saxon.

So . . .