Ryan Quigley Big Band, Old Fruitmarket

Folk & Jazz critic

Monday 2 July 2012

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Rob Adams

Ryan Quigley is in danger of making the jazz festival's Saturday evening mainstage slot his own. Between his popularly received tributes to his hero Maynard Ferguson, the Tamla Motown sound and this time around a return to his fascination for the Beatles, the "homeboy" trumpeter has laid claim to a position in the programme that might historically be presumed to be the preserve of international guests.

Saturday's concert may also have broadened the festival's audience, bringing in people who might not normally attend jazz events, and if so, the enthusiastic response suggests good news all round.The last-minute organisation that went into staging this concert meant most of the singers relied on lyric sheets and consequently over-embellished or under-delivered, although Jon Fratelli did a fine job in staying close to the original vocal lines and tone of presentation on Strawberry Fields Forever and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.Quigley's a cappella trumpet overture of Hey Jude was a particularly classy moment and alto saxophonist Laura Macdonald's soulful improvisation in keeping with William Young's reading of In My Life drew justified loud approval.Quigley is a talented arranger and as a bandleader especially effective when he gives his benign hooligan instincts a longish rein. His rowdy setting of Ticket to Ride, with trombonist Nichol Thompson capturing the mood perfectly in his solo, and the superbly organised chaos that reigned during Tomorrow Never Knows were worthy of any jazz festival anywhere.

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Ryan Quigley Big Band, Old Fruitmarket

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