Festival time is here! There are probably more gigs happening in the next week than in the other 51 of the year, and this year the choice is even greater due to the overlapping of the Mostly Jazz, Funk & Soul Festival and the Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival.
So, to Mostly in the lovely little Moseley Park. Although there are jazz inflected performers all through the three-day festival, with the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble tomorrow a particular attraction, Sunday is really jazz day.
On the main stage the completely marvellous Snarky Puppy, from the US, has to be my pick of the whole affair.
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The band started out at a Texan jazz college but, under the tireless leadership of electric bassist and composer Michael League, has developed into one of the most exciting live acts around.
Also on the Mostly main stage on Sunday are Gogo Penguin, a piano trio from Manchester. They bring an eclectic mix of influences, from Shostakovich to Massive Attack, to their equally hip contemporary jazz.
And all that should get you into full party mood for Mostly’s headline act on Sunday, the brilliant Chic.
Meanwhile, on the Jazzlines stage on Sunday the line-up includes trombonist Richard Foote’s Young Pilgrims.
Birmingham Conservatoire jazz student Anthony Marsden performs a repertoire that includes jazz classics and his own excellent original compositions.
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For more on all these artists and how to book tickets, go to
* The Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival starts tomorrow.
The customary Star City Swing Session tomorrow features festival patron Digby Fairweather on trumpet with Mark Nightingale on trombone, Alan Barnes on saxophone, Brian Dee on piano and Len Skeat on bass.
Meanwhile, over at The Old Joint Stock, Birmingham Jazz’s contribution to the festival is a performance by saxophonist Gilad Atzmon and his Orient House Ensemble. This one is £12 (£10 for members) and well worth every penny.
Saturday offers King Pleasure & The Biscuit Boys, Dix Honeybear Watson, The Great Birmingham Trombone Company and Sheep Got Waxed (they like strange band names in Lithuania).
On Sunday you can hear the Fat Chops Big Band with saxophonist Greg Abate at lunchtime, and spend the rest of the day dipping into The Grey Goose Blues Band, The Good Lovelies from Canada, and The Sambuca Diaries.
The Tim Kliphuis Trio, from Holland, are all over the city on Monday, while local poets Apples And Snakes are bringing some spoken word to the party.
Don’t miss
Tuesday features a special benefit concert for Birmingham saxophonist Mike Burney, currently recovering from cancer, with the Roy Wood Band, the Steve Gibbons Band and King Pleasure all taking part. And on Wednesday the big event is the 2013 British Jazz Awards.
* See facing page for more on the jazz festival.