Jazz review: Mercy, Mercy, Mercy / Elin Larsson Group

Published on Friday 18 December 2009 22:09

THE LOT, EDINBURGH ****

ALONGSIDE his own distinctive music, trumpeter Colin Steele has led a number of "repertory" projects over the years, notably featuring the music of Chet Baker and Miles Davis.

As the name suggests, this new quintet – Mercy, Mercy, Mercy – focuses on the music of brothers Cannonball (Julian) and Nat Adderley (who recorded Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at 'The Club'), and blew a bracing and hugely enjoyable blast of classic hard bop through The Lot.

Steele was joined in the front-line by alto saxophonist Martin Kershaw in the Cannonball role, and both players were in notably inventive mood.

Pianist Steve Hamilton added his own beautifully conceived solos and led an excellent rhythm section with Brian Shiels on bass and Alyn Cosker on drums.

It is a characteristic of many top contemporary jazz players to be comfortable in a broad range of idioms, and bop is something of a bedrock in any case. The opening Fiddler on the Roof and a very fast romp through I'll Remember April allowed them to stretch out in energised fashion, while Nat Adderley's One For Daddy-O was an atmospheric blues.

They held Joe Zawinul's tune which gave Cannonball a popular hit and the band its name until last, and topped out a soulful version with another brief hi-octane romp through Cannonball's Sticks.

The Elin Larsson Group from Sweden made their Scottish debut in the opening set, and while not entirely convincing, did enough to suggest they have potential, and an intriguing front-line in Larsson's tenor saxophone and Kristian Persson's trombone.