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2002 |
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Wed 23 Jan |
Jim Mullen Quartet |
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The Mullen group plays exciting, muscular, straight-ahead jazz, with touches of blues and funk. Jim Mullen is world class and arguably the UK's best jazz guitarist since John McLaughlin. He began his playing career in Scotland but went to London in 1969 and played with Pete Brown (who wrote the lyrics for Cream), Kokomo, Brian Auger and Vinegar Joe (who had Elkie Brooks and Robert Palmer as lead singers). Mullen first came to public attention with the leading jazz-funk group of the 1970s, Morrissey-Mullen Band which recorded 7 LPs in their 15 year existence. After Morrisey-Mullen, Mullen played with anybody who is anybody in the British jazz scene as well as with American stars Gene Harris, Mose Allison, Jimmy Smith, Percy Sledge, Teddy Edwards and Jimmy Witherspoon. Mullen last played Hull in 2000 at a sellout Hulljazz gig.
For his quartet he uses some of the best players around:
Gareth Williams, who would run Keith Jarrett close for technique and invention; Gary Husband who swings like the clappers (and also happens to be a top flight keyboard player, spending several years with UK funksters Level 42); and Hutton, one of the UK's top bassists.
It doesn't get much better than this.