Sax master achieves milestone in his brilliant career.
REVIEW: Paul Booth – 'Travel Sketches'
Jazz Journal writes, “Overall, this is a classy, mature set of great distinction.”
For the full review, please click on the image, above.
Paul Booth Quartet Pitch Poignant Musical Postcards at Brighton's Verdict
Jazzwise’s Eddie Myer writes, “Booth is a confident and welcoming host with an easy line in relaxed banter that belies the seriousness of the musical intent.”
For the full review, please click on the image, above.
Booth Scores Another Rave Review!
Jazz Views’ Eddie Myer writes, “The band are superbly balanced, and the performances, captured live in the studio often in first take, are marvellously controlled and executed.”
For the full review, please click on the image above.
PAUL BOOTH - Travel Sketches
Ubuntu - UBU0034
Paul Booth - tenor sax; Steve Hamilton - piano; Dave Whitford - bass; Andrew Bain - drums
Paul Booth has spent a great deal of the last 20 years travelling with his saxophone in a dizzying range of high-end musical contexts. His many employers have been drawn for the A-list ranks of soul and rock performers, and from what you might call the contemporary edge of the jazz mainstream - Geoffrey Keezer, Ingrid Jensen, Eddie Henderson, Michael Janisch. This album is presented as a travelogue: a series of musical postcards from places that have left an abiding impression. Booth’s other projects have tended towards the ambitious - both Patchwork Project and Bansangu Orchestra have featured an extensive cast and expansive musical palette - but this project is restricted to a simple acoustic quartet format, with Booth on tenor throughout. Steve Hamilton’s precise, warmly rhapsodic piano sets the tone: his intro to the title track is a lesson in tasteful restraint, and Booth uses him to set up the mood for several of the other selections - ‘Byron Bay’ is quietly yearning, ‘Seattle Fall’ has a pastoral, major-key lightness, the accessible harmony of ‘Red Rocks’ carries its melodic sophistication easily. Andrew Bain’s own projects burn with an Elvin Jones inspired intensity, but here he’s all tasteful, supportive restraint. Only the modal hustle of ‘Medina Scuffle’ hints at the Coltrane-ish as the band up the stakes after Dave Whitford’s satisfying, typically well-conceived introductory statement - it’s a moment of abandon in an otherwise tightly controlled environment. Booth’s tone is clear and centred, his execution crisp and logical and his articulation flawless as you’d expect from such a seasoned, in-demand pro.The band are superbly balanced, and the performances, captured live in the studio often in first take, are marvellously controlled and executed: yet alongside the obvious craftsmanship there’s a direct sincerity of expression and the overall effect is very intimate. Busy session musicians’ own outings can sometimes seem to deliver more in the way of performance than vision, but Booth and co have created a very personal statement that really gives the impression of a collection of letters home, full of the sincerity of feeling born of what the Brazilians call saudade. The closing version of Peter Gabriel’s “Don’t Give Up” encapsulates the appeal of this nicely judged creation.
Reviewed by Eddie Myer
REVIEW: Paul Booth – 'Travel Sketches'
LJN’s Peter Jones writes, “There is a calm, muscular authority in the playing of tenor saxophonist Paul Booth that makes it obvious why he is the reedsman of choice for the likes of Steve Winwood, Steely Dan and Rod Stewart.”
For the full review, please click on the image, above.
Paul Booth Quartet (Travel Sketches album launch) at Pizza Express
LJN’s Dominic Williams writes, “…the kind of wit and intelligence that is rarer than it should be and means that the album should reward repeated listening.”
For the full review, please click on the image, above.
Marlbank Interviews Paul Booth
Stephen Graham writes, '“Blessed with a warm and powerful tenor sound there is a pastoral aesthetic at work on Travel Sketches…”.
For the full interview, please click on the image, above.
REVIEW: Paul Booth 'Travel Sketches' ★★★★
All About Jazz’s Chris May writes, “It is lyrical and intimate and muscular. Like Getz's music, it is balm for the soul.”
For the full review, please click on the image, above.
Bebop Spoken Here: Ubuntu Music Signs Tenor Sax Titan Paul Booth
Lance Liddle writes, “Paul is one helluva tenor player which is why this new recording is well worth waiting for with baited breath.”
For the full article, please click on the image, above.
Ubuntu Music Signs Tenor Sax Titan Paul Booth
Paul Booth Quartet
Travel Sketches
UBU0034 / CD, Digital & Vinyl Formats
Release Date: 30th August 2019
Paul Booth
Ubuntu Music is delighted to announce the signing of Paul Booth, undoubtedly one of the truly great saxophonists the UK has ever produced. The album, Travel Sketches, features Paul’s quartet and will be released worldwide on 30th August.
From his early acclaim as a prize-winning saxophonist, Paul Booth has continually refined and expanded his talents as a solo artist, composer, arranger and bandleader, whilst establishing an elite reputation as a first-call sideman for major contemporary music artists.
Paul’s ability to blend into any musical surrounding coupled with his talents as a multi-instrumentalist has led to him being regularly chosen to perform with many well-known artists. Paul has toured, performed and recorded around the world with Steve Winwood, Steely Dan, Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, Van Morrison, The Allman Brothers Band, Bonnie Raitt, Chaka Khan, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Rod Stewart, Kylie Minogue, Riverdance, Warren Haynes, Marti Pellow, Derek Trucks, Eddie Henderson, Geoffrey Keezer, Clarence Penn and Ingrid Jensen. He has worked with Incognito, Brand New Heavies, The BBC Big Band, Michael Janisch Quintet and the Ryan Quigley Quintet.
Clockwise, from top left: Paul Booth, Andrew Bain, Steve Hamilton, Dave Whitford.
Paul recently formed a new quartet, featuring the immense talent of Steve Hamilton (keyboards), Dave Whitford (double bass) and Andrew Bain (drums). Paul’s burning desire for Travel Sketches was to return to the essence of his musical roots, as he explains below:
“The story behind this album started a few years back when I decided to form a new quartet with the sole purpose of playing more jazz gigs. I’ve been lucky enough to travel the world over the last 20 years playing all sorts of music with all kinds of amazing artists and shows, but my first love, my true passion and where I feel the most comfortable as a creative musician is jazz in a small group setting. That sound is the root of why I play music now, the inspiration behind why I decided to become a musician in the first place.
“The guys in this quartet are some of my favourite musicians and even more importantly, favourite people. We are friends who make music together and I think you can hear this on the album. There’s an empathy when we play, unspoken directions that lead us to constantly re-interpret the music we are playing. I really wanted my compositions to feel as though they were written by the whole band and somehow, I think we achieved this.
“The tunes were mostly written touring with various artists, although a large portion were written whilst on tour with Steve Winwood, with whom I’ve toured for 13 years. They were inspired by places I visited and had a direct influence on the composition, whether I realised it at the time or not. Quite often these tunes were written whilst trying to find solitude in a bustling theatre and coming across an old piano in a dressing room. Others were inspired by wilderness and beauty.
“The last few albums I have released have been much bigger in sound, utilising strings, big band, vocals and taking influences from music across the globe. For this reason, I felt it was time to scale down and just be a tenor player. There were no overdubs and we recorded the album in a live playing situation with no chance of ‘fixes’. Each tune was recorded twice and for the most part the takes you hear on the album were first takes.”
In terms of joining Ubuntu Music, Paul elaborates, “I met Martin Hummel only recently. Although we knew of one another for a long time and had many mutual connections, our paths never crossed until we made them cross. I immediately loved Martin’s passion for music, life, people and travel. We certainly had a lot to talk about and our evening was cut short by me having to run off to a gig. I was genuinely thrilled at the prospect of finally finding someone with the drive and enthusiasm to help me find a wider audience for my music. Following the meeting, Martin expressed an interest in hearing the results of this album and has been an advocate for the music ever since I sent him the roughs. Ubuntu Music has such a fantastic roster of artists, I am truly thrilled and honoured to be joining the family. Thank you, Martin.”
Martin Hummel, Director of Ubuntu Music, continues: “When you hear the name, Paul Booth, you immediately think of one of the most talented and diverse sax players in the business today. Paul’s credits read like the ‘Who’s Who in Music’. When Paul told me about his vision for his next project, I simply could not wait, knowing it would be brilliant. The way Paul crafted the music, the way he chose to record the music and the end result itself are the hallmark of an exceptionally gifted musician, who also happens to also be an exceptional human being. We welcome Paul and his quartet into the Ubuntu Music Family with open arms and great expectations.”
Left to Right: Paul Booth, Steve Hamilton, Dave Whitford, Andrew Bain.