Jazz: Jon Lloyd Quartet

Since their previous visit in Feb 2023 the Jon Lloyd Quartet have released their album Earth Songs, which has been met with huge critical acclaim and has achieved close to a million worldwide track streams.

“The interplay between the quartet members is magical, instinctive… creating music of often startling beauty.” – Peter Vacher, Jazzwise magazine, 2024, **** album review

“A set which channels deep feeling with considerable power … a mood of patient exploration as beguiling as it is beautiful.” – Jon Turney, London Jazz News, 2024

Saxophonist Jon Lloyd arrived on the UK free jazz scene in the early 1990s and rose to prominence with recordings on Leo records and HatHut, and with many UK and European concerts with his quartet comprising John Law, Paul Rogers and Mark Sanders. Highlights during this period included Berlin’s FMP Festival, several Arts Council tours and the 1993 Contemporary Music Network tour with the Bill Frisell Band. Over the years Jon has embraced contemporary composition, abstract improv and jazz, but in the last decade has developed his music towards the European Jazz aesthetic, notably recording “Vanishing Points” in 2013 with Asaf Sirkis, Tom Farmer, John Law and Rob Palmer.

John Law is one of the outstanding pianists in the UK. His solo, duo, trio and quartet projects have played throughout the UK and Europe for 30 years, and has played with many of the greats of UK jazz: Asaf Sirkis, Yuri Goloubev, Andy Sheppard, Tim Garland, Paul Dunmall. His most recent projects include “Congregation” with Ashley John Long and James Mainwaring, “Re-Creations” with Sam Crockatt and “Renaissance” with Jon Lloyd and Patrick Dunn. John and Jon Lloyd have enjoyed a 30 year musical relationship, collaborating on many varied projects.

It’s first time at the club for bassist Nick Pini. Nick has an incredible CV but has been sucked in to the strange jazz vortex of Frome, so is living relatively nearby. He has worked with Laura Marling, Ethan Johns, Nick Mulvey, Tom Jones, Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Gilbert O’Sullivan, Seth Lakeman, Ramin Karimloo and Will Butterworth whilst keeping a keen hand in the UK’s rich and diverse jazz scene. He has also recently moved into roles as MD and in string arranging and production.

Alex Goodyear is a rising star of the drums and is rapidly gaining national and international recognition, having toured Europe and Israel in late 2022. His dynamic performances have made him a favourite at many UK jazz venues.