Albums
Something's Coming
Released:1993 Acid Jazz Records (JAZID LP 92)
Song List:
1. September Rains
2. Salute to Elegua
3. The Flintstones
4. Dreamstate
5. Greetings From Southend-on-Sea
6. 42nd and Broadway
7. Interlude In Son
8. Dilo Como Yo
9. Anarchy In The U.K.
10. Somethings Coming/ Chant To Aggayu
11. Somewhere/Tonight
Musicians:
Snowboy – Congas & various percussion
Dave Pattman – Bongos and Iya
Davide Giovannini – Drums, Timbales, Itotele, vocal
Maurizio Ravalico – Okonkolo and vocal
Andres Lafone – Bass
Chris Kibble – Piano
Gary Plumley – Tenor Sax and Flute
Sid Gauld – Trumpet
Joe De Jesus – Trombone
Buy Online:
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Notes:
There is a West Side Story theme throughout this album. This show was the first one I performed in (as Snowboy) as a member of a local Amateur Dramatic and Operatic society The Little Theatre Club in 1978. The music had haunted me through the sentimentality of it being my first show and I finally laid it's ghost to rest with this album. A lot of care went into this album. It's quite a 'mixed bag' but it worked and is, to date, my most successful album. It was released right at the height of the 'Acid Jazz' scene and the publicity for me and for this album was everywhere.
Both inclusions of 'The Flintstones' and 'Anarchy In The UK'. were accepted but mis-understood. I had a Jazz Dance fast Be Bop version of 'The Flintstones' by Clark Terry and thought I'd do, possibly, the first Latin version. It's written around the chord changes to 'I Got Rhythm' - which half of Charlie Parker's songs were - so if it's good enough for 'Bird' it's good enough for us.
With 'Anarchy' I was trying to draw comparisons with, not the Punk spirit of the Sex Pistols, but with the non-compromising anarchic Jazz Dance scene that I belong to, where we dance to John Coltrane, Chick Corea and Art Blakey. To anyone outside of the scene they would never accept these artists as making 'dance' music. Dancefloor Anarchy. There is a great video to this track by the way.
The huge thunderstorm on 'September Rains' was recorded on my DAT player, holding the microphone out of the bedroom window slightly, and this was the fantastic result!
I talked Chris through the structure of the atmospheric 'Somewhere/Tonight' medley of what I wanted to achieve. Although I live near the Essex seaside resort of Southend-On-Sea I drove to Hastings, Brighton, Pakefield and Clacton to record, separately, the sea, seagulls and amusement arcades and bingo callers and put them together as a collage. I am very proud of the result.
This was the first album with the official live outfit on. We did 89 performances that year. I was not very happy with the sleeve. It was not at all what I wanted. I requested a 'West Side Story' theme but instead it looked like just one of the 'Acid Jazz – Totally Wired' series of compilations.