STEELY JAZZ Chris Ingham Quintet
Songs of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen
CHRIS INGHAM piano/voice/guitar
HARRY GREENE sax/guitar
PAUL HIGGS trumpet/piano/melodica
GEOFF GASCOYNE double bass
GEORGE DOUBLE drums/voice
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The songs of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, aka Steely Dan, stood alone in 1970s rock; cryptic, pungent lyrics and sophisticated, detailed music deeply influenced by, in Becker and Fagen’s own words, “the best jazz players of the ‘50s and ‘60s”.
Steely Jazz re-examines the Dan canon, illuminating the singular melodies, rich harmonies and exploring the small jazz group possibilities of an incomparably opulent songbook.
Featuring well-known pieces (“Rikki Don’t Lose That Number”, “Josie”), alongside classic tracks and deep cuts from the masterpiece albums Aja, Gaucho, Countdown To Ecstasy, Katy Lied et al, Steely Jazz is a fresh, exciting celebration of two giants of 20th Century popular music.
The Chris Ingham Quintet’s CD Walter, Donald is released Spring 2025.
CHRIS INGHAM QUINTET
Chris Ingham piano/vocal/guitar
Rated by The London Evening Standard as “one of Britain’s best singer-pianists’, Chris has performed over 250 festival and club performances of his repertoire shows and has released four acclaimed CDs: Hoagy, Dudley, Stan and Hoagy II. He is musical director of film song quintet Jazz at the Movies, classic modern jazz sextet Rebop and the jazz-meets-blues quartet Blues & Greene, co-led with Harry Greene. Chris is also a record producer (Ruthie Henshall, Joanna Eden), author (Rough Guides to The Beatles and Frank Sinatra) and TV composer (Wartime Crime, How The Beatles Changed The World). Based in East Anglia, he curates jazz clubs in Diss (The Corn Hall) and Bury St Edmunds (Hunter Club).
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Harry Greene saxophone/guitar
Multi-instrumentalist Harry Greene has performed alongside Cory Wong, Mica Paris, PBUG, Ricky Wilson, Prince’s side-woman Marva King and was part of the Royal Albert Hall “Ronnie Scott’s at 60” gala. He is co-leader (with singer Ashton Jones) and musical director of Funk Soul Orchestral who have performed sold-out shows at Ronnie Scott’s and venues throughout the UK. As a composer, he has contributed to a host of prime time TV shows. With Chris Ingham Harry co-leads the jazz-meets-blues quartet Blues & Greene.
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Paul Higgs trumpet/piano
Arranger and trumpeter for NYJO for many years, Paul has worked as a musical director at the RSC and National Theatre, as a TV and film composer and a record engineer and producer. One of the UK's most resourceful and expressive jazz trumpeters, Paul has worked with Nancy Wilson, Shorty Rogers and John Dankworth, runs his own successful repertoire shows (A Brief History of Jazz, Shades of Miles) and has released two CDs featuring his unique jazz/classical crossover group Pavane featuring his own evocative compositions.
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Geoff Gascoyne double bass
An arranger, composer, bassist and producer of renown, in a 35-year career Geoff has worked with Michel Legrand, Van Morrison, Georgie Fame, Sir Willard White, US3, Sting, Charlie Watts, Benny Golson, Bill Bruford, Jacqui Dankworth, John Martyn, Dianne Reeves, Guy Barker, Claire Martin, Eartha Kitt and he played a major part in the rise of Jamie Cullum with whom he worked exclusively from 2000 to 2007. He has been central to the development of two highly successful music apps Session Band 1, 2 & 3 and Quartet 1, 2, 3 and 4.
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George Double drums/vocal
George drums with Art Themen’s Organ Trio, John Etheridge’s Blue Spirits and many of Chris Ingham’s projects including Rebop and Jazz at the Movies. He has worked with Dame Shirley Bassey, Grammy Award Winner Jack Jones, Marc Almond, Mica Paris, Ruthie Henshall, Paul Jones and Kym Mazelle and has played on West End shows Wicked, Guys and Dolls, Avenue Q, Sinatra and Anything Goes. A respected published drum educator, notably for Trinity College, London, George also curates East Anglian jazz clubs in Hadleigh, Southwold and Frinton.