[Dixielandjazz] Tommy McQuater + Swing 2008

[ROBERT R. CALDER]

I saw too little of Tommy, mentioned by Ken Mathieson following up my reference to jazz in Scotland.  I thought I'd mentioned Swing 2008,  which also appears without guitarists as twenty-five percent of Ken's Octet. Gerry Forde was I think the bassist in Swing 84 -- I have the tape -- and there was a trumpeter in those days, Dave aptly surnamed Strutt.
Tommy played as part of a Benny Carter big band assembled for a Glasgow Jazz Festival long ago.  Benny was a little late coming back on, and as the trumpet section attended to various plumbing details Tommy raised the mouthpiece to his lips,  and blew a raspberry fanfare, immediately cringing into a fit of the giggles since he had as it happened timed this perfectly and Benny walked on completely unaware of this.  
Forrie Cairns is amazing. There was a BBC broadcast long ago of him in quartet with his brother John playing piano.  I heard him not quite so long ago in a band playing the music of the great Scottish clarinetist Sandy Brown, Forrie is more a Bechet man, Sandy was a Doddsian, no imitation involved, and most of the other musicians were sometime Sandy sidemen (and I fear none of them with us any longer).  
And once upon a time John Bunch arrived and had a brief run-through with a bassist and a drummer and the interplay in their set was incredible.  Telepathy is also a local property. 

       
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