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Queen's Head
Monmouth

Gigs and Events From The Dusty Past ...

It just wouldn't be fair to only tell you about what is going to be on at the pub without giving you access to some of the great piccys and write-ups we have for previous gigs. So, have a trawl through our Archive and whet your appetite for what is one of the best menus of live music in Wales.

Browse the Archive We are currently working on developing the Archive. This will give everyone a good idea as to what has happened in the Queens in the past

Wednesday 3/04/19 Get The Blessing

“THIS IS TRIP HOP-INFORMED CONTEMPORARY JAZZ-ROCK AT ITS VERY BEST” Rosanne Hanley, Time Out
“SERIOUSLY CREATIVE … WONDERFULLY IRREVERENT” Charles Waring, Mojo Magazine
“THE MOMENTUM OF CREATIVITY IS UNDIPPED” Neil McKim, BBC Music Magazine
“GTB HARNESS ROCK AND JAZZ WITH UNCOMPROMISING POWER” Mike Flynn, Time Out

Formed by bassist Jim Barr and drummer Clive Deamer (rhythm section of seminal act Portishead and tour drummer for Radiohead) alongside Jake McMurchie (on sax and electronics) and Pete Judge (trumpet and electronics) the Bristol-based four-piece have gained truly international repute as a new force in music.
Blending their mutant jazz sensibilities with spacey electronics and post rock atmospheres their plaudits continue. Once described as “total outsiders” and “the punk entry” when they won the BBC Jazz Award for Best Album they’ve not compromised their mission but rather pulled the world towards their way of thinking.
“…they may well be the most original and exciting band on the British scene at the moment.” Jazzwise Magazine
The band are currently touring to promote "Bristopia", an album that pays tribute to its origins and hometown by careering around the city's one-way system (not always in the correct direction of travel), darting into some of its hidden alleyways and lesser-known night-time hot-spots, and occasionally just stopping to take in the dizzying vistas of sprawling buildings and distant hilltops.

For tonight's gig, Jake McMurchie (saxophone), Pete Judge (trumpet) and Jim Barr (bass) will be joined by brilliant young drummer Matt Brown.

Checkout:
Website: www.gettheblessing.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/gettheblessing
Twitter - twitter.com/gettheblessing
Instagram - www.instagram.com/gettheblessing
This gig is only possible by very kind patronage, in memory of ALICE JOHNSON.
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Wednesday 13/03/19 Cinnabar featuring Pat Thomas

***** Nu-music Special *****

With great pleasure we welcome the internationally renowned free jazz pianist Pat Thomas with a group of fellow experimental musicians who were involved in the birth of the British Free Jazz music scene and who continue to enthusiastically explore the boundaries of the music they love.

(photo by siobhan-bradshaw)
Pat Thomas ( piano and electronica) The 2014 winner of the UK prestigious Paul Hamlyn Composers award Pat Thomas started playing at the age of 8 and studied classical music and played reggae. Pat is one of the true ground-breakers of improvised electro-acoustic music and has played with luminaries such as Evan Parker, Derek Bailey, Tony Oxley, Phil Minton, John Russell, Lol Coxhill, Roger Turner and the rest of the world!
Aaron Hawkins ( alto and soprano saxophones) a member of the Bristol Freetone Collective. Played with bands and fellow artists including Fuzz Against Junk The Pat Thomas Quintet, Dominic Lash, Damo Suzuki, Evan Parker, Steve Noble, as well as being part of the The Albert Ayler Project, The Phil Gibb's Quartet and more.
Geoff Hawkins ( tenor saxophone) was taught by the legendary Lee Konitz. Geoff similarly has a biography that reads like a who's who. He's played with Evan Parker, Eddie Prevost Band, Mike Cooper, G T Moore, Paul Lytton ( Instant Composers Pool ), Eugene Chadborne, The Albert Ayler Project, Jon Edwards, Pete McPhail, Kenny Washington and many many more.
Paul Anstey ( bass guitar ) has toured Europe with Spirit Level alongside Charlie Mingus Trumpet player, Jack Walrath. Regular radio broadcasts for Jazz in Britain and Jazz Today and works with Tony Orrell’s Klaunstance and Thinko Jazz, Pete Rosser Trio and John Burgess Trio.Paul has been a sideman with Andy Sheppard, Paul Dunmall, Alan Skidmore, Barbara Thompson, Elton Dean, Harry Beckett, Keith Tippet, Henry Lowther
Roger Turner ( drums ) who main band has been Red Square with Jon Seagroatt and Ian Staples ( 1974-2014 ). He's been part of the Oxford Improvisers and had various projects with Pat Thomas, Geoff Hawkins, Dom Lash, Pete Macphail, Alexander Hawkins, Otto Fischer and Tony Bevan. From 2015 onwards he's been with the Bristol Free Sound Collective

Supported by The Plancktone Club

Sunday 20/01/19 PALM TREE ANTICS

A 5 piece Reggae n' Soul Band from Newport.Great energy, great music!!!

Sunday 13/01/19 THE HARRISONS

An excellent Bristol rocking country blues band with trombone, gorgeous slide guitar and vocals playing originals and covers.

Wednesday 16/01/19 DLQ

***** Nu-music Special *****

The ever creative Dominic Lash Quartet presenting their latest album ‘Extremophile’
Contrabassist Dominic Lash is one of the leading figures on the UK/European new music scene. Since emerging from the Oxford Improvisers collective, Lash’s musical career has seen him evolve into one of the UK’s most prolific and acclaimed musicians, having performed with legendary names such as Evan Parker, Tony Conrad and Tony Buck (the Necks).

"Lash is a bassist and bandleader of distinction, and this album from his Anglo-Spanish quartet is one of his most impressive projects to date." Stewart Smith (The Quietus)
"Extremophile is an adventurous album that manages to walk the line between improvisation and composition, producing an album with just enough form for your ear to lock onto and just enough freedom to keep your ears and your mind interested." David Menestres (Free Jazz Collective)
Javier Carmona · drums and percussion
Dominic Lash · contrabass
Ricardo Tejero · alto saxophone and clarinet
Alex Ward · electric guitar and clarinet
Supported by The Plancktone Club

Saturday 22/12/18 John-Paul Gard Christmas Cookbook

For the fifth year running the Queen's hosts the evening where musicians say "another year over let's party!". This year we're filling things out a bit and spreading the joy - John-Paul "the most strutful groove in funkdom" plays his trio set for the first half and then is joined by several friends to raise the roof and extra level. If you've been here before you don't need telling, and if you haven't; why not?

Wednesday 12/12/18 TrioFolio

***** Nu-music Special *****

Trio Folio formed in 2018 setting out to combine a modern jazz instrumentation with a tactile and open approach to improvisation. Father and son rhythm section Paul and Saul Scott have nurtured a playing style that pays homage to the classic modern era from Coltrane and beyond, while bass clarinettist Chris Cundy explores self developed playing techniques at the margins of experimental and popular music. The trio is defined by a symbiotic nature, crossing lines between the lyrical and the spontaneous.

Between them they have collaborated and performed with artists as diverse as The Blind Boys of Alabama, Fatoumata Diawara, Moby, Denys Baptiste, and Robert Mitchell among many others. And individually have played to audiences across Europe and North America. Chris Cundy has made guest TV appearances on Later with Jools Holland and Top of the Pops and is regularly played on BBC 6 Music, Radio 3 and Radio 4.

CHRIS CUNDY bass clarinet, PAUL K SCOTT double bass, SAUL SCOTT drums

Music in Monmouth

Sunday 9/12/18 EIRA/Snow - its an ill woodwind that blows no good

***** World Jazz *****

EIRA/SNOW; is a union between Caractacus Downes and Lyndon Owen, two multi-instrumentalists who combine influences as diverse as the music of the Celts to that of the Middle East, Spain to the lands of eastern Europe; a true fusion from two players who have a long standing and close understanding.
This enthralling and eclectic musical sound is conveyed by both the use of conventional instruments, saxophones, clarinets and double bass, and less familiar instruments such as Gaita Gallega, Armenian Douduk, Turkish Mey and Zurnah, Hungarian Tarogato, electronic tanpura and range of percussion.

An improvised gig one snowy winter’s evening at this very place led to the official forming of the duo, who are no strangers to events such as Rich Mix, Latitude Festival and Brecon Jazz Festivals, but often found in acoustic venues such as Churches, Castles and Sacred Places.

Wednesday 5/12/18 Nuada Quartet

Local musicians, Nuada Quartet (formerly Big Sky Quartet) will perform their unique blend of world-tinged jazz and launch their new album ‘Cabin Tales’. Locally renowned musician ,Colin Tully (sax player with John Martyn & composer of music for Gregory's girl) brings his new band ,The Nuada Quartet, to the Queens Head to launch their new cd.

Wednesday 14/11/18 7Steps - Miles Davis contemporary interpretations

***** Jazz Special *****

Welsh trumpeter Tomos Williams joins forces with young tenor saxophonist Adam Nolan from Dublin in a Welsh/Irish Quintet to play the music of jazz legend Miles Davis. Miles was one of the towering figures of 20th Century music and '7Steps' will present his music with vigour and passion.The band will play some of the classics associated with the great trumpeter: Bye Bye Blackbird, Joshua, All Blues but also feature some of the less well known songs from Miles' vast catalogue such as Teo and Orbits.

7Steps have toured Ireland twice; in April 2013 and November 2016, and also featured at the Aberjazz Festival, in Fishguard in 2015.

Tomos Williams is a leading and unique voice on the Welsh jazz scene. Heavily indebted and influenced by Miles' music ,7Steps is a natural project for Tomos to front. He also leads the jazz/folk sextet, Burum, (who have played in the US, France and India) as well as recently leading the groundbreaking Indo-Welsh fusion band 'Khamira', (who have played in South Korea, India and Wales).
Adam Nolan is a recent graduate of the renowned jazz course at Dublin City University and is rapidly establishing himself as one of the brightest lights on the Irish jazz scene, while the rhythm section of Dave Jones – piano, Aidan Thorne – bass and Mark O'Connor drums are well known faces on the Welsh jazz scene and are highly in-demand musicians.

In Nolan, Williams has found an able sparring partner and they're playing often reached mesmerising heights, whether either was soloing or they were playing in unison or trading phrases....It was a hugely rewarding gig and one that left listeners with no option but to get home to dig out the originals.” - Jackie Hayden,The Wexford Echo

Tomos Williams – trumpet, Adam Nolan – tenor sax, Dave Jones – piano, Aidan Thorne – bass, Mark O'Connor – drums
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Wednesday 24/10/18 Coltrane Dedication

***** Jazz Special *****

Up for another evening of extempory, full-on improvisation from the power quintet that takes the later tunes of Mr John Coltrane and continues on the journey that starts in many places and never finishes; meeting the intricacies of life on the way! A band that sits on the shoulders of one of THE great musicians of the 20th century, a composer of outstanding strength in his simplicity, and a true master of his instrument - always searching, never content, and a man on a mission to make the world a better place.

>
Coltrane Dedication has followed the mission with an impressive collective of like minded players - on this occasion we have Caractacus Downes and Lyndon Owen (Saxes), Ashley John Long (Bass), Ian Poole (Drums), Dave Jones (Piano).
Supported by Music in Monmouth and SFM

Wednesday 12/09/18 The 'LSD' - Lash/Sanders/Dunmall

***** Improvised Music Special *****

A special September treat to get the Autumn season underway. Very pleased to be bringing together three of the UK's highly respected improvisers into the creative melting pot to see what's cooking. We have ....

BLOW-> Paul Dunmall (Tenor Sax and assorted Bagpipes) As described by freejazz_co_uk "Dunmall sounds at times like Sonny Rollins at others like Evan Parker, but arguably surpasses both in the precision and succinctness of expression ... his work is the very opposite of indulgent - this is music of the utmost seriousness and importance."

HIT -> Mark Sanders (Drums and Percussion) Mark has been one of the most active percussionists on England's jazz scene, "jazz" encompassing everything from free improv to Jah Wobble's dub excursions. He is gifted with a superior technique paired by acute listening abilities and its little wonder he is one of the most sort after improvising drummers in the UK.

PLUCK-> Dominic Lash (Double Bass) "following in an illustrious lineage from Barry Guy through Simon Fell ... breathtaking" John Sharpe, All About Jazz. "extraordinarily sensitive... Every pluck or bowing seemed to embody grace and purpose." Brian Olewnick, Just Outside

Supported by Music in Monmouth and the Plancktone Club

Wednesday 1/08/18 Coltrane Dedication

***** Jazz Special *****

>
Coltrane Dedication has followed the mission with an impressive collective of like minded players - on this occasion we have Caractacus Downes and Lyndon Owen (Saxes), Dominic Lash (Bass), Ian Poole (Drums), Mark Sambell (Piano). Supported by Music in Monmouth

Wednesday 18/7/18 Hiby-Bardon-Hession

***** Creative Nu-Music Special *****

Having played an astonishingly powerful gig at the Queens in 2016 the Hiby-Bardon-Hession trio return to bring an intense evening of extemporised collective soundscapes.
The combined but restrained focus of their last performance was akin to the darkening and impending thrill of a brewing thunderstorm never quite breaking but bound to at any minute. A delight for the audible senses spilling out to the cliches of hair raising on the arms and neck and of course the unbelievable, near telepathic, understanding of the players drawing you in like a rip-tide on a dark night.

A world class trio from three players with huge international reputations combining Wuppertal and Leeds in a common European understanding.
Hans Peter Hiby - tenor/alto saxophones, Michael Bardon - double bass, Paul Hession - drums
Supported by Music in Monmouth and the Plancktone Club

Wednesday 11/07/18 Burum

***** Celtic Jazz/Folk Special *****

Burum includes some of Wales's most creative jazz and folk musicians: mixing these ingredients together creates a unique and extraordinary band sound.
Burum's repertoire is drawn from Welsh traditional music, adapted and re-imagined for a modern jazz sextet. The band's music fuses a deep respect for the original folk melodies themselves with the flexibility and dynamics of jazz improvisation - beautiful, melancholic melodies are performed alongside fiery solos and deep grooves.

Burum toured India in 2014 and 2015, playing in Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Goa, Kolkata and Bangalore. Burum have played at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC, and at the Festival Interceltique in Lorient, Brittany, France, as well as the International Brecon Jazz Festival, Wales' premiere Jazz Festival.
"Compelling and remarkable, bewitching the listener with creative twists and imaginative improvised sections" - Musician Magazine
"the band's approach sounds as fresh and inventive as ever. The Welsh folk tradition seems to offer an unending supply of memorable melodies for the group to explore. - jazzmann.com.  
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 17/06/18……DAN JAMES

Wednesday 13/06/18 Kevin Figes Quartet

***** Jazz Special *****

Figes' Quartet play his own distinctive compositions and have performed all over the UK for many years to enthusiastic audiences to widespread critical acclaim and airplay.
There is a striking level of empathy and interplay within the Quartet that comes from a combination of highly accomplished players, all great improvisors in their own right, who have worked closely together for some time.
The compositions are constantly developing to produce work which is challenging and contemporary . Influences include David Binney, Dave Holland, Chris Potter, John Escreet, Hermeto Pascoal, Soft Machine and much '70s prog rock. The aim is to produce personal music in a fearless and evolving way.
Kevin Figes (Saxes and compositions), Jim Blomfield (Piano), Riaan Vosloo (Bass), Mark Whitlam (Drums)

Sunday 10/06/18…….BELLEVILLE SWING

Wednesday 06/06/18 Trio HLK

***** Jazz Special *****

Currently on tour with Dame Evelyn Glennie (but sadly not at this performance) trio HLK are promoting their new album 'Standard Time' presenting jazz guitar, contemporary classical piano and masterful percussion, in a new creative idiom.
A belief in the high art of improvisation and intrigue with the infinite art and science of rhythm is what brings H, L and K together. Together they address ambitious improvisational frameworks which often resemble contemporary classical music more than jazz. Their music features dense, complex rhythms and textures, and virtuosic improvisation. Checkout Trio HLK and Dame Evelyn Glennie perform "Extra Sensory Perception" (part ii) from the album "Standard Time".

Trio HLK are ...Richard Harrold - Piano, Ant Law - 8-String Guitar, Rich Kass - Drums
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 03/06/18…….THE DRIFT

Wednesday 30/05/18 Rose/Stapleton/Pultz-Melbye

***** Jazz Special *****

Adam Pultz-Melbye double bass, Simon Rose baritone saxophone, Paul Stapleton sound sculpture. Astonishingly creative gig with Stapleton's home created instrument and Berlin based Rose's sympathetic baritone, under pinned by Pultz-Melbye's sonorious bass playing. This is a strong, exciting trio and they've worked together a great deal in different constellations. They've been recording at SARC last March and performing in Ireland and England.

Simon Rose is a musician, author and researcher from London, England based in Berlin, Germany playing Baritone Saxophone. His academic work is primarily concerned with the creative process.
Adam Pultz-Melby is from Denmark, also now Berlin based and is an active performer as a solo artist and with numerous international projects. A fascination with resonance, acoustics and psychoacoustics has led to the development of unique instrumental techniques and approaches to the double bass that causes the instrument to sing and vibrate in original and unexpected ways.
Its a second visit for Paul Stapleton and his self-designed instrument, the BoSS Bonsai Sound Sculpture, (BoSS, 2010) which brings a whole new catalogue of sound into the live performance and yet retains the instantaneous facility of interacting with the other players. A truly unique experience.
"These guys have that extra-sensory antennae that allow them to think in mutual blocks of sound and more sound. It works and works and works. That’s rare!… Highly recommended.” Gapplegate Music Review
“The improvisations could be the migratory songs of android whales or the piezoelectric abrasions that develop inside an old timepiece. Without the visuals, the sounds constructed are chimeric fantasies.” Mark Corroto – All About Jazz
Supported by Music in Monmouth and The Plancktone Club

Sunday 27/05/18…….SP3..PAYNE/HOBDAY/MISKIMMEN

Sunday 20/05/18…….JIVEOHOLICS

Delighted to have The Jiveoholics back at The Queens Head. They are the premiere Jump Jive and Party band in Wales. The Jiveoholics are great fun! With a wealth of experience performing live to audiences of all kinds they present a superb humorous, high octane show with jumping rhythms and a pumping beat.

Wednesday 16/05/18 John Law's Re-Creations project

***** Jazz Special *****

John Law’s ‘Re-Creations’ quartet are on tour promoting their new project based on arrangements of tunes from the jazz and pop repertoire. The recordings proved so successful that they’ve expanded their repertoire by adding, alongside jazz tunes by Monk and others, arrangements of tunes including Adele, Daft Punk and Kate Bush, Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean, two tunes by Radiohead, and a baroque version of Summertime alongside a fun arrangement of Mungo Jerry’s In The Summertime!
This is a highly creative quartet which is also having fun with well-known tunes that the public know so it’s a really accessible, yet interactive project.

John is no stranger to the Queens Head and his approach has been always fresh and engages a positive and responsive audience. He is joined by Sam Crockatt (saxophones), James Agg (bass) and Billy Weir (drums).

One of the UK’s most imaginative and versatile jazz pianists. International Piano Magazine
An under-recognised giant of British modern jazz/new music piano. Downtown Music Gallery New York
Supported by Music In Monmouth

Sunday 13/05/18……WILL KILLEEN

Sunday 06/05/18…….FEDORA CHIC

Sunday 29/04/18…….THE DRIFT

Wednesday 25/04/18 Maurice El Medioni

Film launch, Music and Food

***** 8.00 start, film starts at 8.30 sharp ***** Eclectic Films will be showing a new film 'Maurice El Medioni', and celebrating all that is Middle Eastern Jazz with a specially devised set from the fabulous Eira\Snow. Arabic snacks will also be served at the bar. Who could ask for anything more?

The film celebrates the life and music of the Godfather of PianOriental, 'Maurice El Medioni' It’s a musical reminder that we are all, at our roots, the same people. We hope it will also act as a reassuring presence to stave off prejudice and celebrate rather than be suspicious of difference.

As Maurice points out 'we are all refugees'.
Using his diary, Maurice explores the musical influences that built his unique style of music - a fusion of Arabic, Jewish, Andalucian and American rhythms that see his left hand play Boogie while his right hand plays Rai.

Sunday 22/04/18……NORTH STAR(MATT/TAMZIN)

Wednesday 18/04/18 JPG trio

With his melifluous right hand, poly harmonic left hand and a groove-some left foot, John Paul-Gard brings his hammond sound back to the Queens. Top that with the powerhouse of Toby Perrett on drums and hyper-dexterity of Matt Hopkins on guitar.

The most strutful groove in Funkdom!

Sunday 15/04/18……RAGTIME JUG ORCHESTRA

Wednesday 11/04/18 Duski Make a Wish Tour 2018

Aidan Thorne's Duski project has grown over the years both in compositional strength and unity as a coherent playing outfit. Thorne's writing certainly does provide a refreshing repertoire which echoes broad and diverse sources. Duski is a young contemporary band, with plenty to say. Well worth listening to, bringing whatever 'jazz music' is, bang up to date!

This is a contemporary group playing fresh, original music that deserves to be seen and heard. Ian Mann, The Jazzmann.
P.S. If you were wondering about the band name, Duski was christened by the poet Martin Daws, the Young People’s Laureate for Wales who simply thought the music sounded “dusky” - perhaps not so surprising considering the David Lynch / Twin Peaks influence. It’s also a play on the Welsh word “Dysgu” meaning “to learn”, as in “Dysgu Cyfri” a Gareth Roberts tune meaning “Learning to Count”.

Sunday 08/04/18……ALBINO FROGS

Sunday 01/04/18…..MAYFIELD/BIRTHDAY GIG

Sunday 25/03/18…..THE HARRISONS

Sunday 18/03/18…..GRUIG

Wednesday 14/3/18 The Noon-Ward

***** Jazz Special *****

Opening the year of 'never heard it before' world class new music we're most pleased to welcome 'The Noon-Ward', a collaboration between multi-instrumentalist, hugely respected composer and improvising wunderbloke, Alex Ward (Guitar and Vocals), aided, abetted and aggravated by a truly original spirit-drummer in the person of Sean Noonan.
Alex is no stranger to the Queens with his band Predicate amongst his projects exploring composition specifically for improvisers (yet to book 'Dead Days Beyond Help' and 'Noise Eating Monsters' but watch this space!). Sean is a drumming enigma where his “wandering folk” theory captures the elusiveness of ever-evolving world music traditions and reorients them through his own distinctive lens, fusing his discoveries with influences from harmolodic jazz, bleeding-edge rock, and avant-garde classical music

Noonan: "Independence might be the ruling concept of this drummer/leader’s career. It defines a common relationship not only among his hands, feet, and voice, but between his art and almost everything else in drumland". Modern Drummer Magazine
Ward: [...] one of the most stimulating I’ve heard all year, an excellent blend of structure and freedom with a uniformly high standard of musicianship and some visceral, fiery, exciting playing. The structured nature of the material does the music no harm at all and the volume and intensity of much of the material should also hold appeal for adventurous rock listeners, fans of Mr Fripp’s King Crimson perhaps ... also likely to be appreciated by admirers of the so called “punk jazz” groups. ... Recommended to all adventurous listeners, not just improv die hards. The Jazzmann
Supported by the Plancktone Club

Sunday 4/3/18 JAMES HOLLINGSWORTH

Sunday 19/11 Skylark

Sunday 12/11 SP3 Steve Payne/Miskiminn/Hobday

Wednesday 08/11/18 Lenore Raphael + Wayne Wilkinson + Chris Hodgkins + Alison Rayner - album release

***** Jazz Special *****

On the 11th November the band launch their album “Lenore Raphael + Wayne Wilkinson + Chris Hodgkins at the PizzaExpress”. Recorded during the EFG London Jazz Festival, acclaimed jazz pianist Lenore Raphael, US guitarist Wayne Wilkinson, and trumpeter/composer Chris Hodgkins with special guest bass player Alison Rayner perform together to launch their CD, in a special set of originals and classic jazz standards.

Lenore Raphael is an internationally renowned jazz pianist, Steinway artist/radio host and jazz teacher. She has performed and in many cases, sold out major jazz clubs and festivals, including Dizzy's at Jazz At Lincoln Centre, The Blue Note, Birdland, Ottawa International Jazz Festival, Ronnie Scott's and many more. She was one of three featured Steinway pianists with Ahmad Jamal and Abdullah Ibrahim at the Joy Of Jazz festival in South Africa.

"Jazz critics have compared her to Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans and even Thelonious Monk, but with all these influences, Lenore Raphael is just ONE thing … a great pianist!" Jazz USA

Wayne Wilkinson is a recognized and accomplished professional guitarist from the USA. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, The White House, the Kennedy Centre and major jazz and special music festivals across USA. He has performed for multiple Presidents, heads of state and other dignitaries.

Bass player and composer Alison Rayner spent five years in the 80s with critically acclaimed jazz/Latin group The Guest Stars, touring all major international jazz venues and festivals and recording three albums. Alison Rayner has co-run Blow the Fuse Records & Blow the Fuse Jazz Club in London since 1989, performing with artists such as American jazz guitar legend Tal Farlow, New York jazz poet Jayne Cortez, Denardo Coleman, Peter King and John Etheridge.
‘Spirited, eloquent and graceful’ *** The Guardian
‘A gorgeous album, synthesising mood, melody and the interplay between musicians totally at home with each other.’ **** Jazzwise
Chris Hodgkins raised in Cardiff and co-founded the Welsh Jazz Festival and established the Welsh Jazz Society. As a jazz trumpeter Chris joined the Icon Jazzmen when he was 18. Chris toured the UK and Europe with Johnny Bastable’s Chosen Six, Monty Sunshine, Route 66; appearing at the Sacramento Jazz Festival in the USA with the Pete Allen Band, and played a number of tours of Germany with the Chris Haskins Band.
In 1985 he was appointed Director of Jazz Services the national organisation funded by Arts Council England to provide services in information, touring, education, communications and publishing to the UK jazz community. Among his many successes was the National Touring Support Scheme which has enabled the careers of hundreds of artists over the years. Chris also helped to set up the annual Parliamentary Jazz Awards. Chris continues to be a major figure in promoting and supporting jazz musicians in the UK. www.chrishodgkins.co.uk

Sunday 05/11 Forfeits

Sunday 29/10 Red river Blues

Sunday 22/10 Ragtime Jug

Sunday 15/10 Mayfield

Sunday 01/10 James Hollingsworth

Wednesday 27/9/17 Örjan Hultén's Orion

***** Jazz Special *****

Örjan Hultén, one of Sweden's foremost saxophonists and improvisers, is a musical explorer always looking for the next challenge. In his compositions Örjan Hultén moves effortlessly across boundaries and musical genres. Here and there Middle Eastern and Balkan traits can be heard while one can distinguish traces from Wayne Shorter or Joni Mitchell in other parts. Örjan Hultén Orion is featuring four of Sweden’s top musicians, each of them a wellknown and celebrated musician/bandleader in his own right. This is the first time the quartet is touring the UK. Örjan Hultén – saxophones, Torbjörn Gulz – piano, Filip Augustson – bass, Peter Danemo - drums
”Weighty jazz music of absolute world class.” Svenska Dagbladet
”A proper parade of ensemble playing and composing skills” - Nerikes Allehanda
”a well coherent reflection over contemporary acoustic jazz” – Dagens Nyheter
”his calm and convincing playing in combination with the intensity and power of the tone is strongly impressive” –Orkester Journalen
Checkout Orion playing at Fasching Jazz Klub
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 24/09 The Drift

Wednesday 20/09/17 JOHN PAUL GARD TRIO

***** Jazz Special *****

A special treat for not only jazz fans but music fans everywhere. JP on organ and "left footed bass" is truly a special musician who we can never get enough of. This is an outstanding trio and its a Gig NOT TO BE MISSED!!

Sunday 17/09 Eira/Snow

"Horovel at the Queens Head" - World music fused with various jazz and folk elements. A real eclectic mix from this diverse duo.

"In general Eira/Snow’s pieces are primarily folk tunes with infectious melodies and strong grooves and an essential simplicity that ensures that they remain accessible, no matter how far the band may push them" Ian Mann - The Jazzmann review 7/10/17

Sunday 10/09 Big Sky Quartet

Big Sky Quartet, four kindred spirits with a wealth of musical experience and talent have turned their backs to the London scene and have put down roots in the Welsh Borders, creating their own blend of self-penned lyrical tunes propelled along by distinctively Brazilian and world rhythms. Happily following in the giant steps of musicians like Weather Report, Joe Lovano and Chick Corea, Big Sky are producing an accessible, melodic jazz fusion that is picking up new fans wherever they play. A great Gig last time they played and we are assured of a superb evening!!!

Sunday 25/06 HEAVY QUARTET

Sunday 18/06 GRUIG (IRISH)

Wednesday 14/6/17 Duski

***** Jazz Special *****

Sunday 11/06 IAN LUTHER

Sunday 04/06 NORTH STAR( FOLK/AMERICANA, TAMZIN & MATT)

Sunday 28/05 BRIDGET & THE BIG GIRLS BLUES

Sunday 21/05 JUNIOR HACKSAW (BLUES/ROCK)

Sunday 14/05 JANE PEARL/LYNDON WEBB/THAD KELLY

Wednesday 10/5/17 Big Sky

***** Jazz Special *****

Sunday 07/05 TAFFY WAS A THIEF( BLUES/ROCK BAND FROM NEWPORT)

Wednesday 3/5/17 Partikel

***** Jazz Special *****

"One of the most exciting trios in improvised music" Jazz Podium
If you missed them last year, then its your loss. It was simply an astonishing gig. The release of their third album "String Theory" took the British Press by storm receiving multiple four and five star reviews and making onto a number of "best jazz albums of 2015" lists already. Combine this with a tour of China, a series of major festivals, and a hefty work schedule to 2016, this is really a band not to miss when you get the chance in 2017!!!.
"String Theory is one of the most successful jazz / classical collaborations I've heard, a genuinely convincing hybrid... the album is a brilliant realisation of all the ambitions and objectives Eagles had for the project.... an astonishing performance." Ian Mann
www.partikel.co.uk

Sunday 30/04 WILL KILLEEN

Back with his superb blues guitar work which transcends the stereotypes in technique, interpretation and repertoire. Anything from primitive blues to sarabands with a sprinkle of Hopi Indian

Sunday 23/04 EARL

Sunday 16/04 JOHN PAUL GARD TRIO

AN EASTER SPECIAL!!!!! John Paul Gard; Alex Hutchins and Toby Perrett usually only play once a year at the Xmas gig as Alex is always abroad. However he is in the country and they coming to play Easter Sunday. If you have heard them I dont have to say anything else. If not get here early for an amazing gig. Hammond Organ,guitar and drums and the JP left leg bass. It does'nt get much better!!!!!

Wednesday 08/03 SILLY BILLY

******** Cancelled *********

Sunday 12/03 RAGTIME JUG BAND

Sunday 19/03 RED RIVER BLUES

Wednesday 22/3/17 Coltrane Dedication

***** Jazz Special *****

South Wales' stalwarts of Ashley John Long (bass), Dave Jones (piano), Ian Poole (drums), Caractacus Downes and Lyndon Owen (Saxophones) are set to give another evening of barnstorming improvisation using some of the great later tunes of Mr John Coltrane as their spring board.

Their appearance last year at the Queens during the Monmouth Festival week went down as one of the great live experiences of the year.
Sponsored by Music in Monmouth and SFM

Sunday 09/04 Skylark

Sunday 02/04 MAYFIELD and the Rhythm Rats

This is becoming an annual jamboree! Chris Mayfield celebrates his birthday again with another evening of down to earth blues, rolling and strolling along with the superb Rhythm Rats.

Come on down for a night of the sublime steady groove that flows from this band like a racoon in a squirrel cage. Oh, and cake!!!

Sunday 26/03 THE FORFEITS

Sunday 05/03 CAPA MANA - BALKAN BAND.

A recently formed Balkan Band from S.Wales. With members of the Heavy Quartet we can expect something special!

Wednesday 1/3/17 Sirene 1009:

***** Jazz Special *****

Improviser, guitarist and constructor Han-earl Park (박한얼) has been crossing borders and performing fuzzily idiomatic, on occasion experimental, always traditional, open improvised musics for twenty years presents 'Sirene 1009', the stupendous ensemble featuring the indomitable low-end growl of Dominic Lash, the unstoppable hits and clangs of Mark Sanders, and the controlled vocal mayhem of Caroline Pugh. Somewhere out there, there’s an SUV-sized violin tailgating, a No Wave guitarist desperately trying to survive in the Appalachian Mountains, someone dropping sheets of metal during a Jazz Session, an evolutionary biologist finding themselves speaking in tongues (Awash in Blue).

Hear guitarist Han-earl Park push and pull on the guitar-amplifier dancing partners, Dominic Lash and his double bass damage hanging artwork, Mark Sanders excavate caverns in the smallest spaces for his percussion, and Caroline Pugh sing the lines that border the intelligible and the cryptic. Sirene 1009 features guitarist Han-earl Park who has performed with some of the best improvisers from the Americas, Asia and Europe. He is part of ensembles including the London-based Mathilde 253 with Charles Hayward and Ian Smith, the New York-based Eris 136199 with Nick Didkovsky and Catherine Sikora, and the Berlin-based Numbers with Richard Barrett. The molten, musical core of the ensemble comprises the virtuosic bassist, composer and sound artist Dominic Lash, and Mark Sanders, arguably the most sought-after avant-jazz and free improvisation drummer of his generation. During the Culture Ireland funded tour of England in 2015, Belfast-based experimental folk singer and electronics performer Caroline Pugh joined Sirene 1009, bringing an additional layer of levity and exuberance to the already playful interactions of the trio. With musicians representing diverse strands of present-day improvised musics, prepare for a performance that fragments and recombines musical histories, a performance that leaps unexpectedly between noise, melody, dissonance, harmony and rhythm.

Sponsored by Music In Monmouth and the Plancktone Club

Sunday 26/02 BELLEVILLE SWING

A foot tapping special engendered by Django and the rest of the Hot club de Paris. Belville Swing always project that atmosphere normally developed by mixing coffee, absinthe and Gitanes.

Sunday 19/02 LEE Mc CRORY

Wednesday 15/2/17 Sirkis/Bialas IQ

A welcome return to the Queen's Head, the Sirkis/Bialas International Quartet is a collaboration between Israeli UK resident drummer/composer Asaf Sirkis, known for his work with the Lighthouse trio (ACT), Gilad Atzmon, Tim Garland, Larry Corryel, John Abercrombie & the Asaf Sirkis Trio, and Polish vocalist/composer extraordinaire Sylwia Bialas. The quartet features London based, Scottish bassist Kevin Glasgow, and the acclaimed Frank Harrison on piano and keyboards (UK).
With an emphasis on band interaction and sheer joy of playing, this band celebrates new music from both collaborators, covering a wide range of influences such as contemporary classical music, Polish folk, South Indian & Middle Eastern musics as well as a wide range of dynamics – from the most delicate ballad all the way to high-energy electric virtuoso lines and everything in between.
Expect soulful melodies, aerospheric sounds with strong grooves, a full colour electroacoustic jazz with an ethnic touch and some uncommonly used instruments and sound effects.
Asaf Sirkis - drums / compositions / percussion, Sylwia Bialas - vocals / compositions, Frank Harrison - piano, keyboards, Kevin Glasgow - electric bass

Sunday 12/02 FLEETWOOD CAVE (MARION FLEETWOOD, JIGANTICS FIDDLE PLAYER)

Two of British folk's most exciting musicians, sharing a love of performing live and for original and traditional music. Marion Fleetwood is no stranger having played the Fiddle with the Jigantics where we also headr her astonishing vocal repertoire. Gregg Cave who founded the Rock/Folk group Cave and also TRADarrr has been touring the UK and Europe performing at Concerts and Festivals. Two superb musicians!!! www.fleetwoodcave.com

Sunday 05/02 STEVE PAYNE/BILLY BOY MISKIMMEN (WONDERFUL BLUES, GUITAR & YARDBIRDS HARMONICA PLAYER)

Wednesday 1/2/17 A Big Hand

CANCELLED DUE TO ILLNESS - APOLOGIES

“A Big Hand” is a meeting of the ecstatic jazz of Sunny Murray saxophonist Tony Bevan and the industrial rumble of Furt/Barks Phillip Marks and Paul Obermayer, with bassist Dominic Lash holding the groove in the middle. Like a Sonny Rollins Trio in a tumble-dryer,
Tony bevan (saxophones) - In the early 1970s Bevan started playing soprano saxophone, inspired by Captain Beefheart and Terry Riley. Lol Coxhill gave him his first lesson and a sense of the instrument’s potential. Subsequently Bevan has also taken up tenor and bass saxophones.
Paul Obermayer (electronics) - Obermayer is a member of the Evan Parker Electro-Acoustic Ensemble, and has worked with composer/performer Richard Barrett in the electronics duo FURT for nearly 30 years. He has been a member of the trio Bark! with Phillip Marks and Rex Casswell since 1998.
Dominic Lash (bass) - Based in Bristol, Lash has performed with musicians such as Tony Conrad, Joe Morris, Evan Parker and Steve Reid. His main projects include The Dominic Lash Quartet, The Set Ensemble (an experimental music group focused on the work of the Wandelweiser collective) and The Convergence Quartet.
Phillip Marks (percussion) - Is a member of Bark!, founded in Manchester in 1991 and also plays in the Alan Tomlinson Trio, and Richard Scott as part of his Lightning Ensemble. He has played with Derek Bailey, Evan Parker, Stephen Grew and John Butcher among many others.

Supported by Music in Monmouth and The Plancktone Club

Sunday 29/01 THE DRIFTS(CLYDE,RED RIVER BLUES OTHER BAND)

Sunday 22/01 JAMES HOLLINSWORTH

Sunday 15/01 TERRI BRAMAH

Sunday 08/01 EARL

Sunday 31/12 ALBINO FROGS

AND THEN...........NEW YEARS EVE.

Sunday 18/12 LITTLE RUMBA

To make it a weekend to remember we follow the wonderful Saturday gig with probably the most popular band that play at The Queens Head.
If you can you imagine songs from an island populated by Jewish Argentinean Celts, stuck in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, reached only by radio stations from New Orleans, Cuba and Jamaica - then you’re ready for Little Rumba - a great world music trio. www.littlerumba.com

Saturday 17/12 XMAS SPECIAL !!! JOHN PAUL GARD/ALEX HUTCHINS

For the fourth year in a row John and Alex put aside all bookings and return to the Queens Head for their Saturday before Xmas gig. This has become a special event and there are not enough superlatives to describe this amazing trio. Anyone who has heard them will know what I mean and if you hav'nt just google Alex and be blown away. As always its free admission but do get here earl. 8.30pm start.

Sunday 11/12 HEAVY QUARTET

The amazing red hot band are back for their annual pre-Xmas show.Constantly evolving, the Heavy Quartet continue to blow your socks off! All their output is a funky collection of grooves, mixing a big brass sound with intricate improvisation. A group that shuns the common labels, the Heavy Quartet represent vibrant musical irreverence and unpredictable eclecticism. This nine piece….yes they are not a quartet…always have the Pub jumping. Thwey have a new album out and are offering free dowmloads to everyone at the Gig. YOU DONT WANT TO MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY!!! Check out the website www.reverbnation.com/heavyquartet

Sunday 04/12 GRUIG – IRISH BAND

Sunday 09/10 BRIDGET AND THE BIG GIRL BLUES

Sunday 02/10 JELLY ROLL JONES

Wednesday 28/09/16 Tassos Spiliotopoulos' Swedish Band

***** Jazz Special *****

Pleased to welcome back Tassos in full flight of a UK tour with his new Swedish band where he is now resident. The musicians are Örjan Hultén ( Saxophone), Fredrik Rundqvist (Drums) and Palle Sollinger (Bass) are all established musicians in Stockholm and the new album is sounding great! Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 25/09/16 TERRI BRAMAH

Sunday18/09/16 JOHN PAUL GARD/JON DALTON

Wednesday 14/09/16 BIG SKY – COLIN TULLY

***** Jazz Special *****

Sunday 11/09/16 RAGTIME JUG ORCHESTRA

Sunday 04/09/16 LEE MC CRORY

Sunday 28/08/16 BIG NANNA

–JANE PEARL/LYNDON WEBB/THAD KELLY

Sunday 21/08/16 JAMES HOLLINGSWORTH

Sunday 14/08/16 SOUTHERN CROSS

– ROB MORRIS/ROGER GREY et al

Sunday 31/07/16 EARL

Wednesday 27/07/16 Coltrane Dedication

***** Jazz Special *****

Sunday 24/07/16 Mayfield

Mr Chris Mayfield, the 'strong deliverer' of gritty country and urban blues. Superb guitar playing from the killing floors of Lydney meatpackers to the cotton fields of Newnham.

Wednesday 20/07/16 Philip Clouts' Anglo-Welsh Ensemble

***** Jazz Special *****

A new venture for Philip Clouts as he combines his accomplished compositional style, steeped both in the music of his native South Africa and in a diverse range of world musics which he has explored to critical acclaim, with a group of Wales finest players.

"Luxurious melodies, woven with subtle influences from Clouts' forays into world music ... a joy throughout, uplifting and contemplative by turns" Jazz UK
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 17/07/16 The Forfeits

'On the button' four piece with contemporary upbeat party tunes. Always gets the audience up and dancing, so make it an energetic summer's evening!

Sunday 10/07/16 Little Rumba

Without doubt one of the most popular bands to play at the Queens. You may have heard them before but they never cease to amaze!!!
If you can you imagine songs from an island populated by Jewish Argentinean Celts, stuck in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, reached only by radio stations from New Orleans, Cuba and Jamaica - then you’re ready for Little Rumba - a great world music band www.littlerumba.com

Wednesday 22/06/16 Kevin Figes Quartet

***** Jazz Special *****

Figes' Quartet play his own distinctive compositions and have performed all over the UK for many years with widespread critical acclaim and airplay.
There is a striking level of empathy and interplay within the Quartet that comes from a combination of highly accomplished players, all great improvisors in their own right, who have worked closely together for some time.

The compositions are constantly developing to produce work which is challenging and contemporary . Influences include David Binney, Dave Holland, Chris Potter, John Escreet, Hermeto Pascoal, Soft Machine and much '70s prog rock. The aim is to produce personal music in a fearless and evolving way.
Figes is the real deal Jazzwise
This is poised, distinctive music Jazz UK
First class British contemporary jazz Jazz Views
Its this combination of rich writing with an outstanding band that gives Figes's solo LP such distinction Independent on Sunday

Wednesday 08/06/16 Duski

***** Jazz Special *****

Duski is a young contemporary band, with plenty to say. Well worth listening to, bringing whatever 'jazz music' is, bang up to date!
Supported by Music in Monmouth

29/05/16 Red River Blues

Blues from Ross - straight down the line with a mixture of cigar box guitar, harmonica and sax expanding the unit to give that big six piece sound. A great night is assured www.redriverblues.com

22/05/16 Belleville Swing

A foot tapping special engendered by Django and the rest of the Hot club de Paris. Belville Swing always project that atmosphere normally developed by mixing coffee, absinthe and Gitanes.

Thursday 19/05/16 BLUES SPECIAL : The Aguilar Blumenfeld Project (USA)

***** BLUES IN PARADISE UK TOUR 2016 *****

Californian musicians Roy Blumenfeld & David Aguilar will be bringing their unique blend of swamp, blues and funk music to the Queens Head.
The partnership of these two seasoned and masterly musicians draws on their extensive combined repertoire, honed over many years performing and collaborating with countless icons of the Americana music scene. The Trio is completed by respected bassist Steve Browning of Pretty Things / It's a Beautiful Day fame.

The Aguilar Blumenfeld Project creates a fascinating mix of interpretative musical statements expressed through both traditional and unconventionally innovative instrumentation that melds together the steamy swamp-music roots of the blues with elements of the jazz, rock and soul that has developed up to the present day. Their eclectic and fascinating mix of funky rhythms and inspirational musicianship are sure to get audiences dusting off their dancing shoes! Checkout www.theaguilarblumenfeldproject.com

Sunday 15/05/16 Dan James

A true Troubador. A great driving mando-cello player with a mixture of favourites and own penned numbers. Ranging across a wide spectrum of musical tastes. A great gig!!

Wednesday 11/05/16 Burum

***** Jazz Special *****

This sensitive fusion of Welsh folk music with jazz never fails to reach the heart. Burum have grown together, very much akin to the 'yeast' of their naming, to provide a close respect of their cultural roots combined with the extemporary explorations that improvisng provides. Little wonder they have represented 'Welsh jazz' in the USA, Brittany and India.

The strength of celtic melodies such as 'Pontypridd' and 'Lloer Dirion' provide a very unique platform for the empathetic improvising these guys always deliver.
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 08/05/16 The Heavy Quartet

The Heavy Quartet are one of the truly great bands to play at the Queens and also one of the most popular. All their output is a funky collection of grooves, mixing a big brass sound with intricate improvisation. A group that shuns the common labels, the Heavy Quartet represent vibrant musical irreverence and unpredictable eclecticism. This nine piece….yes they are not a quartet…had the Pub jumping when they last played and this gig will be no exception. http://www.heavyquartet.com/“

Sunday 01/05/16 Terri Bramah and Steve Payne

What a pleasure to once again have the wonderful Terri Bramah performing at the Queens Head. This lady has got a superb voice and it was a joy to hear her performing with the Rhythm Rats at of their gigs Terri was always a favourite at the Queens and backed this time by the superb Steve Payne on guitar, this promises to be a special evening.

Wednesday 27/04/16 Coltrane Dedication

***** Jazz Special *****

By special request following a magical and intense performance at Cafe Jazz in Cardiff, we have another night of new ground to be broken by the 'go anywhere' quintet. Picking up the later tunes of Mr John Coltrane and letting the powerful simplicity of them take us wherever we collectively go. Lyndon Owen & Caractacus Downes on Saxophones, Dave Jones; piano, Ian Poole, Drums.

Supported by Music in Monmouth and SFM

Sunday 24/04/16 Earl

Get your dancing shoes on and be ready to boogie. A mixture of original songs and interesting covers. Songs of love, protest and stupidity

Sunday 17/04/16 The Alco Acoustics

A debut gig from a new band. Ali Park has often done a turn with Dan James at the Queens and we look forward to her gig with her own band. More info to follow

Wednesday 13/04/16 Partikel's String Theory

***** Jazz Special *****

Partikel are seriously 'hot news' in the contemporary jazz world. 2015 has been a huge year for them: the release of their third album "String Theory" took the British Press by storm receiving multiple four and five star reviews and making onto a number of "best jazz albums of 2015" lists already. Combine this with a tour of China, a series of major festivals, and a hefty work schedule to 2016, this is really a band not to miss.

"String Theory is one of the most successful jazz / classical collaborations I've heard, a genuinely convincing hybrid... the album is a brilliant realisation of all the ambitions and objectives Eagles had for the project.... an astonishing performance." Ian Mann

"Inventive contrapuntally - rich arrangements, this excellent experiment represents a perfect marriage of two seemingly disparate entities, resulting in an album of richly mellifluous sonority" All About Jazz
"Turbulent avant-riffage, lush, cinematic sophistication... an ambitious project, convincingly realised" JazzWise
"A triumphant third album" MOJO
"The always stimulating Partikel meets this string section on equal terms. Eagles's tone on his various horns achieves an impressive blend of colours and dynamics. His compositions and arrangements, embracing sinuous, sinewy elegance, spiky funk and languid ballads, repay close attention. It's another intriguing step in the evolution of this talented outfit." BBC Music Magazine
Supported by Music in Monmouth

Sunday 10/04/16 Jigantics

One of the most popular bands to play at the Queens. The Jigantics are making a name for themselves all over the Country. With a line-up of the best of monmouths musicians and featuring the guitar meister Lyndon Webb this will be an awesome night. Get here Early!!!!

Sunday 03/04/16 The Rhythm Rats

The full on quintet for a night of earthy blues. Great original blues guitar from Chris Mayfield with one of THE sublime rhythm sections of Thad Kelly and Les Morgan. Plus Mick Paice and the superb Sax of Ben Waghorn. Add to this the incomparable Jane Pearl and you have one of the best bands around. Big urban blues influences executed with that easy, smooth rolling motion - like listening to good cigars and whisky. It’s the “ole boys” birthday and promises to be a wonderful evening!!!!!!!

Wednesday 30/03/16 Ant Law

***** Jazz Special *****

A gig for the axemen! Described as "An Innovator" by The Guardian, Guitarist Ant Law

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CANCELLED DUE TO ILLNESS - APOLOGIES

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