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I would like to thank my friend Jamie Moody for this lovely cover.

As always my 3 great friends Ruth Slattery, Hazel Jackson & Mary Houlding will be thanked for their

ever lasting support of my work.

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Ghosts of Jazz

Cheltenham is renowned worldwide for many things, from music festivals to the girls school and the

racing, depending on your taste and what you want, behind this rich Edwardian exterior lies a little

story to tantalize your imagination.

With all the Jazz festival pomp going on, at the Town hall, the Budwieser stage, and the theatre,everyone misses the real home, a small venue, once ran a great session and now all but forgotten.

Walking past the town hall, and heading to the Montpelier district, you have to cross the road, and it

was here that I first took note of real jazz music. The club is called the Subtone, and unless you know

where to look and listen, it is so easily missed.

Under all the huge Edwardian building used as offices for anything from solicitors to hair dressers,

lies a small path to a little club. No more than about 50 feet long by 35 feet wide, nearly always

smoky, this is the real jazz not the big stages for the modern imitation by 20 year olds who think

hitting a few notes makes them a jazz icon.

I was standing at the gate, when I thought I heard someone playing a trumpet, thinking it might be

from a fringe event, I ventured down, and to my surprise came across a wonderous thing.As I stepped through the gate, the door opened to the club, and a doorman met me.

"Good evening sir, I hope you enjoy the show." he said to me.

"Thank you, I replied,"who is playing tonight ?"

"That I cannot say sir."

"Cannot or will not." I enquired both intrigued and a bit annoyed.

"Come on in, and you will see why I cannot answer the question sir."

"I will be delighted to see why you cannot say so." I said getting more than interested as to the

meanings behind the statement.

As I stepped in, I could see the stage at the back, covered in mists and vaguely see figures moving

about. Nobody was solid, just a mist and the outlines of bodies, yet the music was so clear as if the

people themselves were there. The forms seemed to change shapes, to suit the mood of the music.

Coming from the stage I could hear a trumpet playing, and recognised the style of West coast so

familiar to Chet Baker in his prime, alongside the sax of Gerry Mulligan and clarinet of Art Pepper,

on the drums it appeared to be Buddy Rich.

"How could this be."I thought to myself.

Turning to the man next to me I said:

"Excuse me sir,but dont you think Chet is on form tonight, and that clarinet of Art is so clear, after

all these years."

The man turned and said:"Sorry sir, we are watching different sessions, I cannot see who you do for me it is Colttrane, Miles

Davis, Gene Krupa up there."

"How come, we are in the same room, looking at the same stage at the same time ?"

It was at this time, I started going around the floor to find out what I could, and the thing I found out,

was that even though there were over 100 people in the room, there was little cross over for the

session, and no two sessions were identical, musicians were there from Ike Quebec to Coleman

Hawkins, Tony Williams to Lonnie Donnegan, and the styles went from the early 20s to the skiffle of

the late 60s, the more I found out, the less I found I knew, this was a total mystery.

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In the midst of my confused state, I finally got to the door, and had a talk with mine host.

"I see what you mean now, you could not tell me who is playing, as you had no idea."

"That is right sir, the secret of the club is that YOU decide who appears, you can come every night,

and never see the same group of performers playing the same tunes, or you could, it is all up to

YOU."

"Can you answer a few questions for me please ?"

"If I can I will be glad to !""Thank you very much," I replied "I see there is no sign of either Jamie Cullum, Polar bear, Ingrid

Laubruch here, or any other modern jazz group, do you forbid it, as the jazz here is so pure ?"

"Not at all, everyone is welcomed, but without realising it, you answered your question when you

said MODERN jazz, the people you mentioned are still alive."

Seeing my puzzled look, my new friend explained to me:

"When you asked around, did you not notice, everyone saw someone different, yet they had one

thing in common, they have all passed the veil of time to this endless stream of jazz."

"I see now, the only qualification is being dead then."

"That is correct sir."

"How come, with all the festival going on in town, so few people have come here, and yet standing

at the gate, I can hear the music ?""Again you have answered the question sir, YOU heard the music, because you wanted to, and you

have been here before, so knew where to look for us."

"One or two more questions, first is there a nationality bar, or is it any dead jazz musicians ?"

"No sir, we have no bar at all, the other day someone left saying they were listening to Joe Zawinul,

Karlheinz Stockhausen and Django Reinhardt, amongst others."

"As the festival is over soon, will you be closing down and finishing until next year then ?

"No sir, as I said this is an endless stream of jazz, it never finishes, and we play all evenings to ever

increasing crowds."

I thanked the doorman, as I turned to leave, and walked up the steps to the main road.

All the time, thinking of the various questions raised. How many variations of styles from 20s through

be-bop to skiffle and beyond, all the musicians who had joined the band.

And the non-answerable question.

"Who is in the best band ?"

There are as many answers as people asked, as we all like our jazz differently.