We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Cut Loose - A Lesson in Jazz featuring Matt Berry

from An EP by Ben Castle and the Blah Street Band

supported by
chris long
chris long thumbnail
rudypanucci
rudypanucci thumbnail
phreddd
phreddd thumbnail
/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      £1 GBP  or more

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

  • Full Digital Discography

    Get all 4 Ben Castle releases available on Bandcamp and save 40%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of An EP, Over The Moon EP, Blah Street, and four from the madding crowd. , and , .

    Purchasable with gift card

      £10.80 GBP or more (40% OFF)

     

about

Ben Castle and the Blah Street Band release ‘Cut Loose – A Lesson in Jazz’, featuring the distinctive voice of Matt Berry, giving a definitive explanation of what, in fact, jazz is. The single is the first track from the band’s forthcoming EP ‘An EP’, due Spring 2023.

lyrics

Oh yes! That is jazz and I like it. We are going to explore what jazz is, where it comes from and what makes it jazz. We are going to get inside jazz and find out once and for all, why it’s better than anything else.

Why is it jazz? Because it’s made up of jazz notes, played by jazz people on jazz instruments.

Jazz is beginning to reach a new audience. Gone the days that only old men with beards would attend performances. There are now much younger bearded men in attendance too, and some have even spotted women. The future of jazz, I’m happy to say, is safe.

Some people seem to dislike jazz. They say, “why can’t they stick to the melody?” and “Why do they need to play so many notes?” Well, those people are wrong and obviously not clever enough to understand jazz itself.

The jazz musician likes to improvise. They play a bit of a song and then they make stuff up as they go along, or “cut loose” if you will.

The word improvise comes from the English word ‘improve’. Jazz musicians take existing songs and improve them by adding many, many, many more notes.

Jazz bop, Boogie Woogie. I like that! Blues, Fusion, Dixieland, Swing.

It’s all jazz and it’s all good.

Jazz musicians are very conscientious. They play for hours on end without growing weary. They don’t waste valuable time worrying about what they’re going to wear, they just turn up and play.

One word that sums up all jazz musicians is the word ‘cool’

No-one knows how the jazz musician’s mind works. How do they know when to come in? How do they know when to stop? Do they know when to stop? The music comes out of nowhere and just ends when it’s over.

credits

from An EP, track released January 27, 2023
Performed and produced by:
Ben Castle, Mark Edwards & Tim Harries
with
Troy Miller: drums
Matt Berry: narration

Recorded at Orange Room Music by Colin Walker and Andy Searle Barnes
Mixed at Echo Zoo by Dave Lynch
Mastered by Ed Woods
Artwork by Richie Martin
Photos by Ruth Medjber

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Ben Castle image

Ben Castle UK

Ben has worked with Gregory Porter, Radiohead, Blur, Amy Winehouse, Quincy Jones, Villagers, Matthew Herbert, Little Simz, Stan Tracey, George Michael, Matthew E White, Lianne La Havas, Sting, and features on many soundtracks, including Sex Education, Staged, Motherland & Toast of London.

He recently scored the Grammy Nominated film Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story with Paul Pilot. ... more

contact / help

Contact Ben Castle

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

If you like Ben Castle, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Saxophonist Isaiah Collier chats about his new LP and the influence of Pharoah Sanders.
listen now