New CD: Callings Signals 08 from Cafe OTO.
Says producer/bassist Nick Stephens:
This is the fifth incarnation of Calling Signals. Previous members have been Paul Rutherford, Terje Isungset, Louis Moholo, Hasse Poulsen and Eivin One Pedersen. Besides the 1996 recording on Loose Torque, there are two recordings available from FMR.
The guest musician in the 2008 version of the group is a man whose shirts often match his looping, colourful style. Gentleman geezer, ‘The Bald Soprano’ the inimitable Lol Coxhill. I’ve played in many different situations with Lol, from John Steven’s big bands to a New Orleans style trio with Roger Turner, from Mike Cooper’s Hawaiian group to his own Before My Time and it’s always been a pleasure listening to him negotiate his own unique path through any music that he’s involved with - and I’ve seen the old TV clip of him playing tenor sax on ‘Walkin The Dog’ with Rufus Thomas.
While Calling Signals were in Birmingham, we found time to rummage around for a couple of hours in my old haunt, The Diskery, a shop that still specialises in Vinyl. I struck lucky with a recording of Jazz Reunion with Pee Wee Russell and Coleman Hawkins. Lol was quite envious, until he remembered that he probably had it lurking somewhere in his collection. I have always thought that there is something of Russell in Lol’s playing, the suprises, the wit and the nod to tradition, but he remains the one and only…
Frode Gjerstad, clarinets and alto Lol Coxhill, soprano Nick Stephens, acoustic bass Paal Nilssen-Love, percussion