'Joining the Dots' is the debut album by the Mark Cherrie Quartet. What makes this a little unusual is that the album is led by Mark Cherrie, a steel pan player. The quartet also features the great pianist John Donaldson, superlative Mick Hutton on bass and, Eric Ford on drums.
The quartet is also joined by special guests including guitarist Nigel Price, vocalist Sumudu and saxophonist Dave O'Higgins.
The titles on it are a very mixed bag including jazz classics by Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, to more modern jazz standards by Pat Metheny, to jazz takes on contemporary tunes by Nirvana and The Police.
This is a really enjoyable album featuring the steel pan which is rarely heard in jazz but which easily holds its own in the company of the more usual instruments. This eclectic collection of tunes lasting well over an hour is great to listen to and all the more interesting because it includes tunes that were written specifically for the steel pan as well as others of different genres that were not - a rare gem not to be missed.
Howard Lawes
In Mark's own words:
I decided to record a jazz album with musicians that are well known on the UK jazz circuit, where the music was deliberately not at all Caribbean. All the band tracks were recorded all together in the studio live room in one day, in fact between 12 noon and 6pm. The second day was reserved for overdubs, i.e. sax, acoustic and electric guitars and voice. I mixed the album myself, in my own studio and then it was professionally mastered. I believe that there is no other album out there that attempts to cover the musical area that I have done with this one. Hopefully, there will be some people out there that will want to hear it, ha ha!.
1. Morse Code
2. Maiden Voyage
3. Little Wing
4. Footprints
5. October's Child
6. Just Like Lovers Do
7. Scarborough Fair
8. When We Were Free
9. Sippin' At Bells
10. Smells Like Teen Spirit
11. Starless And Bible Black
12. Walking On The Moon
13. Last Summer
14. Just Like Lovers Do
Mark Cherrie - steel pan
John Donaldson - piano
Mick Hutton - double bass
Eric Ford - drums
Special guests:
guitarists Nigel Price and Dominic Grant
vocalist Sumudu and saxophonist Dave O'Higgins
