Don't Ever Leave Me (vinyl) by John Helliwell / Jasper Somsen / Hans Vroomans / Marcel Serierse

John Helliwell / Jasper Somsen / Hans Vroomans / Marcel Serierse

Don't Ever Leave Me (vinyl)

Price: € 22.95
Format: LP 12inch
Label: Challenge Records
UPC: 0608917355321
Catnr: CRLP 73553
Release date: 14 April 2023
Buy

1 LP 12inch ✓ in stock	€ 22.95	Buy

Label
Challenge Records

UPC
0608917355321

Catalogue number
CRLP 73553

Release date
14 April 2023

Album

Artist(s)

Composer(s)

About the album

In late 2019, after meeting with Challenge Records in Amersfoort to discuss my album Ever Open Door, they recommended that I should connect with Jasper Somsen. I had dinner in Amsterdam that night with him and Raimondo Meli Lupi, who had mastered my previous recordings and set-up the meetings.

Jasper struck me as an enthusiastic and determined young man and, as I was subsequently to find out after listening to him on several recordings, an excellent and creative bass player — now my friend and colleague.

We agreed to make an album. Jasper chose the other musicians and recording dates at MotorMusic in Belgium were arranged. Then Covid-19 struck! The recording was postponed many times during 2020 and 2021, although during this time we discussed which tunes would be appropriate, with Jasper writing rough arrangements. His selection of Marcel Seriese on drums and Hans Vroomans on piano was inspired — they are inventive, empathetic musicians, and a pleasure to play with!

Our selection of tunes is based on strong melodies from the fields of folk, jazz, rock, pop, and originals by Jasper and me. I suggested that we play three Supertramp tunes, as a lengthy part of my musical life has been centred around the music of Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson. I first heard Don’t Ever Leave Me played by Keith Jarrett. It’s such a beautiful, short and poignant melody that we decided to play four versions and have them act as “bookends” for our music.

If you enjoy listening to this music half as much as we enjoyed playing it, our labours of love have succeeded!

Ende 2019, nachdem ich mich mit Challenge Records in Amersfoort getroffen hatte, um mein Album Ever Open Door zu besprechen, empfahlen sie mir, mich mit Jasper Somsen in Verbindung zu setzen. Ich aß an diesem Abend in Amsterdam mit ihm und Raimondo Meli Lupi zu Abend, der meine früheren Aufnahmen gemastert und die Treffen arrangiert hatte.

Jasper machte auf mich den Eindruck eines enthusiastischen und entschlossenen jungen Mannes und, wie ich später feststellen sollte, nachdem ich ihn bei mehreren Aufnahmen gehört hatte, eines ausgezeichneten und kreativen Bassisten - jetzt mein Freund und Kollege.

Wir vereinbarten, ein Album aufzunehmen. Jasper wählte die anderen Musiker aus und es wurden Aufnahmetermine bei MotorMusic in Belgien vereinbart. Dann schlug Covid-19 zu! Die Aufnahmen wurden in den Jahren 2020 und 2021 immer wieder verschoben, obwohl wir in dieser Zeit diskutierten, welche Stücke geeignet wären, und Jasper schrieb grobe Arrangements. Seine Wahl von Marcel Seriese am Schlagzeug und Hans Vroomans am Klavier war inspirierend - sie sind einfallsreiche, einfühlsame Musiker und es ist ein Vergnügen, mit ihnen zu spielen!

Unsere Auswahl an Stücken basiert auf starken Melodien aus den Bereichen Folk, Jazz, Rock, Pop und Eigenkompositionen von Jasper und mir. Ich habe vorgeschlagen, drei Supertramp-Stücke zu spielen, da sich ein großer Teil meines musikalischen Lebens um die Musik von Rick Davies und Roger Hodgson dreht. Zum ersten Mal hörte ich Don't Ever Leave Me, gespielt von Keith Jarrett. Es ist eine so schöne, kurze und ergreifende Melodie, dass wir beschlossen, vier Versionen zu spielen und sie als "Buchstützen" für unsere Musik zu verwenden.

Wenn Sie diese Musik nur halb so gern hören, wie wir sie gespielt haben, war unsere Liebeserklärung erfolgreich!

Artist(s)

John Helliwell (saxophone)

John Anthony Helliwell (born 15 February 1945) is an English musician and the saxophonist and occasional keyboardist, woodwind player, and background vocalist for the rock band Supertramp. He also served as an MC during the band's concerts, talking and making jokes to the audience between songs.
Helliwell played with The Alan Bown Set, replacing Dave Green when he joined in January 1966, before joining Supertramp in 1973 along with bassist Dougie Thomson, who convinced Helliwell to make the move. In 2004, Helliwell formed the band Crème Anglaise with Mark Hart, who had joined Supertramp in 1985. This group recorded their eponymous debut album in 2005.
In 1987 Helliwell played on Pink Floyd's album A Momentary Lapse of Reason; his name was misspelled as "Halliwell". This was after Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour had played on Supertramp's album Brother Where You Bound. Helliwell also played on French singer Jean-Jacques Goldman's 1985 album Positif, and clarinet on Sara Hickman's 1990 album Shortstop.
During a professional lull in the 1990s, Helliwell began studying for a music degree at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, but he discontinued his studies to join Supertramp on tour when Some Things Never Change was released. In 2004 he contributed saxophone work on the Simon Apple album River to the Sea.
Helliwell contributed clarinet to The Pineapple Thief's song "Fend For Yourself" from their Your Wilderness album which was released in 2016.
Helliwell fronts the Super Big Tramp Band, which has a jazz big band line-up of trumpets, trombones, saxophones and rhythm section. It plays versions of Supertramp tunes, arranged by members of the band, with no vocals, but with Helliwell as the chief soloist. The band first played in Manchester in June 2013. In 2019 the band played at the Manchester Jazz Festival in May and was scheduled to play in Hull and Hamburg later in the year.
In October 2020, Helliwell released Ever Open Door, a CD album of ballads with Helliwell on saxophone and clarinet, with a string quartet and Hammond organ.

less

Jasper Somsen (double bass)

Jasper Somsen (1973) studied Jazz and Classical double bass at the conservatories of Utrecht and Amsterdam, The Netherlands. During his career Jasper has performed with the “crème de la crème” of the (inter)national jazz scene, a.o.: Enrico Pieranunzi (Italy), Bert van den Brink (NL), John Engels (NL), Ferdinand Povel (NL), Yuri Honing (NL), Rita Reys (NL), Eric Vloeimans (NL), Maria Markesini (Greece), Nancy Marano (USA), JD Walter (USA) and singer/songwriter Lori Lieberman (USA). With the Jasper Somsen Group he released the highly acclaimed album: 'Dreams, Thoughts & Poetry' (The Music of Enrico Pieranunzi). In January 2013 they released their second CD “Sardegna”. He recorded with a.o. the Trio Bert Lochs and Willem Hellbreker/Frits Landesbergen’s Saxvibes. Since 2001 he fills the bass chair at...

Jasper Somsen (1973) studied Jazz and Classical double bass at the conservatories of Utrecht and Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
During his career Jasper has performed with the “crème de la crème” of the (inter)national jazz scene, a.o.: Enrico Pieranunzi (Italy), Bert van den Brink (NL), John Engels (NL), Ferdinand Povel (NL), Yuri Honing (NL), Rita Reys (NL), Eric Vloeimans (NL), Maria Markesini (Greece), Nancy Marano (USA), JD Walter (USA) and singer/songwriter Lori Lieberman (USA).
With the Jasper Somsen Group he released the highly acclaimed album: "Dreams, Thoughts & Poetry" (The Music of Enrico Pieranunzi). In January 2013 they released their second CD “Sardegna”.
He recorded with a.o. the Trio Bert Lochs and Willem Hellbreker/Frits Landesbergen’s Saxvibes. Since 2001 he fills the bass chair at the silent movie orchestras The Sprockets and Orchestra da Camera Oscura. He performed in a.o. Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Hungary, Italy and Finland.

less