The High Society Jazz Band

 January 2022 - Our regular gig at Bare Village Club was well attended - and it was great to see our old friend and our former drummer and vocalist, Ralph Wilson. With Gerry still poorly, Paul Guppy joined us on bass again, and was with us for the journey up to Carlisle later in the month for another lovely evening with a small, but very appreciative, audience.

February 2022 - The month of the great storms! Our regular gig at Bare went ahead, with many of our regular supporters braving the string winds and heavy rain; but, the stormy weather meant that Peter and Roger were unable to travel because of the conditions, so Bruce, Paul and Dave played as a trio - plenty of 'swing' music, and it went down very well with the audience. The weather was much better for our trip to Bardsea Malt Kiln on Saturday 26th Feb for our 'Jazz Lunch' gig - a lovely sunny day, and great to be able to travel home in the daylight! Thanks to Malcolm Cookson, who is getting jazz going again in this lovely venue - and for cooking the delicious lunch. Good to see few of our friends from Grange as well. We're looking forward to going again!

March 2022 - Apart from our regular gig at Bare, the highlight of the month was a gig at Bolton-le-Sands Community Centre for a fund raiser for Motor Neuron Disease. The Community Centre full to its capacity of 100 - and the volunteer helpers provided a wonderful buffet. There were plenty of generous donations to the raffle, and the evening raised in excess of £2000 for a very worthwhile cause.

April 2022 - Easter Sunday at the Bare Club, as usual - and it was good to see quite a few new supporters on a lovely afternoon.

May 2022 - We were delighted to be joined on trombone by Brian Robinson, from the USA, for our regular gig at Bare Village Club, which was followed by a return visit to the lovely Heron Theatre at Beetham, where Brian joined us again. There was a very good attendance, considering that people were still just emerging from Covid restrictions.

June 2022 - The Queen's Platinum Jubilee month - and a return visit for us to The Barton Village Hall for a special afternoon tea celebration. Our visit to Bare was affected by holidays and Covid - we welcomed John Whittaker on bass to replace Paul (Covid) and Brian joined us again replacing Bruce (holiday) - an unusual line-up, but as always, very warmly received by our regular supporters at Bare. For our gig at Sizergh, a return visit to play for Carnforth Rotary Club, with Paul and Peter still affected by Covid and Bruce on holiday, we had the rather unusual line-up of Paul Palmer (reeds) and Jon Moreman (trombone) on front line duty, with Dave on bass and Alan Beecham on keyboard, with Robin making up the rhythm section.  

July 2022 - It was Dave's turn to be on holiday for the regular gig at Bare, so it was good to welcome back Neil Anderton on keyboard for the afternoon.

August 2022 - a quiet month for us, but the regular band and was back together for a wonderful day out at The Grange Classic Car Show -  and the Bare Village Club gig - both very well supported on a lovely sunny afternoons.

September 2022 - Another quiet month, with our usual gig at Bare still well supported. But the highlight was undoubtedly our return to Carnforth Station, and restarting our 'Jazz Lunch' sessions of the 3rd Friday of each month at the newly refurbished 'Brief Encounter' Refreshment Room and Bistro. The dining room was full, and it was great to see so many of our our old friends again - especially those who made the train journey from Grange! It was a lovely occasion, and hopefully the start of a long and happy association with the new owners.

October 2022 - A busier month, which started with a 'swing dance' at Ambleside, as part of a celebration of the life and work of Kurt Schwitters, who lived and worked in Ambleside. Lovely to see so many people in period costume (30s and 40s) dancing the evening away. Unfortunately, Paul Guppy, who is currently standing in during Gerry's illness, went down with Covid for a second time, but we were lucky enough to find that Roy Cansdale was available, and enjoyed playing with him again. Roy also joined us for the next gig at Bare Village club, which continues to flourish. Our second 'Jazz Lunch' at Carnforth was sold out in advance, and proved to be another wonderful afternoon, with Paul Palmer joining us on bass for this one. Fortunately, Paul Guppy had recovered in time for our 'northern tour', as we went up to Carlisle Jazz Club on 27th October for a gig with Enrico Tomasso. As always, an enthusiastic and appreciative audience. We then went up to Ayr Jazz Club the next day; Robin wasn't available, so it was pretty much a 'Hot 5' as Enrico led us through a whole host of Louis' numbers. The venue was full, and Enrico's playing, singing and story telling went down so well with everyone - and inspired the rest of us in the band too!

November 2022 - Another 'fully booked' session at The Brief Encounter Refreshment Room and Bistro' at Carnforth Station, which we played as a quartet as Robin couldn't make it. Brian Richardson, over from the USA again, joined us on trombone for the session at Bare Village Club - where we celebrated Cliff's birthday! Cliff Harrison has been a great supporter of the band, and was instrumental in getting the regular gig at Bare Village Club organised in the early days. We had a great afternoon at The Malt Kiln at Bardsea for Sunday lunch on November 27th. Thanks to Malcolm Cookson for organising the event, and cooking up the delicious food. And thanks to Malcolm for keeping our kind of music live in the Barrow area. Bruce wasn't well, unfortunately, but Brian was able to join us again, so we had a trumpet/trombone front line, with Robin back in the rhythm section with Dave and Paul. The room was full, and it was lovely to see so many old friends in the very appreciative audience. 

December - and our usual Christmas parties at Bare and Carnforth Station. We had the full line-ups for both gigs, and played to another full house at Carnforth. Despite some awful weather, there was a good turn out at Bare, although, for the first time anyone could remember, we had no guests sitting in! 

It was great to be back at our regular venues, and starting to pick up on the gigs which were lost during the periods of lockdown. Looking forward to 2023 - and a Happy New Year to all our very loyal supporters!

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Saturday 25th March 2023 : We were saddened to announce that Gerry Clayton, our bass player and vocalist passed away peacefully, after a long fight against cancer. Gerry was looked after at home by Margaret, his wife, and kept in touch with the band and many of our supporters throughout his illness. Gerry's career in music spanned more than 60 years, from being part of the 'Mersey Sound' with Karl Terry and the Cruisers, through numerous bands, trios, quartets - and the Blackpool Symphony Orchestra. Gerry was the 'go to' dep for many bands in the north west, and he will be greatly missed for his professionalism, his willingness to turn out whatever the occasion - and most of all, his wonderful 'scouse' sense of humour. Gerry understood the importance of 'entertaining' an audience - and audiences loved him for it. 

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April 2023 : At Carlisle Jazz Club on 6th April - another great evening with such a supportive and knowledgeable audience. We had our first gig at Melling Village Hall, which we have used for rehearsals, on Friday 14th - unfortunately a very small, but very enthusiastic audience -  a lovely venue that we'd certainly like to go back to one day. The Bare Village Club and Carnforth Station as our regular venues followed - Carnforth in particular proving very popular.

 

May 9th 2023 : After a long wait, extra bank holidays etc - we finally had Gerry's funeral at Carleton Cremetorium in Poulton. The funeral procession was led, New Orleans style, by members of the High Society Jazz Band and The Wyre Levee Stompers, plus a few old Gerry's old friends. Dave gave the eulogy to a packed Chapel, and the band reassembled to play at the wake (there's a video on our Facebook Page!). It was a fitting tribute to Gerry, who had been such a prominent member of the music scene, across a number of different genres, for so long.  On Sunday 14th we went up to Bardsea for a lunchtime session, with Brian Richardson on trombone and our special guest, John Hallam on reeds. This was a special treat, as this was the last time Malcolm Cookson would be organising such an event - and doing the cooking! The Hall was packed, the food was delicious, and the band ---- well, the band was on top form! The following week was busy with another trip up to Carlisle Jazz Club, and our two regular monthly gigs at Carnforth and Bare.

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June, July and August! We continued to play our regular gigs at Carnforth and Bare, despite interference from holidays and another bout of Covid! Sadly, Robin's wife, Sue, passed away, having bravely battled against cancer and we were honoured to be asked to play at the celebration of her life in July - Robin's family were very impressed by his skills on the washboard! We were pleased that John Whitaker was available to step in at short notice when Paul suffered his 3rd bout of Covid. Brian Richardson was over from the USA again, and stood in for Bruce while he was on holiday, and we welcomed an old friend, Steve Lister, who plays with Peter and the Sun Street Stompers, for the August gig at Carnforth Station. The Bare Village Club gig in August saw a first for the band, as Peter swapped his cornet and John swapped his bass to join Brian on trombone for a 'trombone trio'.

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September, October, November, December. The regular gigs at Carnforth and Bare continued. John Whittaker stood in on bass for Paul in October, when Paul went down with a second bout of Covid, but Paul had recovered in time for our trip to Carlisle Jazz Club in November - another lovely evening with a very appreciative audience. December saw our 'Christmas Parties' at Bare and Carnforth (and the annual renditions of 'Blue Christmas' and 'Christmas in New Orleans'.As usual, we had plenty of guests sitting in at Bare. Unfortunately, this year there no 'Christmas Do' at The Roundhouse at Staveley, which we've always enjoyed. 

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So as we look forward to 2024 with the regular monthly gigs confirmed again, we're doing a special gig at Christ Church,Thornton, on Valentine's Day to remember our great friend and bass player, Gerry Clayton, and to raise funds for the church and the local hospice. We're also very pleased to have been invited to play at the Kirkcudbright Jazz Festival in June. Happy New Year, and many thanks to everyone who has supported us so regularly during the past year.

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2024 

January - with Peter and Bruce both unavailable, the regular rhythm section was joined by Paul Palmer and Jon Moreman for an afternoon of swing, which was much appreciated by the packed house! Barrie Marshall stood in for Bruce at Bare, and the band was finally back together in February for the two regular gigs. The Valentine's Day gig at Christ Church, Thornton, was a great success, and the packed audience (and the band!) enjoyed a delicious afternoon tea as well as some great music! This was to help raise funds to support the local hospice, whose nurses had helped to look after Gerry, and to support music at the church, and we were delighted to have raised over £400.

 

March saw another 'full house' at Carnforth, and the Bare gig continued the recent trend of growing numbers in the audience and amongst the guests. With Paul being unavailable, our good friend John Whittaker stood in at Bare for another well received afternoon. We're now looking forward to a new venue at St Mark's Church, Natland in May - and the on to Kirkcudbright to be part of the festival in June.

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