It might seem a little self-indulgent to produce a 73 minute CD exclusively featuring the soloists within a band, but when that band is Black Dyke and the line up of performers is as renowned as this, Dr Nicholas Childs can hardly be blamed for cutting himself a bit of slack.

Good to report

That said, there does seem to be an inexhaustible supply of recordings coming out of Queensbury these days, so it is good to report that there is something fresh about this particular release, which literally showcases the complete stable of Dyke’s star performers.

Moving sequentially from the top to the bottom of the band, the listener can enjoy the talents of soprano player Paul Duffy through to percussionist Andrea Price aided by neat sectional features and solo quartets along the way.

Easy listening

It is also a recording that is geared towards the easy listening genre – perfect stuff to sell by the bucketful at packed Black Dyke concerts which invariably feature at least three of the players under the solo super-trouper spotlight.

Although there are one or two unashamedly cheesy crowd pleasers (notably ‘Reet Petite’ and ‘Gypsy Airs’) the repertoire still gives the performers plenty of opportunity to display the full array of their considerable skills without cheapening the musical content.

Style and altitude

Paul Duffy’s own version of ‘Oh When the Saints’ shows that the young soprano star can jazz in style and altitude, whilst Richard Marshall is, as always, a model of clarity in his faultless rendition of ‘Napoli’.

Zoe Hancock is a mellifluously tender soloist in Randy Newman’s sentimental, ‘That’ll Do’, with Sheona White displaying athletic agility and her trademark full blooded sound on the fleet footed ‘The Piper O’ Dundee’.

Attractive

‘Carrickfergus’, with its upbeat chorus proves an attractive vehicle for the lyrical gifts of Katrina Marzella, whilst Gary Curtin provides the most substantial contribution of the release with a virtuoso performance of ‘Harlequin’, which segues nicely into the warm euphonium and baritone quartet, ‘A Little Prayer’.

Banana skins

A dextrous Brett Baker is on top form with ‘Atlantic Zephyrs’, and it good to hear the fruity tones of Dyke’s long serving bass trombonist Adrian Hirst featured in the laid back ‘New York State of Mind’ – although the trombone feature of ‘Devil’s Galop’ sounds as if Dick Barton and the gang are running across a floor that has been man-trapped by glissandi banana skins.

Intriguing

Joe Cook provides an evocative account of, ‘Mists on the River Wear’ whilst his fellow foundation layers are on equally fine form when joining him for the little gem that is Eric Ball’s, ‘Quartet for Tubas’ – an intriguing study in four part tuba harmony and sonority.

It’s also good to hear some of the band’s impressive young ‘second seats’ featured too, with Alex Gibson and Jonathan Bates revealing their emerging solo talents on ‘Time to Say Goodbye’.

Swath

Andrea Price and the rest of the percussion team literally cut a breathless swath through the lively ‘Fling’, and ‘Sabre Dance’, whilst ‘Scat’ from ‘Cat’s Tales’ rounds the disc off in witty fashion with feline contributions from Richard Marshall and Brett Baker.        

Banding connoisseurs might well find themselves more drawn to discs that showcase substantial solo repertoire, but in terms of pure entertainment this enjoyably varied selection box more than caters for the vast majority of listener’s tastes.

Chris Thomas

Contents

1. Oh When the Saints, Paul Duffy (Soprano Cornet), 4.02
2. Napoli, Herman Bellstedt, arr. Andy Owenson, Richard Marshall (Cornet), 4.54
3. Time to Say Goodbye, Francesco Sartori, arr. Dan Price, Alex Gibson (Cornet) and Jonathan Bates (Tenor Horn), 3.55
4. Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), Pablo de Sarasate, arr. Phil Lawrence, The Cornet Section of the Black Dyke Band, 2.13
5. That'll Do, Randy Newman, arr. Dan Price, Zoe Hancock (Flugel Horn), 4.15
6. The Piper O' Dundee, Kenneth Downie, Sheona White (Tenor Horn), 4.49
7. Reet Petite, Berry Gordy and Tyron Carol, arr. Sandy Smith, The Horn Section of the Black Dyke Band, 2.24
8. Carrickfergus, Traditional, arr. Stephen Roberts, Katrina Marzella (Baritone), 3.27
9. Harlequin, Philip Sparke, Gary Curtin (Euphonium), 7.15
10. A Little Prayer, Evelyn Glennie, The Baritone and Euphonium Section of the Black Dyke Band, 2.31
11. Atlantic Zephyrs, Gardell Simons, arr. Keith Wilkinson, Brett Baker (Trombone), 4.33
12. New York State of Mind, Billy Joel, arr. Sandy Smith, Adrian Hirst (Bass Trombone), 5.22
13. Devil's Galop, Charles Williams, arr. Boyle, Brett Baker, Paul Woodward Garry Reed and Adrian Hirst (Trombones), 1.46
14. Mists on the River Wear, Dan Price, Joseph Cook (Tuba), 6.39
15. Quartet for Tubas, Eric Ball, Joseph Cook, Philip Goodwin, Matthew Routley and Danny Sinclair (Tubas), 4.19
16. Fling, Andrea Price (Xylophone), 3.46
17. Sabre Dance, Aram Khatchaturian, arr. Moore , The Percussion Section of the Black Dyke Band, 2.25
18. Scat from Cats Tales, Peter Graham, 3.12