Secret Quartet - Bloor Street

Edition Records – WND 1019
Released March 2010

Martin Speake – alto saxophone;
Nikki Iles – piano;
Duncan Hopkins – double bass;
Anthony Michelli – drums

The quartet’s first album Secret was recorded ten years ago in 2000 (Basho SRCD 3-2) displaying incisive appreciation of each other’s musical thinking and adroitness. It was a very strong album in melodic and harmonic cohesion and a great piece of work for collectors of jazz saxophone. The nine original tracks on Bloor Street substantiate the standing that the quartet has achieved in jazz and every moment is a delight of eloquent, musical expression. I am tempted to say “Speake does it again”, but the tunes come from Iles and Hopkins as well and of course all four contribute to the performance, not least Michelli with his very nicely timed percussion. I believe Bloor Street is a better album even than Secret, not hugely perhaps, but those ten years of added experience and honing of skills have added their benefits to this already fine-tuned collaboration and the whole is somewhat more concentrated.

Bloor Street is a confident, captivating musical set which exhibits focused drive and vitality. It is music of an extraordinary self-assurance and eminence, from the gaunt conception of Speake’s ‘Make Some Memories’ to the jittery complexity of bop-inspired Unit Six from Nikki Iles. It’s jazzman’s jazz from bar one.

Reviewed by

ken cheetham
March 2010