Reviews
Here are just some of the reviews of Alvin Roy and his Jazz band…
Newbury News
“Alvin Roy plays the clarinet with a degree of warmth and precision and his style falls somewhere between the swing era music of Benny Goodman and the more modern sounds of the emerging bop units of the same era. His clean lines are delivered with assurance and a bright, clear tone. He is inventive at speed and rides easily over an efficient rhythm section.”
Newbury News
“It was refreshing to encounter Alvin Roy’s clarinet-featured combo who played a mixture of mainstream, middle of the road type jazz with a few modern selections thrown in for good measure. His clarinet solos, smooth, dark and often liquid, were devoid of the excess of vibrato so often heard in more trad-type settings.”
Melody Maker.
“The Alvin Roy Band’s single True Blue, which has reached the Top 20 in Japan, should ensure that they have a long career in the music business. The infectious sound created by the band had my feet tapping and I couldn’t get the tune out of my head for hours after hearing the record.”
New Musical Express
“The appearance of the Alvin Roy Band at the Barbican, last Sunday, was a triumph for good jazz. The band swung from the start and continued swinging till the last note was played. The enthusiastic crowd demanded encores which ensured that the concert finished 20 minutes later than scheduled…but nobody seemed to mind.”
Crescendo Magazine
“Radio 2’s Jazz club featured the first appearance of The Alvin Roy Band who proceeded to play a mixture of blues and standards during their set. Their accomplished line-up of Trumpet, Trombone, Clarinet, Piano, Bass and Drums would lend one to think that the outfit would be the usual standard Dixieland set- up, playing the same old tunes in the same old way. However this preconception was soon dispelled when they launched into Miles Davis’s “So What” as their opening number. They continued with a mixture of standards like “Summertime” and “Green Dolphin Street” and over the period of the broadcast showed that the standard of British jazz was not lacking in flair and inventiveness”…
Paul Medley. Oxford Times
“Roy’s latest album, Hedonism, is particularly welcome. He is a player with an inate sense of swing, a fluid lyrical approach that cannot be easily learnt. The music swings with smiling ease on all the tracks. Good straight ahead jazz with the individuality of a player who plays from the heart.”
Tony Augarde
Hedonism by The Alvin Roy Quartet.
As the former leader of a trad band, you might expect Alvin to play dixieland numbers like “The Saints” or “Bill Bailey” but his repertoire is more modern and varied, embracing jazz standards, Ellingtonia, show tunes and original compositions. Of the three originals, “Blues For Sandy” is Alvin’s tribute to Sandy Brown, one of his idols; “Isis Blues” is an easygoing swinger; and “Hedonism” is a bouncy bossa nova with an attractive melody.
John Martin. The Jazz Rag.
“Roy is a passionate player and from the opening notes of “Brotherhood of Man” he digs in and gets the music going and never lets up. His tone is full and resonant and his ideas are fluent and often quirky. This is honest straightahead jazz played by musicians who have no other agenda.”
Anonomous
“I would like to thank you and the other members of the quartet for playing at my celebration on 18th September; your presence was much appreciated. I have to say it gave the reception a great sense of cohesion which helped people relax; after all, is that not what jazz is all about? Please pass on my thanks to the other members of the quartet and let them know how grateful I am that they could be there on the day. Many people expressed their delight not only at having a live band but having a jazz band. As one of my guests said, “I would expect nothing different from you!”
I hope we may be able to use your services again in the future.”
John
I just wanted to share with you the most enjoyable couple of hours my wife and I spent at the Swan Inn, last night. It was an evening of really top class jazz and each member of your band performed to perfection. We look forward to catching up with you again soon and thanks for a great evening of jazz musicianship.
Neil.
I heard your band at the Nag’s Head in Abingdon and was impressed by the high standard shown by the musicians. It’s nice to hear a clarinet playing in a more modern style, other than the usual New Orleans sound that the instrument is associated with and thanks for the cd.