Dame Cleo Lane graced Pinner Jazz Club’s stage last February in honour of the gig she was to have shared with her husband Sir John Dankworth, who sadly died just a week before they were due to perform.
Now the popular club, housed in Pinner Parish Church, is hosting another Dankworth family affair with daughter Jacqui playing an intimate concert with her new husband, Charlie Wood. Brother Alec is on bass with trombonist Mark Nightingale and drummer Roy Dodds completing the line-up.
“I’ve never played Pinner before but it has a good reputation,” says Jacqui. “My father talked a lot about it. It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster since dad died and my uncle, my mum’s brother, died six months later. There’s been a lot to get over.”
Thankfully, Jacqui has had Charlie at her side to cope with the loss of her father, with whom she was collaborating on an album, which is due for release later this year. Some of their songs will get an airing at the Pinner gig.
“We'll play some songs I wrote last year such as Sweet Devotion, which is about my dad, and some reworkings of original songs I wrote with my dad. Charlie and I will also perform Dedicated To You, the album Ray Charles and Betty Carter made in 1961, featuring songs like Baby, It’s Cold Outside, Everytime We Say Goodbye and People Will Say We’re In Love, plus originals and jazz standards. People love our voices together, so we do a lot of harmonies – it’s two for the price of one.”
Those familiar with their solo careers will acknowledge that these two are in fact priceless talents in their own right.
Memphis-born Charlie started out playing keyboards for legendary blues guitarist Albert King in the ’90s and has performed with BB King, Georgie Fame and Robert Plant. His recent, fourth album Flutter and Wow received rave reviews.
Jacqui released her acclaimed first album, As The Sun Shines Down On Me in 2003, which featured a cover of one of Charlie’s songs, Lucky Charm, though at that point they were yet to meet.
In 2004 she released Detour Ahead and her third album, Back To You was released in 2009.
Jacqui and Charlie have spent the past six months performing together and got married while touring in California last October.
The Dankworth dynasty lives on in their live performances and their joint show on UK Jazz Radio called Conversations, but both enjoy the freedom of their solo projects.
“We’re careful to pursue our solo careers because you’ve got to be made of something pretty wonderful to work together. I wonder how mum and dad did it, but they had a big house with a very long corridor,” jokes Jacqui. “We spend a healthy amount of time together and apart.”
“It’s been fantastic working together,” agrees Charlie. ”We’re like-minded without being repetitive or redundant musically and our different backgrounds are really well-suited. We collaborate a lot without cancelling each other out.”
Pinner Parish Church, Church Lane, Pinner on Saturday, March 5 at 8pm. Details: 020 8429 1260, www.pinnerjazz.org.uk
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