The Blues Train- In association with Shades of Soul Ltd

The Cosimo Matassa Project. Tim Penn & The Second Line

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Last Show: Sunday 26 th May 2019

PizzaExpress Jazz Club (Soho)

This month’s Blues Train will be a special treat for all Blues Fans with a double helping of New Orleans soulful blues, featuring two wonderfully talented bands, who will both be debuting at the club. Specialising in recreating the original and authentic sound of R&B, The Cosimo Matassa Project are passionate about the 45" records that emerged from the New Orleans studios of Cosimo Matassa in the 1950s and 1960s by the likes of Little Richard, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint and Big Joe Turner. Followed by Tim Penn and The Second Line, who dig deep into the same repertoire as the Cosimo Matassa Project, but also reach further back in time to some old school 1920s / 30s material and forward to the great New Orleans band of the 1980s, The Neville Brothers. So make sure you don’t miss this double helping of the best UK blues.

Read more ...

The Cosimo Matassa Project: "Like James Hunter before him, frontman Dai Price is a man to watch." Phil Alexander (Mojo magazine)

Tim Penn “Scintillating piano-based artistry” Blues in The North West

The Cosimo Matassa Project

The Cosimo Matassa Project are a collective of musicians in London, UK, working to conjure up the unique rhythm ‘n’ blues flavours that emerged from New Orleans in the late 1940s and early 1950s. At the core of the band are pianist and arranger Al Dunn (Loudon Wainwright / Richard Thompson), singer and double bassist Dai Price (Dai & The Ramblers) and drummer Roy Pfeffer (The Big Smoke Family). They’re often joined by guest musicians from London’s rhythm ‘n’ blues scene, and members of our collective have played with the likes of Allen Toussaint, James Hunter and Van Morrison. Over the last couple of years the band have become a staple on the R’n’B circuit, gigging around London clubs and bars such as Nightjar in Old Street, Brasserie Zedel in Mayfair and Ronnie Scott’s in Soho.

The entire project is born out of respect for the artists who passed through Cosimo Matassa’s studios, a real love for the music and a desire to summon up the sheer joy that pervades all of Cosimo’s recordings. Playing tunes by well-known artists from that era such as Fats Domino and Big Joe Turner, the band also like to unearth lesser-known gems by the likes of Clarence ‘Frogman’ Henry, Dave Bartholomew and Tami Lynn, as well as throwing in a few of their original songs.

http://thecosimomatassaproject.com

Tim Penn & The Second Line

Tim put together The Second Line to play the music of the New Orleans’ pianists that he loved. The band members are long time friend Nigel Appleton (Mission Impossible, Regenesis, Metheny Big Band) on drums, Francis Booth (Interiors) on bass, Chris “Wah-Wah” Proctor on guitar and bringing a little afro-beat to the mix, Ayo Odia (Osibisa, Fela Kuti) on tenor sax. 

Cooking up a hot gumbo of New Orleans R&B, Tim Penn brings the sounds of the American Deep South to Pizza Express with his band The Second Line. The bands draws on the music of Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Dr John, Allen Toussaint and then stirs it up with some Ray Charles, Tom Waits and Tim’s own original compositions, a recipe that has led to a string of sold out shows in London during 2018.  In Tim’s own words “This is the blues, but with a great big smile on its face”. 

www.facebook.com/TimPennMusic/