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Not only do they have Vijay Iyer (with the Jazz Album of 2009, he also released the Solo album last year) and Micheal Wollny (who’s most recent release is the [EM] album) they’ve now signed up Gwilym Simcock who hails from Wales.

His recorded output to date does not match his talent or reputation as success and acclaim have been a part of Simcock’s career even before he won the BBC ‘Rising Star’ Jazz Award in 2005 and attended the Royal Academy of Music.

The opener ‘These Are The Good Days’ throws in a myriad on influences you can hear in his playing and it’s sets the marker for the free flowing playing of Simcock. One of the stand out tracks is the collage of classical/gospel/jazz tones make up ‘Northern Smiles’ which has a touch of Yorkshire Dales TV theme about it (and it’s not connected with Simcock being part of Tim Garland’s Northern Underground but a play on Keith Jarrett’s ‘Southern Smiles’) and is a proper ‘episode’ in itself. In fact all tracks here are original Simcock compositions which is brave but incredibly impressive for a first solo album.

The likes of big name pianists like Brad Methlau, Iyer and Yaron Herman like to slip in a cover version of a ‘hit’ or two on their albums (notably in order, these three have covered Radiohead, M.I.A. and Nirvana recently) so when your ‘main’ track is over 12 minutes of elegant craftsmanship called ‘Can We Still Be Friends?’, you know this is no rush to gain commercial recognition on the back of someone else’s coattails.

As Simcocks early jazz heroes were Keith Jarrett and Pat Metheny, coming from a classical music training, most of the tracks on Good Days At Schloss Elmau owe as much to European masters like Mozart, Bach, Chopin and Ravel.

‘Gripper’ is a bit minimal blues (a bit of a grower this one) whilst the most ‘jazzy’, well in a Monk-heritage meets Emerson way, is ‘Wake Up Call’ which is best played loud. So whilst it is really out of context with the rest of the album in terms of sound, it makes the point that this is an album that is best listened to as a whole (which comes in just under the hour) as it (and Simcock playing) is more than the sum of the parts.

The album launch was a couple of weeks ago at The Forge in Camden Town (where another British pianist star played not so long ago, Robert Mitchell’s Panacea The Cusp) and it’s an ideal venue for the ambience of Good Days At Schloss Elmau

And what is Schloss Elmau? Well it’s a mighty impressive building that’s a “Luxury Spa & Cultural Hideaway” in the Bavarian Alps so chance are, we’re not going there soon but you get some concept of space from Simcock’s album and when talking about what he was trying to achieve in the recording he says, “I want to hear the piano sing” and that singing is perfectly encapsulated on the closing track ‘Elmau Tage’.

As a Simcock fan from the early days of the Simcock’s Nontet (that’s nine) at the 2003 Swanage Jazz Festival and his debut album Perception there’s loads of fantastic albums from Gwilym to come. On this one, you can almost breathe the mountain air as Simock’s playing is like an oral massage that brings new life to your listening pleasure - what a great way to start 2011!

Reviewed: Gwilym Simcock - Good Days At Schloss Elmau (ACT) Cat. No. 9501-2 Release date: 11th January 2011 Recorded at Schloss Elmau, September 2, 2010 Cover art © “Dialogue (blue)” courtesy of Galerie m Bochum, Germany
Tracklisting:
1 These Are The Good Days (6:06)
2 Mezzotint (6:37)
3 Gripper (6:35)
4 Plain Song (5:49)
5 Northern Smiles (5:44)
6 Can We Still Be Friends? (12:17)
7 Wake Up Call (5:27)
8 Elmau Tage (9:28)

Links:
gwilymsimcock.com
actmusic.com
Album launch at The Forge, Camden - Tuesday 1st February 2011
Doors 7:30pm, concert 8:00pm Tickets £12/£10 The Forge, 3-7 Delancey Street, London, NW1 7NL tel:0207 383 7808
www.forgevenue.org/whats-on
SWANAGE JAZZ FESTIVAL - 11th to 13th JULY 2003
The Dorset festival kicks off on Friday evening with Bob Kerr’s Whoopee Band, Denise Lawrence Band, Gwilym Simcock Nonet, Dave Brennen’s Jubilee Jazz Band, Martin Dale Quartet with Alan Barnes, Lianne Carroll Trio, Andy Dickens Quintet & the Rob Koral Quartet with Sue Hawker & Alan Barnes.
Saturday’s acts are: Dave Brennan, Keith Nichols, Ken Colyer Trust New Orleans Jazz Band, Alan Barnes, Gwilym Simcock, Marie Murphy, Geoff Eales, Claire Hirst, Bob Martin, Lennart Anderssen, Gary Potter
Sunday - The festival closes with Hampshire Youth Jazz Orchestra, Blue Note Jazz Band, Bruce Adams, Clark Tracy, Gilad Atzmon, Kirk Lightsey Trio
Events take place in a variety of venues around the town - www.swanagejazz.org.uk