I've sung the praises of the Monday night jam sessions at Swingers many times in the past (for instance, here), and I'm not going to miss the chance to do it again.
By now, the sessions are a venerable institution. When I first visited, about ten years ago, they were already one of the foundation stones of the Cape Town jazz scene. I'm happy to report that the jams are still going strong. (Cape Town has a long and rich jazz history, having produced truly legendary musicians, such as Abdullah Ibrahim [Dollar Brand] and Winston "Mankunku" Ngozi. The current generation is maintaining the tradition.)
Tsepo Puoane, Swingers, 26 March 2012. {Photos copyright John Edwin Mason, 2012. Click on either image to see a larger version.}
A good jam session needs a strong house band to anchor the musical goings-on. Swingers has one of the best. Leader Alvin Dyers (guitar), bassist Alistair Andrews, and drummer Denver Furness have been stalwarts seemingly from the beginning. A number of pianists and horn players have cycled through, including the late Nick le Roux, a wonderful player who died much too young. The level at which this band plays is extraordinarily high. I remember escorting a New York horn player to Swingers a couple of years ago. He swaggered in, expecting to own the joint. He walked out full of respect for Cape Town musicians.
Last Monday, Darren English fronted the band on trumpet. He's been a regular at the jams since he was in high school. Back then, he wasn't playing with Alvin and the boys, of course. That's an honor that has to be earned. After studies at the University of Cape Town's College of Music and the Norwegian State Academy of Music, he's matured into a very creative jazz trumpeter. (That's Darren in the photo below, sitting in on drums, during one of the late sets.)
Ross Eustis, trumpet, Darren English, drums, Swingers, 26 March 2012.
The great thing about a jam session is that you never know who or what you're going to hear. Most of the time at Swingers, it's a surprise and a delight. Last Monday, for instance, I was hearing Tsepo Puoane and Ross Eustis for the first time. Both of them were impressive, fully in control of their instruments and the language of contemporary jazz. Puoane is a South African, who has been studying overseas; Eustis is an American, who has a grant to study local musical communities in various parts of the world, including South Africa.
If you're live in Cape Town and care about jazz, you already know about Swingers. If you're a visitor, the club is easy to find -- on Wetton Road (a major street) in a light industrial section of Ottery, a suburb that's about 20 minutes by car from downtown Cape Town. It's also in most tourist guides.
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