Andy Firth - Live in Swingfield (2010)

Tracklist

01. There will Never Be Another You
02. Georgia On My Mind
03. Oh Lady Be Good
04. Body and Soul
05. 'Swonderful
06. Nearness of You
07. She'll Be Right Mate!
08. Misty
09. Baby Elephant Walk
10. God Bless America

In October of 2005 I received an invitation from the International Clarinet Association to perform in Atlanta with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as part of the ICA’s 2006 concert program. I of course accepted and pretty soon the word had spread to all of my dear friends and sponsors that I would be coming to the States for this wonderful event. My dear friends at Lomax Classic Mouthpieces immediately got on the case and organised for my wife Liz and I to visit their hometown of Springfield, Missouri so that we could have a nice break after the conference.

A week or so later I received an email from Mike Lomax that read in part:

“Hi Andy,
As you might realize, the Lomaxs think it would be on the verge of being criminal for Andy Firth to come to Springfield and some of the people here not get to hear you play! So, here is my question, finally! There is a park near us that puts on outdoor concerts each month during the summer. I am good friends with the fellow who is in charge of these concerts and I just happened to mention to him that the Greatest Jazz Clarinetist in the World was coming to Springfield in August and I was wondering if he had booked the August concert yet?”… And the rest, as they say, is history.

The concert that you hear on this CD is the culmination of months work on Mike Lomax’s part. Mike organised the best rhythm section that he could find and raised the funds needed for the incidentals and associated costs. Our heartfelt thanks to these people wonderful that supported Mike in this task for without your generosity of spirit I would not have got the opportunity to perform with one the finest rhythm sections, and for some of the nicest people that I’ve ever met in my travels-the people of Springfield, Missouri. USA.

Preparation for this concert consisted of a quick introduction to the guys in the rhythm section at Mike’s place, a 30 minute rehearsal at the venue, and charts that I quickly scribbled down whilst the guys were setting up for sound check. So I guess you could say that this was very much a “warts and all” performance-but this is the way I like it because to me, jazz music should be music played straight from the heart-masterful but always without a safety net! “Jazz Tartar”-raw and uncooked not like studio recorded jazz where you’ve got the luxury of doing something again or fixing up a bung note.

At the front of the stage there was a banner with Bart Simpson and Milhouse saying "Welcome to Springfield Andy & Liz Firth" for the entire concert.

It was a great night of fun and music. I hope you can feel this when you listen to our efforts "Live in Swingfield".

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [flac]