Claim OwnershipThe Quartet Jazz Standards Podcast
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Description
Geoff Gascoyne chats to big-name (and upcoming) jazz soloists as they pick and play their favourite jazz standards and talk about their jazz lives.
A mix of candid discussion, technical insights and spontaneous improvisation, this weekly podcast is a must-listen for everyone that loves jazz.
Geoff is a renowned jazz bass player and prolific composer and producer with credits on over 100 albums and a book of contacts to die for! He is also executive producer of the best-selling Quartet jazz standards play-along app series for iOS.
44 Episodes
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Tokyo is the backdrop for a relaxed but deep jazz guitar conversation between host Geoff and Los Angeles-based, world-renowned guitarist and educator Larry Koonse, hours before they play at the Blue Note. We talk about how a life in jazz actually gets built: early listening at home, finding the music through friends, and learning from mentors who shape your sound for decades. Larry explains why jazz standards sit at the centre of his development, not as museum pieces but as the shared languag...
In this episode, Geoff catches up with the super-talented saxophonist, guitarist, composer and arranger Harry Greene - a recent graduate of the Royal Academy of Music who is already making a big name for himself on the London jazz scene. We are in a back room at The Stables Theatre in Milton Keynes and it is abundantly clear that Harry has a serious work ethic and a wide-angle taste. He takes us right back to the moment Pink Floyd’s ‘Money’ hooked him, not just for the groove, but for the fac...
Geoff sits down with American Grammy-winning pianist, composer, arranger and former Jazz Messenger Geoffrey Keezer who is in London for a series of concerts. He begins by describing playing jazz clubs as a teenager, playing piano for Art Blakey at age 18 and touring alongside Benny Golson and Ray Brown while still in his 20s.He shares how he came up through Aebersold play-alongs, the early Real Book, and constant record collecting, sharpening his language through relentless transcription. Tra...
Geoff has travelled to Ronnie Scott’s jazz club in London’s Soho district to meet with the legendary Brazilian jazz guitarist Romero Lubambo. In a candid interview between his run of shows with Dianne Reeves, Romero contemplates what changes when there’s no band behind you: you become the time, the bass, the harmony, the dynamics, and the safety net, all while keeping the song clear and the singer supported. We dig into the craft of playing slowly through the lens of Antônio Carlos Jobim, whe...
Geoff is in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire to meet with the renowned British jazz saxophonist, composer and bandleader Tim Garland for a wide-ranging conversation on how a real musical voice is built over decades…not weeks. We start with the spark: ECM Records vinyl, Keith Jarrett, Chick Corea and the late Ralph Towner, plus the pull of funk and rhythm that hits you in the chest. Tim breaks down how he learned jazz improvisation by writing small fragments, moving them through keys, and then con...
Geoff closes the year with a Christmas ‘session’ that blends memory, humour, and unapologetic swing, featuring the brilliant Ian Shaw and the incomparable Trudy Kerr. From the first count-in you can feel the band's pocket and the playful way we shape tradition: ‘God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen’ settles into a medium swing, ‘O Come All Ye Faithful’ nods to Horace Silver, ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing’ stretches on a tasty vamp, and ‘Deck the Halls’ dances with a Latin pulse. Between takes we wand...
Geoff is in the coastal town of Deal in Kent to meet with the wonderful jazz singer and lyricist Norma Winstone. A childhood steeped in radio, a cinema crush on Lena Horne, and a record collection that swung from Ella and Louis to Sinatra’s ‘Only The Lonely’—Norma charts how a voice finds its own gravity. We talk about the hinge moments that redirected the road: pub sit‑ins that led to John Taylor, the New Jazz Orchestra and Michael Garrick inviting the voice into instrumental roles, and Kenn...
Geoff is back in Bedford, England to sit down with the highly-acclaimed American singer, songwriter and keyboardist Charlie Wood. A voice steeped in Memphis and refined in London, Charlie Wood’s conversation moves from Beale Street grind to big-band elegance. We start with origins: a home filled with Charlie Parker records, classical lessons, and the kind of eclectic listening that makes Johnny Cash, B.B. King, and Debussy feel like neighbours. That early mix shaped a musician who treats song...
This week Geoff is in Bedford, England to meet with one of the most highly regarded British jazz singers Jacqui Dankworth MBE – daughter of singer Cleo Laine and musician John Dankworth. A song can carry a family. This episode begins with Stephen Sondheim and a daughter finding strength after losing her mother, the incomparable Cleo Laine. From the first quiet days after the memorial to the bright lights of new stages, we trace an artist's path through grief, discipline, and the brave work of...
Geoff is in Ruislip, West London at the home of the legendary jazz bassist Dave Green. A soft case in an aircraft hold, a school-grade rental at a major festival, and the quiet conviction that your sound should survive all of it—Dave takes us through a bassist's life built on time, touch, and taste. From tea chest beginnings with next‑door neighbour Charlie Watts, to month-long residencies at Ronnie Scott's, Dave maps the long road from village halls to the world's jazz stages with humour and...
Geoff is in the Hertfordshire town of Watford to chat with the wonderful British jazz vibraphone player Anthony Kerr…digging into practice, reading, and why space shapes sound. A trumpet felt like the wrong clothes. Drums were closer. Then Anthony hit a vibraphone at the Belfast School of Music and everything snapped into place. That moment of fit carries through this conversation as we trace his route from school band standards to New York's proving grounds and back to London's 606 Club with...
Geoff is in the North London suburb of Muswell Hill to sit down with the highly acclaimed trumpeter Henry Lowther as he unpacks the sessions, the stories and the systems behind a musician who has been a mainstay of the British jazz scene for over half a century. A trumpet on a cathedral step, a helicopter over Woodstock, and a fixer's phone call that changes your week—Henry Lowther has lived the kind of musical life that hides in liner notes and explodes on stage. Henry takes us inside London...
Geoff is in the picturesque Oxfordshire town of Henley on Thames to meet with the wonderful saxophonist (and former orthopaedic surgeon) Art Themen. What began with a misassembled clarinet and a missing page turned into a life split between the operating theatre and the bandstand, shaped by New Orleans tone, bebop language, and the stubborn joy of playing for real people in real rooms. We trace the arc from tin whistles and trad bands to hearing Louis Armstrong's All‑Stars in Manchester...
This week Geoff is in Suffolk to catch up with the fabulous jazz pianist, singer, composer and author Chris Ingham. Sitting at Chris’s piano in Suffolk, we trace how a kid who refused lessons became a singer-pianist, bandleader and repertoire obsessive who builds shows people actually want to hear. Chris takes us from The Beatles and Sinatra to Hoagy Carmichael and Dudley Moore, revealing why “themes” hook audiences, why standards are the best teachers, and how self-discipline sticks only whe...
In this episode, Geoff catches up with the wonderful trumpet player and educator Martin Shaw. Born into a household where music constantly filled the air—his mother a classical pianist, his father a jazz improviser—Martin's story reveals how these dual influences created the perfect foundation for his development. Martin shares the pivotal moment when, as a schoolboy faced with the choice between heading to the tuck shop or trying brass instruments, he chose the latter and discovered his life...
Geoff travels to the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in the heart of the City of London to meet with the wonderful guitarist and educator Chris Allard. Growing up in a musical family with roots stretching back to The Juilliard School in New York, Chris recalls his path from classical piano lessons to discovering rock guitar through Hendrix and Led Zeppelin, before Pat Metheny's ‘Letter From Home’ (1989) opened the door to jazz improvisation. This pivotal moment set him on a course that ...
Geoff travels to London’s West End to catch up with the legendary jazz guitarist Jim Mullen. The conversation offers a masterclass in authentic musical development as Jim recounts his journey from Glasgow's jazz clubs to becoming one of Britain's most distinctive guitarists. Approaching his 80th birthday, he reflects on the transformative experiences that shaped his musical identity – witnessing jazz titans like John Coltrane, Ray Brown, and the Oscar Peterson Trio in his hometown durin...
Geoff is in Finchley, North London to catch up with the wonderful saxophonist, flautist and composer Theo Travis. Theo takes us on a captivating journey through his remarkable musical career, from classical beginnings to jazz excellence and groundbreaking prog rock collaborations. This conversation feels like eavesdropping on two musicians sharing secrets about their craft, filled with moments of genuine musical insight and discovery. Theo reveals how his early musical path began with classic...
Geoff is in Greenwich, London to meet with the renowned saxophonist and composer Mark Lockheart. Mark's story begins with the heartwarming image of waking up to his father's jazz records and following his dad into saxophone playing at age eleven. What follows is a rich narrative of musical discovery that spans decades. Mark vividly recalls the American record club that delivered formative jazz recordings to his family home, introducing him to the sounds of Wes Montgomery and Paul Desmond that...
Geoff travels to Honor Oak Park in South London to meet with an old friend – the British composer and pianist Simon Wallace. Simon opens a portal into jazz's rich tapestry through personal stories that span from his childhood in South Wales to the vibrant scenes of New York City and London. This conversation reveals how a secondary school music teacher sparked what he beautifully describes as discovering “…a magic window into another world" – specifically the world of Black American cul...
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