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The Jake Leg Jug Band bring you the authentic sounds of 1920’s and 30’s America – Jazz, Blues, Gospel, Ragtime – and put their own twist on it. Songs of murder, betrayal, gambling, liquor and redemption.  Signing to one of the UK’s most prestigious Jazz labels ‘Lake Records’ they recorded albums as part of the ‘Vintage Recording Project’ essentially recording all live around ribbon microphones, as it would have been back in the 1930’s. Four albums released in five years; ‘Cotton Mouth’, ‘Next Stop!’ ‘Everythin’s Jake’ and ‘Break a Leg’ all met with rave reviews;​
“A masterpiece of nostalgic music. The band display real virtuosity and create a wonderful sound that will be hard for any other band to repeat”  Folk North West
“Expert musicianship and great arrangements….highly recommended”  Just Jazz
“Instrumental virtuosity. Very enjoyable, very listenable”  Blues & Rhythm
“A wonderful album. Expert musicianship and superb arrangements”  Fatea
“Good time music from a good-time group”  The Jazz Rag
​January 2020 saw the release of album number 6, ‘Goodbye Booze’ which commemorates 100 years since the start of the American prohibition, again released on the Green Bullet label.  The line up is: Duncan Wilcox (vocals & double Bass), Neil Hulse (vocals & guitar), Liam Ward (vocals, harmonica, jug & stomp box), Bryony-Rose (vocals & washboard), Alex Clarke (clarinet & saxes) &  Jack Tasker (banjo, mandolin and vocals)

This Midlands based band was formed over 20 years ago with some members from the Hazel Slade Big Band.  They always promise to please the audience with some fabulous numbers from a varied repertoire.  Presented in a light hearted fashion with some banter between Jon & Robin. They really are a little big band!  Tunes from W C Handy, The Ellington Orchestra, Dizzy Gillespie, Django Reinhardt to name just a few.  A s the band name suggests, this band don’t ‘alf swing!  One of the clubs favourites.

Coming from a family of strong musicians, Carl first started playing the piano when he was six years old.  He had classical lessons to the age of twelve (just listening and learning to copy the sounds) and went on to win ‘Young Musician of The Year’.  A few years later, he switched to a teacher that gave more direction on improvisation, jazz and pop.  By the age of eighteen, he’d mastered the art of playing boogie-woogie piano – relying on a strong left hand and a quick technique.  Since 2007, he has become one of the resident pianist at Jools Holland’s live music venue ‘The Jam House’ in Birmingham.  But he’s also very privileged to have performed at some of the country’s top music festivals and theatres and at countless weddings/private parties – and even done a few for some celebrities!  One of our club favourite acts, Carl Sinclair (piano) will make a return visit to us alongside Howard Smith on Drums and a guest on the frontline TBC.  Carl ALWAYS makes a splash at our club, I am sure our Christmas Party will go off with a BANG with Carl at the helm.

Coming from a family of strong musicians, Carl first started playing the piano when he was six years old.  He had classical lessons to the age of twelve (just listening and learning to copy the sounds) and went on to win ‘Young Musician of The Year’.  A few years later, he switched to a teacher that gave more direction on improvisation, jazz and pop.  By the age of eighteen, he’d mastered the art of playing boogie-woogie piano – relying on a strong left hand and a quick technique.  Since 2007, he has become one of the resident pianist at Jools Holland’s live music venue ‘The Jam House’ in Birmingham.  But he’s also very privileged to have performed at some of the country’s top music festivals and theatres and at countless weddings/private parties – and even done a few for some celebrities!  One of our club favourite acts, Carl Sinclair (piano) will make a return visit to us alongside Howard Smith on Drums.

With 40 years of experience as a professional jazz and blues pianist and band leader, John Beckingham has drawn together a group of highly experienced musicians and vocalists from some wonderfully diverse performance backgrounds – from blues, street jazz and traditional jazz to West End musical theatre.  They all have in common a passion for the popular music of the 1920s to the early 1950s, including Jazz Standards, Swing, Latin, Blues, The Great American Songbook and the movie & musical theatre numbers of the era.  The band consists of John Beckingham (Piano and vocals), Gilly Leeper (Vocals) Phil Probert (Guitar Banjo and vocals) Keith Tolley (Double Bass and vocals) John Caplin (Saxophones and vocals) and Graham Twist (Drums).

The Jazzaholics continue a tradition that has been decades in the making. In the days before The Beatles became famous, Trad Jazz was in the charts and it fuelled a youth movement that danced, enjoyed and learned about the American music of the 1920’s-40s. They branded it Traditional Jazz. The bands of Acker Bilk (Stranger On The Shore), Kenny Ball (Midnight In Moscow) and The Temperance Seven (You’re Driving Me Crazy) sold millions and set the scene for the bands that followed. The Beatles started out as a young band that played the interval set for Acker Bilk at The Cavern Club (which was a jazz club back then) in Liverpool before they hit the big time in 1964. Heady days indeed.  The Jazzaholics have a lineage to that musical tradition.  Formed by banjoist Jim McIntosh in 2007, he was a former member of the popular UK jazz band Phil Mason’s New Orleans All-Stars.  ​The Jazzaholics gets the audience’s attention from the word go! With a lively repertoire of music from jazz giants King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Kid Ory, George Lewis, Gospel/Spiritual numbers and New Orleans brass band parade tunes also included in our repertoire. The Jazzaholics are full of vitality and musicality – they guarantee a fantastic traditional jazz experience for all.  The Jazzaholics maintain a traditional format of six musicians. ‘Magic’ Mike Henry (Trumpet), Kevin Grenfell (Trombone), Karl Hird (Sax/Clarinet), Baby Jools (Drums), Warren James (Banjo) and ‘Lord’ Jim Swinnerton (Double Bass).

The Jazzaholics continue a tradition that has been decades in the making. In the days before The Beatles became famous, Trad Jazz was in the charts and it fuelled a youth movement that danced, enjoyed and learned about the American music of the 1920’s-40s. They branded it Traditional Jazz. The bands of Acker Bilk (Stranger On The Shore), Kenny Ball (Midnight In Moscow) and The Temperance Seven (You’re Driving Me Crazy) sold millions and set the scene for the bands that followed. The Beatles started out as a young band that played the interval set for Acker Bilk at The Cavern Club (which was a jazz club back then) in Liverpool before they hit the big time in 1964. Heady days indeed.  The Jazzaholics have a lineage to that musical tradition.  Formed by banjoist Jim McIntosh in 2007, he was a former member of the popular UK jazz band Phil Mason’s New Orleans All-Stars.  ​The Jazzaholics gets the audience’s attention from the word go! With a lively repertoire of music from jazz giants King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Kid Ory, George Lewis, Gospel/Spiritual numbers and New Orleans brass band parade tunes also included in our repertoire. The Jazzaholics are full of vitality and musicality – they guarantee a fantastic traditional jazz experience for all.  The Jazzaholics maintain a traditional format of six musicians. ‘Magic’ Mike Henry (Trumpet), Kevin Grenfell (Trombone), Karl Hird (Sax/Clarinet), Baby Jools (Drums), Warren James (Banjo) and ‘Lord’ Jim Swinnerton (Double Bass).

The Dragons started life as Johnny Everett’s Red Dragons.  Since the very sad passing of John, Barbara, his late wife has kept his memory alive in the music he played and loved.  There are four original members of the Dragon Band; John Bodenham (clarinet & soprano sax) who started his jazz career 60 years ago with the Side Stream Jazzband.  Ron Smith (drums) who has comprehensive drumming experience, he came to jazz late, after playing Country & Western and Rock’n’Roll.   He has played alongside Jazz Salon Rouge and The Allsorts in the past.  Permanently at his side in the band is Mark Johnson (double bass & sousaphone).  Other regulars are Dave Deakin (trombone) who started his musical career in silver bands; he joined the Dragons in 2012.  The two ‘new boys’ are the enthusiastic Peter Roberts (banjo), who has played banjo and sung in folk and jazz groups since the ’60’s with many bands, including Jazz Salon Rouge & Dene River Jazzmen.  John Stone (trumpet) joined the Dragons after supporting Johnny through his illness. Ex- Denise Lawrence’s Storeyville Tickle, he’s been a muso on trumpet and bass for 67 years.  The style of the band is best described as Dixieland. There are items from the ‘Trad’ repertoire but their developing repertoire also features some more unusual items from the Golden Era of jazz.

Sarah Spencer relocated back to the UK in January of 2017 and has been continuing to lead her ‘Sarah Spencer’s Transatlantic Band’ on both sides of the Atlantic, in Europe and in the USA.  She has also joined the long-established, Bob Dwyer’s Bix and Pieces band and is the other member of the front line of Mike Owen’s exciting and wonderful Scarlette’s Serenaders, which also performs internationally.  In addition to these, she is guesting with many other bands all across the UK and Europe.

Sarah Spencer’s Transatlantic Band performs powerful New Orleans jazz in the tradition of the great Revival.  Drawing influence from bands of that era, as well as taking influence from more modern New Orleans music, blues, rhythm and blues and the greats of all eras of Jazz and Blues; like Henry ‘Red’ Allen, Louis Armstrong, Kid Ory, Jelly Roll Morton, Big Bill Broonzy, Lonnie Johnson, Louis Jordan, Louis Prima and countless others.

Personnel of the Transatlantic Band are Sarah Spencer (reeds and vocals), ‘Magic’ Mike Henry (trumpet and vocals), Rob Pearce (trombone and vocals), Hugh Crozier (piano), Jim Swinnerton (string bass) and Jools Aldridge (drums).