Background,
musical influences, and other information.
Originally
from Oxford, I have been in Bristol for a number of years and over
the last few months may have been spotted singing in El Puerto,
Tantric Jazz and Bibas. There are some great jazz musicians
in Bristol and I have been lucky enough to sing with a number of
them. The jazz scene in this area is very cool and
definitely worth investigating.
I've been
singing since before I can remember. I learnt guitar
listening to the great Sam Cooke - simple chord progressions but
brilliant songs. My musical tastes stretch from Suede to
Groove Armada, from Bowie to Jamiroquai, from Sylvian to The
Smiths.
Jazz
is just another
part of this music.
I
'discovered' Louis Armstrong first - the father of modern music?
In Los Angeles I was lucky enough to see one of Ella Fitzgerald's
last ever performances. If you haven't got an Ella and Louis CD
there is a huge hole in your CD collection - the same goes for
Bing and Louis.
Frank
Sinatra's 'Songs for Swinging Lovers' I would call one of the
greatest albums ever made and the remastered production makes it
sound as fresh as ever.
Harry Connick
Jr appeared around 15 years ago - and though most people know him
for his big band music, I can strongly recommend the more intimate
CD '25' - inspiring for me.
Then there is
the great Chet Baker - a brilliant trumpet player but also such a
wonderful melancholic singer - look out for 'Chet Baker Sings'.
Matt Monro -
an unbelievable voice - so smooth - look out for a song called
'Charade' (though you will know him better for 'Born Free').
Nat 'King'
Cole - another smooth voice and a great pianist.
And Mel Torme
- a great all-rounder with a brilliant back-catalogue of jazz
standards.
There
are so many other influences: Ray Charles, Louis Jordan, Cab
Calloway, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, The Rat Pack, Bryan Ferry,
Morrissey, Elvis Costello, etc, etc.
My new album
'Captivated' is a collection of songs written and produced by me
and it features some brilliant musicians - find out more at www.NickLangston.com
If
you need any recommendations or have any comments, please feel
free to e-mail me.
All the
best.
Nick
Nick's
MySpace Site
e-mail
Nick
