About

Hello, my name is Simon and I am responsible – but not necessarily accountable – for the contents of the SimplyJazzTalk blog.

As a teenager I listened to the latest chart music – if it wasn’t in the charts then it did not exist. I used to listen to the top twenty chart rundown every Sunday evening, it was only when I one day left the radio on and heard the Alexis Korner Blues and Soul Show, did I discover a musical world outside what was being played on daytime Radio One.

Through Blues music I was introduced to jazz and that was when I uncovered a whole new musical world full of exciting sounds, improvisation, small groups and big bands. That discovery has been growing ever since to the point that I decided to share my enthusiasm with anyone prepared to show an interest in what I have to write. This is not the first time that this blog has been out there but more of that below.

SimplyJazzTalk is, quite simply, a blog about jazz music. The aim is to write my own personal album and live gig reviews, disseminate news relating to jazz, highlight jazz festivals and gigs, and deliver the odd opinion piece. I will also, occasionally, review an album from the past because the history of jazz music is just as important as that which is put out there today.

My reviews are largely written to express how what I hear makes me feel. I have no musical training or specific insight, I am just someone who enjoys hearing and experiencing the wonderful art form that is jazz music. The site has been out there before but was mothballed for three years before saxophonist and composer Hannah Horton encouraged me to start writing again.

SimplyJazzTalk ran alongside a jazz radio show called Sounds Like Jazz that I co-presented with my friend and mentor Maurie Kemp, who died August 2022. Maurie was a mine of information and stories related to the golden age of jazz music (1941 – 1959 according to Maurie), in return I would introduce him to what was being produced in the current jazz era by playing latest releases on the show or through the writing for the blog,

SimplyJazzTalk is very much a work in progress and hope it will slowly grow into something that some out there will engage with and enjoy.

Thank you for reading my words.

By the way, the images below, that appear throughout the SimplyJazzTalk site, were created by Katie Green.