Sunday Sessions: Jazz Dynamos - '70s/'80s hits re-imagined

Jazz Dynamos play The Stables on Sunday 15 November, part of the Sunday Sessions. It's a five-piece band fronted by vocalist and percussionist Lucy Randell, and the whole thing is built around taking well-known pop hits from the '70s and '80s and re-imagining them through jazz, bossa nova and samba.

That's a wide net to cast. The set draws on songs by Dolly Parton, Wham, Human League, Madonna, U2, The Police, a-ha, David Bowie, Genesis, Rainbow, ELO, Hall & Oates and Elton John. It's the kind of list where you'll hear a synth-pop line from the Human League sitting alongside something from Dolly Parton, both reworked into the same jazz and bossa nova framework. Critics have described their arrangements as 'better than the originals'.

On stage, the band is Lucy Randell on vocals and percussion, Mark Adelman on keyboard, Anders Janes on double bass, Dominique Metz on drums and backing vocals, and Stewart Curtis on sax, flute and piccolo. That last bit is where a lot of the colour comes from — the sax, flute and piccolo all taking turns across the set. They've played sold-out shows at Ronnie Scott's and the Pizza Express Jazz Club in London, festivals across the UK and Europe, including the main stage at Pub in the Park, and private events for British and Hollywood royalty. Their most recent public musical work is the album Hold Your Breath... Make a Wish... Count to Three, released in 2020.

The show is at the Mancini Forum within The Stables, starting at 11:30am on Sunday 15 November. Tickets are £19.50, which includes the booking fee. The show is sold out.