Clacton Arts & Literary Society

Posts Tagged ‘Tony Jacobs’

Tony Jacobs and Jim Barry
Well,what can anyone say about this duo except `immaculate in presentation and content.`

The humour and the banter was well thought out and in the exact amount.

Tony Jacobs has got to be one of our best contemporary vocalists(he`s not `alf bad on a trumpet too!)

Put him with the giant talent of the keyboard that is Jim Barry and there really are not too many words that can adequately describe this team.

Yet another triumph for the society and success yet again from the `Cindy Hardy stable!`

Jennifer Kersey.
see Tony Jacobs’ Christmas show at the Westcliff Sunday

Monday evening witnessed the final presentation in the first half of the Society’s current season. Tony Jacobs and his Fabulous Festive Five brought an evening of musical entertainment to a packed auditorium at the Princes Theatre that enabled the audience to forget the freezing temperatures outside. Billed as ‘Swing into Christmas!’ the repertoire did for the most part reflect the swing rhythms that constituted a packed programme.

Tony Jacobs is a very proficient vocalist and trumpet player and this was evidenced from the very first song with Irving Berlin’s ‘Alexander’s Ragtime Band’. This upbeat performance started the audience’s feet tapping and certainly lived up to the evening’s billing. Another Berlin classic followed – ‘It’s a Lovely Day’- with a superb double bass accompaniment by Paul Morgan that emphasised the musical skill of the five supporting musicians. The first festive number was an instrumental version of Ray Anderson’s ‘Sleigh Ride’ which featured some very adept piano playing by Jim Barry, an accomplished pianist who had also arranged much of the programme. The first half ended with a further Berlin classic made famous by Fred Astaire – ‘Putting on the Ritz’- which featured a virtuoso performance on drums by Neil Bullock.

In the second half the audience was treated to a showcase performance of the saxophone when Sue Greenaway presented her arrangement of ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’. This talented saxophonist had the whole audience in the palm of her hand and they were definitely swinging towards Christmas. The pace slowed somewhat as we were treated to the classic Julie Garland song – ‘Have Yourself a Very Merry Christmas’ which Tony Jacobs delivered with his usual panache. The evening culminated with the audience joining in singing ‘Do-Re-Me’ and ‘I‘m Dreaming of a White Christmas’ yet another Berlin classic and immortalised by Bing Crosby.
‘Swing Into Christmas!’ was an extremely entertaining evening fronted by Tony Jacobs who is well known to Society members and once again he did not disappoint them. No member of the audience had an excuse for not leaving the theatre with a spring in their step and humming some great Berlin classics.

The evening was sponsored by the Westcliffe Theatre.

Robert Pearce
Locum Press Officer