MICHEL BENEBIG AND SHEM AT CJC AUCKLAND 16 Nov 2011

They say people change every 7 years. I'm not really due for transmogrification for another 5 months but I like to get a head start sometimes.

Just about everyone who knows me and is into jazz can tell you I am a total jazz Philistine.They shake their heads in sorrow and exchange simultaneously superior and pitying looks.

Have I got a shock for them!

I went to a JAZZ CLUB !!!

I had a wonderful time !!!

I'm going to go again !!!

I decided to take public transport . Train and bus both left at the same time but it's further to walk to the train.  Having looked in the mirror (a rare occurence) and being totally shocked, I stopped to apply enhancements, thus missing the train. I took the bus - this would merit a blog all of it's own but suffice it to say there is a good reason why Aucklanders prefer cars. Buses are ghastly! Never again - well not until I am 65 and get my free bus pass!  (If the pollies change the retirement age to 67, will this mean those poor sods will have to wait till then to get free local travel?).

I forgot CJC was in a basement so wandered about vaguely until a charming bloke pointed me in the right direction. I've found that if you aren't young and nubile, the best strategy for getting help with all sorts of things is to stop dying your hair and develop a slightly bemused expression. It really works - you should try it. It's just as well I had looked on the internet for the street address or I might not have found the venue at all!  There is no big sign on the wall announcing CJC Jazz Club. You go through a pub (1885) filled with lovely young things, then down some stairs at the rear (there is a lift so don't worry if you can't do stairs).

The room was atmospherically lit. Somehow jazz clubs and bright lighting don't go together.  Thank God for smoke-free legistlation...

There's a bar and bar food.  The pizzas and bowls of chips ('fries' to you foreigners) that I saw folk munching looked very tempting. I'd had dinner so I regretfully passed.  It was a struggle.  I'm very fond of food!

The natives were friendly.

CJC has very large couches and armchairs plus some bar stools. Arrive early if you want a good seat. Or a seat at all.

 After a bit (time enough to down an excellent alcoholic beverage), the gig was introduced by Roger Manins.

The featured trio (from New Caledonia)

Michel Benebig  - Nord C2 Combo organ  (this page is in French - you will probably need to type Michel Benebig into Google search and get it to translate the page)

Shem - vocals 
Johan Cazalas - drums

plus New Zealand guests: 

Ben McNicoll - baritone sax, 

Pete Barwick - well- known local trumpeter but pix and links proving elusive. 

Jimmy Garden - tenor sax. 

Sorry folks - the pix of the kiwis were mostly too dark and fuzzy to use, a pity as they were great to watch. Cameras have hissy fits in dim venues with fast moving cats.

Roger made a few quips  about French colonialism etc - all in good humour.

Yes, well. I'm not quite sure how to describe it all.  

It was worth seeing for Michel's many incredible facial expressions alone. The guy was having a ball!   Around half the numbers were instrumentals with Michel as the main focus. Incredibly dynamic. and very loud. It lived up to the billing of 'Fiery'. 

  Classically trained, Michel tired of playing that style after 18 years and got himself an organ. He taught himself a totally new method, listening to CDs and developing his own style. He has certainly achieved a unique performance style and found a way to get noticed. I asked him about his thoughts on this. His analogy goes like this. "On a trip in the country you pass alot of cows. They all look the same, then you come across a cow that gets your attention - maybe a different colour, or wearing clothes!  You have to find a way to stand out from the cows that no-one really notices"'

 Michel has several organs at his home in New Caledonia but finds the Nord C2 Combo organ ideal for travel - it only weighs 15kg, packs up compactly and he still achieves a darn good performance on it.

The minute I saw Michel, I was reminded of another friend, Peter Tschirky, who plays bassoon.

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Most of the pieces were Michel and Shem's own compositions, some with input from other friends of theirs. Very talented compositions, and displaying many different moods.Michel and Shem have been married for 7 years.  They met when Shem was the stand-in singer at a gig in New Caledonia. This can definitely be described as fortunate, both for them and us!  They have great musical rapport. A seamless performance.

Shem had a range of vocal styles and some interesting pirrips and other non-word sounds (there is no doubt a proper name to describe this and no doubt someone will want to tell me what it is!)which floated effortlessly.The songs displayed Shem's versatile voice, I suspect her range is much greater than the time allowed.  Her post-missionary style New Caledonian dress proved very effective as performance attire. Lots of movement, varied according to the content of the song.  Shem introduced each song with an some background of the composition plus an English explanation of the lyrics. This was necessary as the lyrics were in French. My French proved sufficient to follow the gist but schoolgirl French doesn't get you  far so I was glad of these explanations.

Shem sang 'Papillon' (Butterfly) at CJC.
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The drummer,  Johan, was intensely in tune with what the other players were doing and they all fed off each other brilliantly. Johan is From France, now resident in New Caledonia.

 This drummer was compelling viewing. Very energetic.  My brain doesn't really get drums but I'm retraining it!
If you like drum solos, but I think his performance at CJC was alot better than this...

 

Ben wore a pork pie hat that made you instantly think 'Blues Brothers'. He was having to transpose everything into a different key because he was using his sax as a trombone. This takes some doing on the hoof as not only do you have to change the key signature, but not all the accidentals change. He still looked like he was having a good time.  I like musicians who smile and look as if they like being there. The local trio had only 3 hours to familiarise themselves with Michel's excellently clear chord charts but unless you had been told, you wouldn't have guessed. Their timing was spot on.

I didn't see much of Pete and Jimmy as a substantial pillar was obscuring my view. I had to do a contortionist act to see around it - which was well worth doing periodically and my osteopath agrees with me (probably he was imagining $ signs if I get to be a regular here). It was a bit like being in the now demolished Her Majesty's Theatre but the pillars here are alot wider.

I've had a wee think  and decided I'm more a visual person than auditory one.  Given the choice of listening to something or watching, I'll watch. I totally enjoyed myself and the music was fabulous, but I suspect I need visuals to make jazz work for me. Eye candy sure works at the gym. It works at the jazz club too. Visual jollies come in many forms - appearance, movement, expression etc. There was something for everyone here. 

Hopefully, Michel, Shem and Johan will grace our shores again. I'd certainly go see them.

Live well and Prosper (you decide what living well actually means!)

And get out of your comfort zones - especially if you're coming up for that 7 year itch.