Heads South

Heads South began as a one-off, a group of talented jazz musicians with a love for music from “Las Tierras Latinas” getting together for a single concert. It went so well that the guys really wanted to repeat it and the Band was formed.

Heads South has a five piece line-up which is led by pianist composer John Harriman and features top UK jazz trumpeter Steve Waterman, Cuban percussionist Chino Martell Morgan, drummer Buster Birch and New Zealander Tim Robertson on bass. The Band’s music has developed mainly around John’s composing which together with his arrangements of a number of well known classic tunes have created a repertoire of superb Salsa flavoured Jazz. This is premium Latin Jazz that appeals to the keen concert hall listener as well as the dancefloor lover. Its hallmarks are driving rhythms and distinct melody lines. Shades of Mongo Santamaria, Irakere, Tito Puente come to mind, Buena Vista Social Club with the excitement of Jazz and contemporary melody.

The band’s reputation has been growing fast in their relatively short existence. They have given sell-out concerts in the south east of the UK and performed acclaimed debut concerts in Spain - see short video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KXNawKZuVI Their appeal also extends outside the diehard jazz fans, with most recently a requested performance at Rod Stewart’s after show party at London’s 02 Arena. Heads South “play Latin jazz like they've been doing it all their lives. Their musicianship is impeccable” says Nigel Willamson long-time music correspondent of the Times and Mercury awards judge, “ a refreshing cultural mix of players with outstanding jazz credentials..." The Gig Guide. “probably the best Latin Jazz group in the UK today” jazz promoter Derick Woodland. “Top flight trumpeter..firing rhythm section” Timeout

The Band’s first full length album is Record Flight. Four of the tracks were initially recorded for a demo EP and all the new tracks were subsequently recorded in a single day session. The album was mixed and mastered by Derek Nash at Clowns Pocket Studios in March 2010 and is released on Aline Records.

The musicians that make-up Heads South all have trophies to their name elsewhere. John Harriman has worn a number of hats in something of an odyssey that ranges from having been a celebrated boy singer as Head Chorister of Westminster Cathedral and a soloist at the Royal Opera, where he rubbed shoulders with the likes of Benjamin Britten and Msitislav Rostopovich, to the thrills and spills of playing piano in California bars including witnessing blood on his 88s’ from a brawl between a Mexican gentleman and a French Canadian in downtown Hollywood ! John’s music reflects his diverse background, with Irish, French & English grandparents, he lived in California for many years and later New York, and nowadays regularly decamps to his Spanish wife’s Castilian homeland. He has also had a demanding ‘day job’ but in recent years has returned to performing and composing with a vengeance.

Steve Waterman is one of the UK’s leading jazz trumpeters. He began his career while studying at the Trinity College of Music and since then has performed extensively in the British and European jazz scene. Steve has a remarkable recording career spanning 20 years and has worked with a great variety of jazz and cabaret artists worldwide. He is professor of Jazz Trumpet at The Royal Academy of Music and Trinity College of Music in London. Steve has conducted numerous Trumpet master classes and workshops throughout the UK and also in Cuba, Spain and elsewhere.

Chino Martell Morgan grew up in Cardenas in Matanzas province in Cuba. He started playing percussion in his late teens, influenced by hearing the elderly locals play percussion in the district bars. He briefly attended Cuban music school and played with renowned Cuban drummer Miguel Zulueta and a number of Latin jazz bands. Chino now resides in the UK where he is in demand in salsa and jazz groups and has played at leading venues including Ronnie Scotts and the Jazz Café.

Playing professionally since his teens, Buster Birch is a highly regarded and versatile drummer. Having studied in London and New York, he has played with many of the UK’s finest jazz musicians and he has extensive recording credits. He plays a variety of styles of music and is a percussionist in two respected world music groups. Buster also plays with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Sarum Chamber Orchestra and is professor of Jazz at Trinity College of Music

As one of New Zealand’s leading bassists, Tim Robertson has performed with a variety of world class musicians and forged a diverse career in music. He located to the UK after studying under a scholarship at the Royal Conservatorium in Den Haag in the Netherlands. Tim is an in demand player on both electric and acoustic basses, having performed internationally at arts festivals, musical theatre tours and on high profile recordings.

www.headssouth.com Tel 44 7711 138780 Show less