‘VARIOUS ARTISTS’ – LOVE SUPREME – GLYNDE PLACE, GLYNDE 1&2.7.22
The 1st of July kicked off the annual 3 day Love Supreme Jazz Festival, which highlights the best of Jazz, Soul and Blues in the beautiful countryside setting of Glynde, East Sussex.
With weather just as gorgeous to match the setting, I arrived early Friday morning with just enough time to grab a pint and soak up the excited and friendly atmosphere before the music began and the weekend was kicked into full swing.
Day 1 –
Matt Charmichael
Kicking off the weekend in the ‘Supreme Standards’ tent was Glasgow born saxophonist Matt Carmichael joined by fiddle player Charlie Stewart, double bass player Ali Watson and Tom Potter on drums. Described as a distinctive new voice in a crowded scene, Matt has made a huge impact with his debut album ‘When Will The River Flow’, released in March 2021. His upbeat folk set welcomed a full tent of excited punters ready to start their weekend on a high. Highlights of the set included track ‘Valley’, the closing track from this album. He encouraged the crowd to dance along and his set excited us for what was to come for the rest of the day.
Luke Purbrick Quartet
Amongst the Jazz legends on the bill, Love supreme features the ‘New Generation Jazz Stage’ where relative newcomers to the scene are given the opportunity to showcase the budding talent. Opening this stage on the Friday afternoon was the Luke Publick Quartet (aka The LP Quartet), a Brighton based band made up of band leader and guitarist Luke Purbrick, Ben Jones on saxophone, Lloyd Cootes on bass and Angus Bishop on drums. Meeting in the Brighton Jam scene, after band leader Luke studied at the prestigious ‘Tomorrows Warriors”. The band’s set drew a relaxed crowd, enjoying the atmospheric music whilst out enjoying the sun which seemed to continuously build as the set progressed. They described playing the festival as “The most amazing experience” and fans will have lots to expect from these newcomers in the Brighton scene in the following months.
Yessai Karapetian
Next to the ‘Supreme Standards Stage‘ was French piano player, composer and producer Yessai Karapetian. Yessai has been active in the European Jazz scene since he was 12 years old, leading him to be awarded a scholarship to study a Masters Degree in Contemporary Music at Berklee College. Starting with what the audience believed to be a soundcheck seamlessly led into their hour long set of continuous “ferocious” jazz playing tracks from his newest self titled album released in 2022. Joined on stage by his brother Marc Karapetian on electric bass guitar, drummer Theo Moutou and saxophonist Mounir Sefsous. His set came to an end as abruptly as it started, leaving the crowd fully warmed up and ready for more.
Jackson Mathod
Opening the ‘South Downs Stage’ was Brighton’s own Jackson Mathod. Jackson is a multi-instrumentalist and this weekend featured on trumpet. He was previously known for working as a session musician featuring on legendary artists releases such as Stormzy and Jordan Rakei. As soon as he walked onto the tall stage, Jackson had an instant positive energy showing his true love for performing and the music he was creating. The influences of blues and swing flowed throughout his high energy 45 minute set, which showcased his “Fun music Forever” work ethic. Fans of the set can expect his next record ‘Come Out Now’ to be released in the coming months.
Lady Blackbird
Next to the ‘South Downs Stage’ was my personal highlight of the day, Lady Blackbird, who is a powerful soul singer with influences such as Tina Turner, Billie Holiday and Glady Knight. Walking onto the stage she is instantly striking with her enormous platinum white hair and black and silver leotard to match. From the beginning of her set it was clear to see that she had a voice even bigger than her hair, as she broke into her emotionally powerful and intense songs, including tracks from her worldwide album of the year nominated album ‘Black Acid Soul’. She was joined on stage by the producer of her albums, Chris Seefried on guitar, as well as her additional 4 piece backing band. Lady Blackbird held the crowd’s attention for the duration of her hour-long set before walking off the stage with as much power and energy as she entered.
Day 2 –
Joe Stilgoe & The Entertainers
Day 2 began with just as lovely weather and vibes as day 1, as the crowds poured in at a much earlier time. Opening the ‘Main Stage’ at half 12, was British singer and piano player Joe Stilgoe, who is known as a modern day classic entertainer. His wit, style and musical ability kicked off the Saturday in style as he pranced onto the stage in a glittery sequin jacket with matching trousers and a bright blue silk shirt. Through his music, Joe aims to bring his new songs and older classics to new audiences. At this early point in the day his fairly large crowd mostly sat down enjoying the music from the comfort of their deckchairs. A highlight of the set for me was a comedy tune about not being let into the iconic Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club on a Saturday night.
Ife Ogunjobi
This smaller crowd at the ‘Main Stage’ was explained when I made my way to the ‘Supreme Standards Stage’ to find it absolutely packed out with a queue out the door for Ife Ogunjobi’s set. Ife is a London raised trumpet player with his heritage of being raised in a Nigerian household contributing Afrobeat influences to his jazz and hip hop tunes. With his music he aims to remove the barriers between genres and create a sound authentic to him and his culture. This performance was the first time he had played a festival under his own name and band, and thus showing the massive sense of excitement and joy to be on the stage this weekend. The highlight of his set was a bass guitar led medley of classic Motown bass lines leading into a massive funk jam, lighting up the tent and inspiring the first of many audience led dances to his set.
MF Robots
Next to the ‘Main Stage’ was duo MF Robots (Music for Robots) made up of singer Dawn Joseph and drummer Jan Kincaid, who met through a previous project and discovered their musical chemistry together in 2013. Dawn entered the stage with a huge rainbow coloured headpiece, which went on to shoot out confetti as they started the set. Her stage presence filled the field as she held the large crowd in the palm of her hand for the full hour long set. With influences from Funk, soul, acid jazz and RnB, the London based group brought a positive energy to match the weather and left the crowd on a huge high.
Samm Henshaw
Following directly after MF Robots was South London born singer-songwriter Samm Henshaw. Since touring with artists such as Chance The Rapper his free flowing RnB style has skyrocketed in popularity with over 1 million monthly listeners on Spotify. The set was mostly made up of tracks from his most recent release, the album ‘Untidy Soul’.
Tom Misch
Next onto the ‘Main Stage‘ was the act I was most looking forward to seeing this weekend, Tom Misch, a South London born multi instrumentalist who grew to popularity with his quarantine lockdown YouTube videos and DIY approach, which led him to gain over 4 million monthly Spotify listeners so far. With a very guitar solo focused set, he included tracks such as ‘I Wish’ and ‘South Of The River’ from his 2018 album ‘Geography’, as well as single ‘Nightrider’ from 2020 album ‘What Kinda Music’. His set included multiple special guests including Joel Culpper on guitar and vocals as well as his sister making a short appearance to sing the intro of track ‘Movie’.
Lianne La Havas
The packed out ‘Main Stage’ continued to welcome English singer-songwriter and guitarist Lianne La Havas. She arrived into the RnB music scene in 2010 with her hybrid of alternative folk and south, with influences such as Lauryn Hill and Nina Simone. She has seen continuous success with her many albums across the years, including debut ‘Is Your Love Big Enough’ and most recent 2015 album ‘Blood’. Her music perfectly captured the Saturday night vibes of the festival and left the crowd screaming for an encore after her hour long set
Erykah Badu
Finally to the stage was the headline act, the legendary Erykah Badu. Although 40 minutes behind schedule, this added to the sense of anticipation from the packed out crowd who were waiting for Erykah to finish the day on a high note. Her bass heavy RnB tunes matched with her powerful vocals and delicate song-writing were like nothing seen on the stage so far this weekend. Her hour-long set made up of classic tunes from 1997 album ‘Next Lifetime’ and more modern tracks from her 2015 mixtape ‘But You Caint Use My Phone’. She finished her hour long set at just past 11, leaving the crowd on the perfect high after a fantastic day of live music.
