KEEPING THE SHOW ON THE ROAD

I have followed The Jive Aces for many years and seen them in concert at the annual Big Jive All Dayer in my hometown of Worthing and at their major yearly event Summertime Swing. I also own all of their albums and really enjoy their mix of swing, jazz, rock 'n' roll and jive music.

The line-up consists of Ian Clarkson (vocals, trumpet & ukulele), Alex Douglas (trombone, washboard & blues harp), 'Big' John Fordham (tenor saxophone, clarinet & fiddle), Vince 'Professor' Hurley (piano), Ken Smith (double bass), Peter 'Bilky' Howell (drums) and Grazia Bevilacqua (accordion).

For over three decades they have been the Number One UK Jive and Swing band with a worldwide following, touring all across the United Kingdom, throughout Europe and America.

I have spent many hours backstage chatting to them and the other acts that have appeared on their shows and photographed their 'All Dayers' in Worthing, some of which have been published, alongside my show reviews, in various magazines including Vintage Rock and Vintage World. 

Photograph (c): The Jive Aces

They have recently released their latest CD, Keeping The Show On The Road, recorded at Mad Hatter Studios in Los Angeles, and in this latest article I take an in-depth look, song-by-song, at the album including the history of the songs.

The album opens in style with Rockin' Is Our Bizness, a song written by twins Cliff and Claude Trenier who, under the name The Treniers, had a hit with the song back in 1953. Like the original, the Jive Aces follow a similar sound with a solid, thumping beat and great saxophone solos. During the song each member of the band is given a mention.

Clementine dates back to 1884 and is a traditional American folk ballad often known as Oh, My Darling Clementine. Original lyrics were written by Percy Montrose and based on an earlier song, Down By The River Liv'd A Maiden. First recorded in English by Bing Crosby in 1941 it has also been recorded by Bobby Darin with lyrics by Woody Harris. Ian Clarkson provides a great vocal which is accompanied by excellent playing from the other band members.

In 1931 Duke Ellington and Irving Mills composed what has become a jazz standard, It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing). Ellington, speaking about the song, said, "It was famous as the expression of a sentiment which prevailed among jazz musicians at the time," It is also one of the earliest uses in popular music of the word 'swing.' Opening with some great drumming by Peter 'Bilky' Howell and featuring excellent horn playing by Alex Douglas and 'Big' John Fordham it is given a joyful rendition. Mid-song Vince 'Professor' Hurley shows why he is one of the greatest keyboard players around today. Once again a great vocal from Clarkson.

Henry Mancini's Pink Panther Theme will always be associated with the 1963 comedy film The Pink Panther starring Peter Sellers in the role of Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The film, the first in a series, also starred David Niven, Robert Wagner, Capucine and Claudia Cardinale. The instrumental was nominated for an Academy Award (Best Original Score) but lost out to Mary Poppins. The original featured a saxophone solo played by Plas Johnson and here it is 'Big' John Fordham who takes all the plaudits for some excellent playing supported well by the rest of the band. With it's smoky nightclub feel and great rhythm it is one of the many highlights on the album.

La Vie En Rose follows and is my favourite track on the album. Written in 1945 it has become the signature song of French singer Edith Piaf who released her version in 1947. During the 1950s the song became popular in America with no less than seven versions making the Billboard charts, including covers by Tony Martin, Bing Crosby and Dean Martin. Edith Piaf is credited with writing the lyrics with music added by Luis Guglielmi while the English lyrics were written by Mack David. The literal translation of the title is "Life in pink."

Grazia Bevilacqua opens the song with her fantastic accordion playing before the rest of the band join in for a beautiful cover of this classic song. Released recently as a single it gave them a number one on the Heritage Chart and the accompanying video has received over seven thousand views on You Tube. Close your eyes and you will be taken back to a French nightclub in the 1940s.

The American blues and jazz standard, St. James Infirmary was made famous by Louis Armstrong's 1928 recording which was credited to Don Redman as composer although later versions listed Joe Primrose, the pseudonym of music promoter and publisher Irving Mills. Within two years more than twenty versions had been released including a recording by country music singer Jimmie Rodgers with the title Those Gambler Blues. Ian Clarkson opens this classic song with some muted-trumpet before performing a bluesy vocal that sends shivers down your spine. Great support from the rest of the band as always.

Written in the 1950s by Clyde Otis and Murray Stein Baby, You've Got What It Takes, originally titled You've Got What It Takes, was first recorded by Dorothy Pay, Brook Benton's sister, in 1958. The following year Benton would also record the song as a duet with Dinah Washington, reaching #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Hot R&B Chart. On this fun version The Jive Aces are joined by Bill Haley's daughter, Gina Haley who I was fortunate to see at one of the Big Jive All Dayer events at which she gave an incredible performance. Clarkson's and Haley's voices work well together and it would be great to hear more duets by them.

Bim Bam was written by pianist and songwriter Ray Stanley and released in 1958 as a single by Sam Butera and The Witnesses. Stanley played piano on early sessions for Eddie Cochran and also recorded a number of his own songs including Let's Get Acquainted and the bluesy Common Sense. Another strong performance from the band with some excellent guitar work although it is not listed who played it on this track.

A major hit for Dean Martin, That's Amore is a classic and has become Martin's signature song. The song, written by Jack Brooks and Harry Warren, first appeared in the Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis film and soundtrack The Caddy in which Martin is the main singer but Lewis joins in. Nominated for an Academy Award (Best Original Song of the Year) it lost out to Secret Love from Calamity Jane. For the second time on the album it is Grazia Bevilacqua and her accordion who make this song a great performance. Following a slow and sexy start the song soon moves up a gear and everyone joins in for a wonderful up-tempo version that finds Ian Clarkson handling the lyrics perfectly. I just love the slowed down ending and interplay between the vocals and accordion.

Composed by New Jersey born Jack Fina, who started out playing piano in Clyde McCoy's band in the 1930s and later joined Freddy Martin's band where he became famous when he featured on Tonight We Love. In 1946 he turned to the classic Flight Of The Bumblebee, written by Rimsky-Korsakov for his opera The Tale Of Tsar Saltan, and composed a boogie-woogie version which he called Bumble Boogie. It became a hit and was featured in the 1946 musical It's Great To Be Young. This instrumental is a showcase for Vince 'Professor' Hurley whose pounding piano is really impressive. 

With original lyrics written in 1843 by Ukranian poet and writer Yevhen Hrebinka and featuring a melody based on Valse Hommage written by Florian Hermann, Dark Eyes would go through several lyrics changes over the following years. It has been covered, in various styles, by Maxine Sullivan, Danny Kaye, Spike Jones and Louis Armstrong among others. The song is often described as having an old gypsy melody and that is exactly what is created in the version featured on the album. Another strong instrumental that fits well with the other tracks on the album.

Night Train is a twelve-bar blues instrumental standard written by Oscar Washington and Jimmy Forrest and is another song that has gone through a number of lyrical changes with the earliest credited to Lewis P. Simpkins, co-owner of United Records, back in 1952. Clarkson's bluesy vocal is accompanied by excellent support, especially from the horn section. 

The only original on the album is the title track, Keeping The Show On The Road which fits perfectly among the other tracks. Written by Jive Aces frontman Ian Clarkson the song sums up the bands characteristics and credibility.

Big Noise From Winnetka was originally an instrumental written by Bob Haggart and Ray Baudec, bass player and drummer in the Bob Crosby Orchestra. Lyrics were added by Crosby and Gil Rodin and following it's early success it appeared in films including 1941's Let's Make Music and 1943's Reveille With Beverley. Over the years it has been recorded by Gene Krupa, Kenny Ball, Jack Teagarden and Eddy Mitchell, in French, Quand Une Fille Me Plait. Closing the album is a strong performance that once again shows the skills of everybody involved, especially Ken Smith who plays some great bass and Peter 'Bilky' Howell's drumming.

In the brief liner notes that accompany the album they write, "We have captured the sound and energy of these most requested songs from our live show on record for the first time. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do and that they inspire you to keep the show on the road."

The album certainly bought back many memories of the 2024 Big Jive All Dayer where I watched them perform several songs from the album including Keeping The Show On The Road,  St. James Infirmary, That's Amore and Le Vie En Rose. The latter two were memorable for the accordion playing by Grazia Bevilacqua and the chemistry between her and Ian which was a joy to watch.

I have loved the retro feel that is used on the covers of their previous albums and this latest release is no exception. Featuring an image of a tour bus on the road it sums up the contents of this latest release with its vintage design which was created by Michael Lombardi.

A great album full of wonderful music and one which, I am sure, will find a regular place in the CD player. Don't miss out, pick up a copy today. It can be purchased, along with their other releases and merchandise, from their on-line store - https://jiveaces.org/store

Thanks to Grazia Bevilacqua for providing a review copy of the CD for my collection.