Late-Night Jazz Shows in London

Wed, Oct 7, 8:00 PM

Jo Harrop and Band

PizzaExpress Jazz Club Soho / Soho / Map

There comes a point in the career of every artist where they face a choice. Continue refining a sound that already works or take a risk and step somewhere unfamiliar. On her new release, Love Now, Pay Later , Jo Harrop chooses the latter, and the result is one of the most surprising and rewarding albums of her career. For listeners who have followed Harrop through Weathering The Storm , The Heart Wants , When Winter Turns to Spring , and the acclaimed The Path Of A Tear , this album may initially feel like a departure. The jazz, blues and late-night intimacy that have become her trademarks remain firmly intact, but producer Chris Seefried has gently nudged the music towards a warmer, more soulful landscape. Northern Soul, vintage R&B and classic singer-songwriter influences sit comfortably alongside the jazz sensibilities that have always defined Harrop’s work. The inspiration may have begun with the spirit of Dusty In Memphis, but this is no exercise in nostalgia. Instead, Harrop creates a sound that feels timeless rather than retro.

Thu, Oct 8, 8:00 PM

Jo Harrop and Band

PizzaExpress Jazz Club Soho / Soho / Map

There comes a point in the career of every artist where they face a choice. Continue refining a sound that already works or take a risk and step somewhere unfamiliar. On her new release, Love Now, Pay Later , Jo Harrop chooses the latter, and the result is one of the most surprising and rewarding albums of her career. For listeners who have followed Harrop through Weathering The Storm , The Heart Wants , When Winter Turns to Spring , and the acclaimed The Path Of A Tear , this album may initially feel like a departure. The jazz, blues and late-night intimacy that have become her trademarks remain firmly intact, but producer Chris Seefried has gently nudged the music towards a warmer, more soulful landscape. Northern Soul, vintage R&B and classic singer-songwriter influences sit comfortably alongside the jazz sensibilities that have always defined Harrop’s work. The inspiration may have begun with the spirit of Dusty In Memphis, but this is no exercise in nostalgia. Instead, Harrop creates a sound that feels timeless rather than retro.

Mon, Oct 12, 8:00 PM

Simon Spillett Quartet

PizzaExpress Jazz Club Soho / Soho / Map

There is nobody more qualified to present such a tribute than Simon Spillett, himself a multi award winning tenor saxist (BBC Jazz Awards, British Jazz Awards, Jazz Journal Album Of The Year, Services To British Jazz) and a musician with a lifelong dedication to Hayes and his music, having also authored the widely praised definitive biography of the man, ‘The Long Shadow of The Little Giant’. Tonight he and the quartet reprise classic Hayes material from such albums as ‘Mexican Green’, ‘Tubbs in N.Y.’ and ‘Down In The Village’, bringing back the no holds barred excitement of the heady days of early Sixties Soho. There’ll be the stories behind the songs too, told by a leader whose sidelong wit brings to life an era when modern jazz, old school glamour and after-hours night life made London W1 the place to be.

Sat, Oct 17, 9:00 PM

Julian Joseph - Soweto Kinch - Iain Ballamy - 50th Anniversary

606 Club / Chelsea / Map

A true iconoclast pianist Julian Joseph is a unique figure on the International jazz scene. As well as a highly regarded, fluent and creative jazz pianist leading a number of different ensembles, from his trio to his 20-piece big band, he is also a skilled composer in both the jazz and classical worlds. And if all that wasn’t enough he is also a highly knowledgeable and engaging broadcaster who has forged a reputation beyond his formidable skills as a performer and composer to become universally recognised as a musical ambassador and cultural advocate. The first Black British jazz musician to host a series of concerts at London’s Wigmore Hall he was the first to headline a late-night televised performance at the BBC Proms in the late 90’s with his All Star Big Band. In 2002 he was commissioned to open the London Jazz Festival with The Great Sage, performed by his Big Band and the strings of the BBC Concert Orchestra broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 and in 2003 he premiered his original arrangement of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue for his All-Star Big Band at the City of London Festival. Movements from his orchestral suite "Symphonic Stories" have been performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, the Hallé and the Liverpool Philharmonic and in 2007 he branched out into opera with "Bridgetower" and then "Shadowball". Apart from his symphonic and operatic writing Julian has also composed a number of highly regarded jazz influenced contemporary dance pieces and has remained at the forefront of initiatives to introduce jazz into mainstream music education, leading to the foundation of his own Jazz Academy in 2013. And if all that wasn’t enough, as well as performing, composing, recording, teaching and broadcasting, Julian has also turned to writing, with his book Music of Initiative sharing his unique insights into the philosophy and practice of jazz performance. A major contributor to Britain’s cultural landscape he received an OBE in 2018 and his Awards include the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) Gold Badge (2010), the Ivors Academy 21st Fellow (2020), honorary fellow of Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance (2023) and the University of Southampton’s honorary doctorate (2025). A remarkable man and a true friend and supporter of the Club it is with enormous pleasure that we welcome this iconic musician to the Club this evening.