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THE mellow sounds of the Hartley Collective entertained a full house of diners at the Upstairs Downstairs Restaurant and the band will be back on the scene tomorrow evening.
Stepping in as short-term holiday replacements for the established crowd-favourites Frankie & Friends is never an easy task but, the Collective contains cool and experienced musicians who have established a loyal following amid the Friday brunch crowd at the Muju Lounge on Amwaj Islands.
Their Thursday night sets fitted well with a more mature audience and a large section of US jazz devotees showed their noisy appreciation with spontaneous applause throughout.
The four-piece collection of Sar Music School teachers, namely Emily Lim on trumpet, Mick Raggatt on piano, Ben Perry on bass and Mark Heaton on drums, showed versatility and a neat combination of classic jazz, a touch of Latin and a few mellow pop tunes thrown in for good measure.
This is laid back music at its best alongside some foot-tapping faster tempo favourites to keep you swinging between the main course and dessert.
Emily’s majestic notes touched the heart and alone were worth booking a table and travelling to Adliya for. When Time Goes By, Come Fly With Me and Sunny Side of the Street were just a small sample of the tunes on offer and Ben and Mark had a fascinating 10-minute session just to themselves which worked wonders in raising the temperature.
The foursome may become five with the introduction of a female vocalist. It will be interesting to note whether this element adds or takes away from what is already a class act in its own right. Watch this space.
Review by Stan Szecowka
