Release date: 18 January 2019

Mark Lockheart Tenor Saxophone

Alice Leggett Alto Saxophone

Liam Noble Piano

John Parricelli Guitar

Tom Herbert Bass

Seb Rochford Drums

John Ashton Thomas Conductor

Days on Earth is Mark Lockheart’s most ambitious album to date, wrapping 25 years of musical and life influences into a one career-defining album. With a heavyweight band featuring some of the leading figures of British Jazz including Liam Noble, Tom Herbert, Seb Rochford and John Parricelli, and a 30 piece orchestra, Days on Earth combines off-kilter Polar Bear grooves with unique and fascinating orchestral colours, all beautifully performed by a specially assembled crack London orchestra. Days on Earth shines a spotlight on Mark both as an exemplary instrumentalist and as a fine composer, firmly establishing him as one of the most original voices in European Jazz.

Drawing from a vast palette of eclectic tastes, from cutting edge improvising to soaring strings, African Kora harp melodies and 70’s inspired funk, the album is structured as a ‘grand suite’. Each of the six movements is inspired by human traits and tendencies – a subtle comment on the state of our world: the fragility and strength of humankind (This Much I Know Is True), fundamentalism and those who fail to question their beliefs (Believers), the innate tendencies buried deep in our psyche that are sometimes the path to trouble (Party Animal) and reconciliation (Long Way Gone)

The distinctive melodies and unique orchestrations are full of colour, texture and dynamics and fully represent the diverse landscapes that Mark has experienced. Days on Earth draws together 25 years of touring, recording and composing and represents the end of one cycle and the beginning of the next – 2019 is set to bring a new small ensemble work and a new major direction for one of the finest UK jazz musicians.

MARK ON // THE JOURNEY –

“Days on Earth is a defining album for me, not just the scale of the instrumental forces, but also the epic culmination of many musical (and life) journeys. Twenty years ago (1998) I released my first album under my own name, ’Through Rose-Coloured Glasses’, which was all original music written for a 12-piece line-up called The Scratch Band. There’s a thread for sure from that early large ensemble writing to this.”

MARK ON // SOUND –

“I definitely had a sound world in my head from the first few bars of the work. Having said that though, Ellington, Gil Evans,  Polar Bear, Raymond Scott, Bacharach, John Adams, Don Ellis, John Zorn, Clare Fischer were all influences (if not always obvious).”

MARK ON // THE RHYTHM SECTION –

“The rhythm section of Seb, Tom, Liam and John was extremely important and the music was written very much around the way they play. A lot of the playing we did in Polar Bear was expansive and spacious and I wanted some of that on this record. I always wanted the two saxes (myself and Alice Leggett) to provide the funky element to the album. I didn’t want the saxes too polite and I love the way Alice phrases with me on this album.  The instrumentation with the brass/woodwind i.e. two of everything was interesting as I originally wanted more, but as the writing went on it all felt right with regard to orchestration.”

MARK ON // THE ORCHESTRA –

“The orchestra is a freelance orchestra made up of top players. Ideas for the personal came about by talking to lots of people that I’d worked with over the years like Jim Rattigan, John Parricelli, Roland Sutherland etc and getting recommendations. Parricelli suggested getting Jackie Shave to lead the strings and then she put me in touch with Tom Piggot Smith to fix the other strings. The plan was always to have an orchestra made up of classical and jazz musicians so that’s why I have Roland Sutherland pairing up with Anna Noakes (flutes) and James Allsopp ( bass clarinet) playing along Nick Rodwell (clarinet) who I first met and loved his playing when we played in Turnage’s Anna Nicole at the Royal Opera House.”  

MARK ON // THE STUDIO

“The studio was really important too. Mark Knopfler’s British Grove was perfect for this record, with just the right mixture of live space and isolated spaces for this record. My old college friend John Ashton Thomas conducted the music. He’s a Hollywood film conductor and orchestrator so it was amazing to have him involved.”