chris wong in sync

The summer/autumn 2000 issue of Songlines, a world music magazine from England, had an item that caught my eye. It reported an "indefinite suspension" of Wicklow, the world music label that Paddy Moloney of the Chieftains co-founded with the Celtic group's Vancouver-based managers Sam Feldman and Steve Macklam. I had heard a rumour about problems with Wicklow back in the summer, but this was the first confirmation in print I saw. Moloney and his high-powered managers launched Wicklow (originally called Unisphere) as a partnership with BMG Classics in June 1997. The label released Fire In The Kitchen, a Celtic compilation that sold well, and put out albums by artists such as the Tuvan Yat-Kha, Cuban Juan-Carlos Formell and Vancouver's own Alpha Yaya Diallo.

As Wicklow's A&R (artist and repertoire) manager in the label's Vancouver office, Ian Menzies signed artists and worked with them on realizing their recording visions. He says the Songlines piece is "technically incorrect," as Wicklow still exists as a recording imprint. But RCA/BMG bought Moloney, Feldman and Macklam's share in the label. While a press release from the entertainment conglomerate claims the deal strengthens "BMG's leadership in the world music genre," Menzies says RCA/BMG hasn't committed to releasing any new Wicklow product.

So Wicklow is effectively kaput. It's a victim of what Menzies describes as a major label power struggle and corporate restructuring. "We were just the baby that got thrown out with the bath water," he says. RCA has kept Menzies on retainer to reach termination agreements with Diallo, whose impressive album The Message came out on Wicklow, and other artists. Menzies is also still a partner in Mo' Funk Records and leader of the Mo' Funk Collective. The group plays a double-bill with Chicago's Liquid Soul Oct. 29 at Richard's on Richards.

There's still time to submit written interventions about applications for the 94.5 FM frequency in Vancouver. The CRTC will accept interventions, copies of which must also be sent to applicants, up to Oct. 26. Meanwhile the testy debate about smooth jazz, the dubious format that six of the 11 applicants have proposed, continues in a vancouverjazz.com forum. One thing I didn't cover in my last column on smooth jazz was the role of world music in applications for the frequency. Mainstream Broadcasting Corporation proposes a "worldbeat and international" station. Another applicant, Future Radio Inc., wants to target culturally diverse youth with an "urban rhythm" format. Future Radio pledges to significantly fund local collaborations that would result in cross-cultural creations like a house remix of Vietnamese music by the Khac Chi Ensemble. It's an interesting idea from a potential dark horse in the fierce competition for a broadcasting license.

Vibraphonist Peter Appleyard performs at Rossini's Gastown Oct. 15 and 16. Appleyard's fine quartet of Torontonians includes drummer Terry Clarke, bassist Dave Young and pianist John Sherwood. Montreal-based saxophonist François Carrier leads a trio at the Cellar Oct. 19.

I've heard that a lot of thought and preparation is going into the upcoming concert bringing together singer Dee Daniels and the Babayaga string quartet. The Oct. 20 show at St. Andrew's Wesley Church should be uniquely enjoyable given the ability of Daniels and Babayaga to perform jazz with a broad palette, incorporating blues, gospel and classical music. Miles Black, a pianist who never disappoints, will also be on hand with his quartet to accompany the main performers. Daniels, Babayaga members and Black composed originals and arranged tunes such as "Sweet Georgia Brown" specifically for the occasion.

Some people, myself included, occasionally whine about the options for live music in Vancouver. But after looking at the jam-packed jazz and world music calendar for the Oct. 27 to 29 weekend, there's no justification for whining.

Bassist Dave Holland gets things going Oct. 27 at the Vogue with his superb quintet. Later that night, Cuban Eliades Ochoa (the guy with the cowboy hat from Buena Vista Social Club) performs at the Commodore. Grupo Jazz Tumbao opens the show. The same evening, American Bob Brozman and Takashi Hirayasu from Japan collaborate at the Vancouver East Cultural Centre. Brozman, a master of stringed instruments including the Hawaiian steel guitar, and Hirayasu, who evocatively plays the sanshin (three-stringed lute) and sings, recorded the beguiling Jin Jin on the tiny Okinawan island of Taketomi. British saxophonist Trevor Watts and his band Moiré Music are at the Waterfront Theatre Oct. 28. The group combines adventurous jazz with African and Latin rhythms. Terrific saxophonist Steve Wilson leads a strong quintet, including B.C.-born trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, Oct. 28 and 29 at Rossini's Gastown.

Finally Trio 3 - saxophonist Oliver Lake, bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Andrew Cyrille - performs Oct. 29 at the Waterfront Theatre. The trio members are key figures in contemporary jazz, whose creative expression ranges from traditional to avant-garde sounds.

in sync archive

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