A jazz quintet, whose members are all Leeds Conservatoire academics, has received rave reviews for their latest release.
Jamil Sheriff's Five Gold Rings press shot. Pictured left to right: Jim Corry, Sam Quintana, Jamil Sheriff, Caroline Boaden, Richard Iles
Red Kite is a brand-new recording by Jamil Sheriff’s Five Gold Rings. The quintet’s leader, pianist Jamil Sheriff, is Head of School of Music and Education at the conservatoire. As a composer, arranger and pianist Jamil has toured extensively throughout the UK and performed at national and international jazz festivals. He is described by The Guardian as "someone who has made a real difference to the vitality of the jazz scene in the North of England."
Jamil is joined by principal lecturer Richard Iles alternating trumpet and flugel; Jim Corry, also a principal lecturer, on alto saxophone; graduate and guest lecturer Sam Quintana on double bass; and senior lecturer Caroline Boaden on drums.
This quintet unites a group of extraordinary talents, each renowned for their exceptional prowess in the jazz realm. The name, Five Gold Rings, is a reference to a pledge made and kept by Jamil to write a tune a day over the festive season.
Julian Maynard-Smith was full of praise in London Jazz News and stated “if Leeds Conservatoire wanted an aural prospectus showcasing their teaching talent, they couldn’t do much better than Red Kite, an album on which all members of the quintet are not only performers of long standing but also lecturers at the conservatoire.”
Marlbank awarded the album four stars, described it as a “priority listen” and noted “the tunes are strong - there's a vein of melancholia in some and you get a bittersweet feeling of a lost time mostly when the horns pair up together as on 'Friends Since the 80s' and later on the title track. Sheriff's solo spot on 'Spiralling into Control' changes the mood before a gloriously plangent theme taken up by Iles and then Corry. On the swinging 'Love Someone' you get a more retro sense - the bounce and swing of Johnny Dankworth hovers into view even a little here - and again the spirit of Kenny Wheeler seems a guiding light over so much of this very fine record.”
Red Kite contains ten original tracks by Jamil, who began his recording career over 20 years ago with his first album, Daydreams. In anticipation of Red Kite, he re-released Daydreams and four other albums, all on Lamplight Social Records (LSR).
LSR is a Leeds-based record label founded by saxophonist and composer James Mainwaring, who is also a senior lecturer on the conservatoire’s Jazz programme. The label’s aim is to serve as a home for a new wave of music emerging from Leeds and beyond, and its focus lies between contemporary jazz, improvised, and experimental/ambient electronic music.
Jamil added, “I’m so proud of all of these albums - having them finally in one place, and under a label curated by James, is a big moment for me.”
Watch a video of Red Kite's opening track 'Going to Church' below:
