Jezz Hall

Tuesday 21st January 2012 marks the 35th year of Nottingham Castle Rock Brewery and Jezz will be playing a solo performance in the Bread and Bitter Pub, Mapperley Top, Nottingham as part of the celebrations.

All the songs for the next album are completed in demo but the actual recording sessions will not be until the spring as Jezz is spending Feb and March in New Zealand.  Its hoped that the album will be released at the back end of 2012 on the Folkwit label.

Jezz will be playing a final gig with his band before flying off to the other side of the world on Thurs 2nd Feb at the Hand and Heart, Derby Road, Nottingham

More to follow…..

Jezz and his band are currently in the early stages of recording a new album to be released in 2012 through the Folkwit label. More to follow.

New dates added to gigs page and hopefully loads more to follow including some festivals…watch this space.

Jezz is currently booking gigs in support of his new release Silhouette Man, watch this space for updates.

More praise for Jezz Hall‘s beautifully crafted new album Silhouette Man:

“Jezz Hall, who originally hails from Cambridge but now resides in Nottingham, has recently been aided by a four-piece band featuring Nick Acons (fiddle, mandolin), Andy Hall (electric guitar, bass), Tom Dempsey (percussion) with fellow singer-songwriter, Andy Whittle on piano appearing as a special guest.

The good news is they all lend support on ‘Silhouette Man’. Straying from a more ridged folk format Jezz not only broadens his catchment area but allows his hankering to experiment the opportunity to shine. As in traditional song ‘Country Blues’ that races along at a pretty lick where electric lead and acoustic guitar, percussion and harmony vocals (Sally Murray) aid his authoritative, bustling lead.

Others of note include the poetic gem ‘Her Secret Love’ where he joined by Andy Whittle’s sensitive playing of piano, and such is his performance and quality of lyric I would recommend other like minded performers check it out the next time they go into the studio. Randy Newman would be justifiably proud to have written it!

‘Beautiful City’ draws from the traditional song ‘Twelve Gates To The City’ and like with his own songs ‘Ready For The Flame’, ‘Spider’s Web’ and the mandolin warmed airy number ‘Father and Son’ Hall’s work is deeply carved in quality. How he isn’t better known is beyond me, it could be like others, I haven’t been looking in the right places.” *******
- Maurice Hope, Americana UK

http://www.americana-uk.com/reviews-cd-live/latest-cd-reviews/item/maurice-hope-13

Silhouette Man is being reviewed in the next issue of Blues Matters:

“Jezz Hall is a clever wordsmith and his songwriting is excellent…thoroughly enjoyable.”
- Blues Matters

Jezz Hall is being interviewed on Adam Wilson‘s Quiet Revolution – Harborough FM @ 10-12pm Tuesday 15 February 2011

Here’s a review of Silhouette Man from Essentially Eclectic:

“Nottingham’s Jezz Hall returns with his first album since 2006’s When the Music is Over. Silhouette Man continues with the country-tinged introspective folk of its predecessor, and finds Hall teaming up with Folkwit Records: a local imprint with many a kindred spirit on its books. With a new band in tow – one that includes the rhythm section of Andy Hill (bass) and Tom Dempsey (drums) alongside fiddle/mandolin player Nick Acons – Hall’s James Taylor-esque vocals weave patterns around modern day folk ballads in a style similar to that of recent work by Jackie Leven – indeed Hall has previously supported the celebrated Scot on tour.

Opener Solid Ground is an immediate demonstration of the talent involved here. Hall’s song writing craft shines through the delicate touches of Acons’ fiddle and Hill’s subtle electric guitar flourishes, and lines such as “we shed our precious skin/but fool ourselves we’re growing” show he has a serious way with a lyric. The gentle lilt of House is another early highlight, one augmented by a beautiful string arrangement from Acons. Beautiful City’s forlorn blues arrangement is ripped wide open by blasts from Hall’s harmonica, the influence of his time spent in Mississippi shining through here, as well as on the rockabilly shuffle of Country Blues.

Folkwit seems like the natural home for Hall, and the likes of Will Jeffery and label mate Andy Whittle prove that the Nottingham singer-songwriter scene is currently in a healthy state. Hall may have a slight edge on the competition with this set, however. A most accomplished release.”
- Essentially Eclectic

http://essentiallyeclectic.wordpress.com/

Here’s a short review of Silhouette Man from the Nottingham Evening Post penned by Folk Correspondent, Dave Sutherland:

“Already a well-known name on the local acoustic circuit, his debut for the city’s Folkwit label is a credit to them both. While the band provide him with a solid backing, Hall is most captivating when it’s just him with harp and guitar on a track like Beautiful City.”

Jezz Hall‘s new album Silhouette Man is out now on Folkwit Records:

“Being Jezz Hall, must be a really frustrating place to be. There are some artists where you constantly find yourself asking, “Why isn’t this man on Later?” “When’s he going to get a radio session at prime time?” “Why isn’t he filling huge venues? The answer to all of those questions and probably a whole lot more would appear to be because life is unfair. Hopefully “Silhouette Man” will get Jezz to the wider audience that his songwriting and performing deserve. Solo or with a band, he’s a great performer and captures that spirit on his recordings – an absolute delight of an album.”

- Neil King, FATEA, February 2011