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| The Blamey Street Big Band and guest vocalists |
Musical Director: Ian McLean AM CSC
Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre. At The B, May 16th.
Reviewed by BILL STEPHENS.
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| The Blamey Street Big Band. |
Featuring a line-up of the cream of Canberra’s jazz musicians and now based in the Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre, Blamey Street Big Band continues to build a formidable following for its classy performances of classic swing band music.
The band’s point of difference is that rather than confining
itself to classic big band repertoire, Blamey Street specialises in
re-inventing popular music genres by applying a swing beat.
Its ace is that within its number is master music arranger,
Andrew Hackwill, who exercises his considerable skills by providing the band
with testing, if fascinating, musical subversions of familiar hit songs.
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| Conductor Ian McLean addressing the audience |
No doubt superfluous to mention, but under the fastidious baton of Ian McLean, a former Director of Music for the Australian Army, the performance of every arrangement was tight, disciplined and exciting.
But then so was the presentation of the concert. For this
concert, black ties all round for the male musicians and vocalists, tasteful black
for the female musicians, with the two female vocalists resplendent in sparkling
sequins, all augmented with moody theatrical mood lighting to provide a professional
gloss.
For this concert Blamey Street featured four excellent guest
vocalists in Leisa Keen, Jared Newall, Steve Amosa and Ashleigh Harris, each an
experienced vocalist and all obviously relishing a unique opportunity to
perform with this polished outfit.
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| Vocalists Leisa Keen - Jared Newall - Steve Amosa - Ashleigh Harris in full flight. |
Jared Newall had the privilege of opening the show with a driving arrangement by Ed Wilson of the John Paul Young classic Love is in the Air. Now residing in Canberra, Newall has previously toured internationally with The Ten Tenors. His experience was evident in his easy, relaxed vocal styling.
In addition to vocalising each of the singers provided a fun
fact about the item they were about to present. Newall’s shared a little-known
fact regarding the composition of Survivor’s Eye Of The Tiger before
adding a touch of Sinatra to his masterful interpretation.
He then launched into the first Hackwill arrangement of the
program, a jaunty version of Joe Jackson’s Stepping Out.
Ashleigh Harris has sung with Blamey Street for both its
ABBA and James Bond programs. She demonstrated her versatility with three
Hackwill arrangements commencing with an upbeat version of The Little River
Band’s Reminiscing. A playful introduction heralded Lionel Ritchie’s Hello,
rounded out with a fascinating swing arrangement of The Rolling stones hit, Paint
It Black.
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| Andrew Hackwill takes a solo |
In devising his arrangements Hackwill makes opportunities to feature solos by particularly gifted instrumental soloists from within the band. Among them Mark Du Rieu and Peter Levan on trumpets, trombonist, Bronwen Mackenzie, saxophonists Andrew Hackwill and Joshua Hackwill and guitarist, Col Bernau.
On each occasion the audience recognised their contributions
with appreciative applause as the items progressed.
Making his first appearance with Blamey Street was Steve
Amosa, well known in Canberra with his own bands TuchaSoul and the Steve Amosa
Band. Amosa demonstrated his versatility introducing himself with Nirvana’s
grunge rock classic, Smells Like Teen Spirit, followed by a smooth
version of Spandau Ballet’s True. He rounded out his set with another
Hackwill re-invention, Sherbert’s Howzat.
Later in the program Amosa returned to further delight the
audience further with his smooth, laid-back performances of Hackwill’s
arrangement of Bon Jovi’s It’s My Life and Queen’s Crazy Little Thing
Called Love.
Leisa Keen could best be described as a staple of the Blamey
Street Band. One of Canberra’s most versatile and accomplished singer/musicians,
her superb vocalisations have long been a highlight of the band’s concerts. “Blamey
Swings Rock” was no exception.
She commenced her first set with a stunning rendition of
Elton John’s Bennie And The Jets, followed by Pink Floyd’s Money
and rounded out with red hot version of Stevie Wonder’s Sir Duke in
which she demonstrated her impressive mastery of vocal scatting.
But it was in the second half that she really pulled out the
stops with an up-tempo version of the Steve Miller Band’s Abracadabra,
Billy Joel’s New York State of Mind, and Hackwill’s sublime arrangement
of George Harrison’s Something.
If you’re still reading this, you will have gathered that
Blamey Street take a very broad definition of rock, and the way they play it is
likely to convert a whole new generation to the genre.
If you haven’t yet experienced this remarkable ensemble, you can catch it again at the Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre in October when it turns its attention to the music of The Rat Pack for which it will add strings to the musical mix.
Photos by Stephen McGrory
This is an extended version of the review first published in the digital edition of CITY NEWS
on 17th May 2026
