Geoffrey plays at 'Groovy' Nine bar (From Stroud News and Journal)

Geoffrey plays at 'Groovy' Nine bar

RENOWNED British composer Geoffrey Burgon will be blowing his horn alongside a band of merry men at Nine Bar, John Street, Stroud this weekend.

The group call themselves the Bisley Dilleskie band, a dyslexic variation on the village name of Bisley, where they were conceived, and Dizzy Gillespie, the great be-bop jazz trumpeter, an inspiration.

They will be playing cool standards from Tin Pan Alley, as well as original compositions by Geoffrey and his wife Jacqueline.

The band members include Geoffrey Burgon on trumpet, Robin Grayson on piano, Wayne Elliot on bass, and Clifford Haydn-Tovey on drums.

Geoffrey has always played jazz alongside his more commercial work, which includes television scores for Dr Who, Brideshead Revisited and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy amongst others.

"Everywhere needs jazz," said Geoffrey. "Nine Bar is the best venue we've played in a long time. The ambience is mellow and the crowd multifariously groovy.

"I hope that the band can become a regular feature - all it needs is people to get hip to the new jazz time on a Sunday!"

The band hopes that there will be a sizeable audience to get the whole joint jumping.

"We aim to make sure that there is as little room to swing a cat as possible," added Geoffrey.

A CD, The Bisley Dilleskie Band at The Yellow Shark, recorded at Yellow Shark Studios, is available from Bar Nine and Trading Post priced £7.50.

The band will be playing at Nine Bar on Sunday, June 12 and 19 between 8pm and 10.30pm. Entry is free.