It all happens at the Umbrella Lounge Bar in Elsternwick – every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month! As their preferred Melbourne hub where they display their artistic flair and their musical skills and endeavours take off to the max, the Jumbalumba band, with a name evocative of all things good and happy in life and as cool as the vibe that emanates from their music, is a jazz trio that also excels in funk and blues.
In their own words, “[w]e play a mix of jazz, blues, Latin and funk material ranging from classic standards to more surprising jazz versions of tunes from other genres. Currently we play music made famous by Oscar Peterson, The Jazz Messengers and Miles Davis through to Abba, The Beatles [1] and Living Colour.”[2]
The trio consists of Brennan Weir skilfully on piano, leading Paul Griffiths on drums on fire, and roaring force of nature Jo Hagedoorn alternatively on tenor, alternatively on a saxophone that comes alive and has a life of its own as the band takes us places and the repertoire opens up a space where the rhythms go from upbeat to pensively reflective.[3]
Jumbalumba performs regularly at savvy entrepreneur and proprietor Temo Zorella’s magical metauniverse; a business that has been open, alive and kicking since 2014 and where Xachapuri, Xinkali and other home-made Georgian dishes appeal to our culinary tastebuds.[4]
At “The Umbrella”, colourful umbrellas literally hang from the ceiling while various types of art works adorn the walls and a gathering of old toy koalas have found their home on a table near a cash machine that shoots out a seemingly never-ending ‘receipt of all receipts’.
The umbrellas make symbolic reference to a promise made by Zorella way back, prior to his arrival in Australia, and which he willingly obliged by.[5] His popular venue stays open until late, and beckons seasoned locals and passersby of all ages, backgrounds and beliefs to step inside. On offer is “live jazz, love songs, piano, and a beer garden/restaurant for functions”[6].
Within this accommodating locale Jumbalumba performs as if there was no tomorrow. Comfortable in their own skin and as one with their music, when the trio begins to play the performative setting evolves into an intercultural space and the music venue becomes our home-away-from home.
Synchronised, at times the musicians allow each instrument to take off in its own explorative direction, until they all come together again and finish on a conclusive note – or pitch.[7]
Taking over from here, Paul Griffiths tells us about the leadup to the formation of Jumbalumba, what prompted the name, what drives him as a musician, and what lies at the core of the band’s music:
Thanks, Paul, for joining me in conversation:
Jazz and blues take us places and have long histories and traditions expressed through stories that provide a sense of identity. Why jazz and blues as your predilect genres?
Jazz and blues allow for improvisation; both owe their origins to improvised music. I’d spent years playing in rock bands; rock is exciting to listen to but creatively it can be boring to play, playing rock can be a somewhat repetitious exercise. Improvised music allows you to get away from that; creating in the moment, for the moment, is to me much more exciting.
Also, both jazz and blues have a long heritage that you can draw on from improvisation. Both have a heritage you can learn from, build upon, create within, and yet still be true and honest to traditions. Improvised music to me should, by definition, always be fresh and new; if it isn’t then something isn’t working.
What brought you together as a band and was the formation the result of a long-term desire or a spontaneous incentive?
I’d wanted to play jazz for a long time. I heard an advert on local radio for a jazz improvisation course, and it was there that I met Jo. When the course ended, we played a couple of gigs together in an eight-piece band, but I had a plan for a smaller group in mind already. I found Brennan through a social connection; our children went to the same junior school.
Playing improvised music is very much based on trust, and many years of playing in a lot of bands had taught me that getting the right mix of personalities [was important]; so, I was keen to recruit the right people, and that took time and effort.
Creatively the concept was also established early. I’ve spent a lifetime watching people roll their eyes when I said I liked jazz, so the concept was “jazz for people who don’t like jazz”. I believe it’s possible to play jazz that is accessible without completely selling out the form. This band was an exercise in proving it.
Out of curiosity; where did the name come from?
As part of my day job, I used to work with a commercial manager who originally is from Serbia. We were on the phone discussing a quote for a project we were putting together and she said “I’ll do the commercial side, and you can add all that engineering jumbalumba you do”. I said to her “I’m having that; that word is a great name for a band”. That’s how we got our name.
Where does your creative spark come from?
Curiosity. I would describe myself as an essentially curious person. Trying to understand what a thing is, where it comes from, how did it become like that – I’m really into that.
I read quite a bit, and I like books about music. For example, Ashley Kahn’s book about the recording of “A Love Supreme” – that’s a terrific book, I loved that. That book inspired me, both how I think about music, the band, how and what I practice.
What does jazz, funk and blues mean to you on a personal level?
I grew up with jazz; I still have some of my father’s records. I have very eclectic taste in music (much to the distress of my immediate family) but it seems to have been jazz that I keep coming back to.
When we talk about jazz, blues funk, soul… it’s really all the same tradition to me, American music. The fusion of African sensibilities with European musical forms. It’s well documented. There’s an American drummer and educator named Zoro whose book The Commandments of RnB Drumming neatly places in context all the styles you mention. His teaching was a turning point for me.
Does engaging with music complete you as a person?
Yes. Absolutely. I have had a few friends who have turned up to gigs to see me play and then say “Ahh…. so now I get you”. I can’t imagine a life without music or a life without playing music. Occasionally I meet people who tell me they don’t like music – I cannot grasp that at all. It is literally incomprehensible to me.
Who are your biggest influences and how do you find your own path while still honouring these greats?
Musically I could go on and on but – picking a few key names out – Steve Smith; Joe Morello; John Coltrane; Oscar Peterson. Steve Smith’s evolution as a musician and his teaching has definitely made a big impact on me. But there have been many other influences, from people I have worked with, the time I had at art school, entertainers and artists from other disciplines – I think they are all relevant too.
Finding your own path is an interesting point. I think it’s to do with taking ideas from lots of different places and synthesising them, consciously or unconsciously, to make them who you are as a creative person. Sometimes they might be technical ideas; sometimes they might be conceptual, or an approach thing.
I don’t think that matters, but it’s also opening yourself to as diverse a range of ideas as you can cope with. There are a couple of documentaries about Jojo Mayer, his ideas about culture, music, and historical context – they changed the way I thought. He’s a thinker.
What message do you seek to convey to your audiences? And how do you differ from other bands?
I think the message is “Jazz is maybe not what you think it is”. Since bebop many people regard jazz as challenging, difficult, confronting almost, or at the other end of the spectrum. It can be frozen, some mechanical attempt to reproduce what was done sixty, seventy or more years ago. It doesn’t have to be like that. I think we’re trying to challenge that mindset a little.
At the height of bebop, jazz musicians were taking chord progressions from popular tunes of the day as the basis for new compositions. In Jumbalumba, we’re playing some of those tunes, those Blue Note classics, but at the same time we’re reinterpreting a Kylie Minogue song as a basis for improvisation.
That, to me, is true to the jazz tradition. I hear other bands playing pop tunes with a swing feel and using a saxophone; but they aren’t improvising over it. That’s what makes us different.
Is your music culturally specific or universally relevant?
That’s an interesting question. Hopefully, both. I hope we are true to the spirit of the music that we play but without being purist about it. I think the music speaks of our taste and influences, which must therefore be a product of our culture; but I hope it’s accessible enough to be enjoyable for the listener. While the primary driver is our own taste, I’m not a fan of exclusivity in music.
What venue best fits your purpose? And does the Umbrella Lounge Bar enable you to perform to kindred spirits?
I think we suit small, intimate venues well. It’s where we seem to have most success. The Umbrella works well for us because it’s fairly small, the piano is nice, it’s a good environment. The residency is a great thing because with gigs at new venues you spend half your time adjusting to the sound and vibe of the room – with a residency the room is a known quantity, so you can focus on the music more. Having a residency is a luxury. We’re very lucky.
Do you feel jazz and blues lend themselves particularly well for improvisation? What do you gain from improvising?
Jazz and blues are, at their origin, improvised forms. They give you a framework to work within and a scaffold to build on. With jazz, in particular, I think that if it doesn’t involve improvisation then it isn’t really jazz; it might sound like it, but it isn’t.
When improvisation is really working then it’s a complete high wire act. In the moment you are embarking on a new idea it might collapse. It requires you to take risks, to extend out of your comfort zone; it’s a thrill.
Pushing yourself out of your comfort zone also means you sometimes make new discoveries about yourself and your playing. You’re listening, and there’s that “where did that come from moment?”. Then you can take that idea, develop it, expand upon it; the possibilities become endless. I recall once playing a brush pattern at rehearsal that I had to get Jo to record for me on her phone immediately so that I could unpick what I’d done later.
How do you blend classical jazz with modern creativity and respect heritage and traditions while pushing boundaries?
A couple of things. I think by respecting the concept that it is improvised. If you aren’t actually improvising, then you are disrespecting the form. It irritates me enormously when musicians slavishly reproduce performances that the original artist would have played only once in their whole lives.
I think the other thing is: respect your history. Know and honour the work that has gone before you.
Finally, how has your relationship with jazz evolved over time and whereto from here?
I’ve always loved jazz but for a lot of my playing career I wasn’t performing it. So, there was a point some years ago really committing to jazz. I quit the band I was in, stopped listening to other music for a while, got much more serious about practice. It was time for depth. In that period my taste changed, and I began to understand why; thinking both analytically and critically about what I was listening to allowed me to consolidate on a direction.
From here – there is some technical stuff I’m working on. I’m a big fan of the playing and teaching of American drummer and educator John Riley so I’m working through some of his teaching materials. I also find myself listening to Eric Harland a lot; his ideas are changing how I think about my phrasing, my approach in general.
The goal for me always is to be able to translate the ideas in my head to the instrument. That’s a life’s work, right there.
Any famous last words for the road?
If you’re in Melbourne on a Thursday evening – come to the Umbrella, check us out, come and tell us what you think afterwards. I’m always inspired by the comments and feedback we receive. Engaging with the audience – it’s a thing. It’s very rewarding for a musician to hear what people think.
These have been very interesting questions. In focussing on being a working musician it’s easy to lose sight of the creative and artistic elements of what you do; these questions have made me reflect.
Nice couch, by the way. I like that. And thanks for having me!
In Conversation with Paul Griffiths of the Jumbalumba band
Words: Dr Jytte Holmqvist
Images: Paul Griffiths – photo by Dr Jytte Holmqvist | Temo Zorella – photo by Dr Jytte Holmqvist | Jo Hagedoorn – photo by Dr Jytte Holmqvist | Brennan Weir – photo by Dr Jytte Holmqvist
Footnotes:
[1] The band’s take on Norwegian Wood (This Bird has Flown) is excellent – or arresting to be more precise.
[2] www.youtube.com
[3] Ian Richardson from 3WBC expresses his appreciation here: www.youtube.com
[6] Ibid.
[7] www.youtube.com