Chaz
Jankel
songwriter
l arranger l musician l producer
The new cd "Zoom"
available at Jazz
CD UK; K2
DVD- score composed by Jankel - order through amazon scroll down
4 link
History: Keyboardist, guitarist and singer/composer
Chaz Jankel is best known in the UK as member of Ian Dury &
the Blockheads during the British funk/new wave band's commercial
peak in the early 80s. First hooking up with Dury as part of the
pub group the Kilburns & the High Roads, Jankel was asked by
Dury to join his new outfit, and appeared on such Blockheads releases
as "New Boots & Panties!!" (which spawned Dury's best-known
hit, "Sex & Drugs & Rock n' Roll") and "Do
It Yourself (single — "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick,")
before leaving the group. But in 1981, Jankel teamed up once more
with Dury (sans the Blockheads), for the release Lord Upminster,
which spawned the U.S. Top 40 dance hit "Spasticus Autisticus."
By this time, Jankel had become more interested in pursuing a solo
career and he issued several releases for A&M under self-titled
debut followed by "Chasanova," "Questionaire"
(contained the U.S. dance hit "Glad to Know You," a collaboration
with Dury), "Chazablanca," and 1985's "Looking at
You."
In
the US Jankel is best known for his soundtrack scores and session
work on numerous albums and films. Chaz wrote the R&B hit "Ai
No Corrida" which was recorded and performed by legendary Quincy
Jones. Chaz has scored original soundtrack music for: "Making
Mr Right," "War Party," "DOA," "An
Unsuitable Job For A Woman," "Killing Dad,"
"The Rachel Papers," "Tales From The Darkside,"
"Cat From Hell," "Earth Girls Are Easy," and
"K2."
Current
Credits:
Jankel
is currently performing with the Blockheads (minus Ian Dury who
lost his battle to liver cancer 3 years ago). "The spirit within
the band is strong and were half way through recording our first
album as "the blockheads,") says Chaz. He is recording
and performing with his accoustic Jazz Quartet (Dave Lewis - Tenor
Sax, Dylan Howe Drums, Andy Crowdy - Bass, CJ - piano) while producing
and collaborating with other artists on songs.
Jankel's most recent release "OUT OF THE BLUE" on Famous
Music is a departure from his earlier work. "One of the things
I was certain about was that I wanted the music to be played by
an acoustic quintet although finding the right combination of musicians
took a while. On various occasions when I went to visit Ian Dury
we would invariably end the day with a glass of something refreshing
coupled with the music of, say, for example, Bill Evans, Jaki Byard,
Art Blakey and Charlie Mingus not forgetting Patsy Kline and various
heavy beats. Since then I've bought tons of jazz (I must slow down)
and a fair number of romantic and modern classical cds from Mendelssohn
to Scriabin. If I'm lucky some of that influence has infiltrated
Out Of The Blue," says Jankel. Both "Out Of The Blue"
and Chaz's new cd, "Zoom" (coming soon) available on Jazz
CD UK
Chaz
has been down the Beeb with Derek the Draw doing radio interviews
with regional radio stations to promote "Where's The Party?"
"Now all we need is for them to glue the new Blockheads record
to their playlists (to quote Derek!)," says Chaz. Take a look
at the Live
Dates and hear Chaz at few more jazz gigs in which he will be
promoting the new album Zoom!
Contact:
[email protected]
Visit:
Chaz Jankel Web Site
copyright 2004 studioexpresso
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