Uncle Sam’s Jazz and Blues band

Uncle Sam’s Jazz and Blues band at The Haggerston, Kingsland Road

Listen here: [audio:Uncle-Sams-Criss-Cross.mp3]

Every Sunday night for some 14 years, Uncle Sam’s Jazz and Blues band has been playing at 438 Kingsland Road.

Yet founding member and guitarist Alan Weekes describes their performances at The Haggerston pub, previously named Uncle Sam’s, as “Hackney’s best kept secret”, as they still retain a local, close-knit feel.

It’s an impressive spectacle not only because of the band’s performances and impromptu guests musicians – often from all over the globe – but also due to the enthusiastic crowd which keeps the band playing with each solo instrumental getting rapturous applause.

Alan recalls how the band started: “I met Brian [Edwards, tenor saxophone] about 25 years ago. Our original drummer was Clifford Jarvis, who passed away in ‘99. He was a Blue Note recording artist and moved from the US to London in the 80’s.

“Now we have Shane Forbes on drums, who won young jazz musician of the year 2009. Ben Hazleton is on bass and composes some of the songs we do.”

I am told by Alan that musicians from Japan, Mexico, Italy – everywhere, have joined in at their residency night.

In the last year alone, Uncle Sam’s have been joined by Grammy winner Joe Lovano, Esperanza Spalding, double bass player and singer who performed at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in December, and Beyoncé’s backing band.

I asked Brian Edwards, saxophone player for the band Uncle Sam’s, why he thought playing in Hackney and the residency at the pub has worked for so long, “I think it’s a lot to do with Alan, he has been playing in the area so long.

“It wasn’t always this busy when we first started playing, maybe because it wasn’t as safe an area. We used to play in a basement place called Lotti’s and I heard there were a couple of shoot-outs there. But now Hackney is really becoming a hip kind of place, you know.”

If you have yet to see Uncle Sam’s perform, January will be an interesting time to visit as they will be recording a live album during their sessions at the pub every Sunday night from 8pm.

Alan explained, “The idea is to keep the tradition going and promote the relationship with the pub”.