Peter Erskine - Side Man Blues

2016 CD release.

The Tony Award-winning play, written by Warren Leight, is set in New York City between the years of 1953 and 1985, and it chronicles the life and lifestyle of a jazz trumpeter, exploring the creative forces which drive a musician and binds him ever closer to his fellow jazzmen while tearing his own family apart. It's a wonderful play, and the cast and crew for this productions are all brilliant.

The interesting thing about this production is the use of a newly-recorded score (as opposed to the "needle drop" scoring solution used in previous productions of the show in New York and elsewhere), and I was very lucky to get the call from director Andy Robinson to write the music. Be-bop lives! Peter Erskine scored the production with a jazz quintet. The WDR Big Band also makes a guest appearance.