Tim Stevens - The ace of hearts is high

2022 release

I’ve said it already, and repeatedly, but despite having been obliged to learn a hefty number of standards as an undergraduate, I never really felt I wanted to perform them very much. Browne – Haywood – Stevens featured some standard repertoire, American songs and jazz tunes, but most of its book was written by me, and I always wanted to be contributing original ideas. I can’t remember playing a single standard tune with my current trio. The problem is really with precedent; some musicians have made this such a large part of their life’s work that it feels a bit like the standard rep is taken care of.

But then something happened. A couple of years ago I decided to share some music online because everyone was locked down and miserable and it seemed like the next best thing to actually getting together. I made almost daily contributions, shared them on socials, and I wrote about them on my website, listing the pieces I’d performed and giving a breakdown for standard/original/traditional/classical. There were tons of standards, and as I re-engaged with them I was able to see again what great songs they are, and how worthy they remain of attention.

The present program comprises some very time-smoothed chestnuts but also some tunes that are simply personal favourites of mine. ‘All the things you are’ had to be learned during my bachelor’s degree, alongside ‘Stella by starlight’ and ‘There will never be another you’ and about a hundred others. ‘My funny valentine’ was in that bag too. But ‘Last night when we were young’ I played with Browne – Haywood – Stevens and always loved, and ‘I’m gonna laugh you right out of my life’ is just one of the most brilliant and heartbreaking songs in the world, that doesn’t get played nearly often enough. ‘Isn’t it a lovely day’ and ‘The Piccolino’ both come from Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’s Top Hat and that’s a score that continues to amaze me. ‘When you wish upon a star’ was an afterthought at the session because it occurred to me that I didn’t have a waltz in the set, but I liked how it came out. I really hope this program is enjoyable.

Tim Stevens