London

[Thomas]

Surprised the Brits haven't mentioned Ronnie Scott's,the 606 Club some of the Pizza Express locations,or Boisdale-check TimeOut publication when you're there

[col]

well, as none of my compatriots appear to have sold the london scene to you folks, i guess i'll have to take it upon myself...
ronny scott's club - in soho is probably the most famous jazz venue in london, and consequently attracts the big (and often bland and past it) names. it's expensive too, but normally has the true legends playing.
pizza express - pizza... and jazz. what a combination. the main one is in soho, and attracts big players like ronnie scotts does. there are other restaurants in the chain all over london and the UK, and normally have people from the local scene playing.
the jazz cafe - camden. this is my favourite london "jazz" venue. it not only has jazz artists from all over the world, but also funk, r n' b, dance, hip-hop etc... very cool.

other london venues that sometimes have jazz are:
the vortex - suburban left-field type place
606 club - old school jazz place
100 club - sometimes has jazz/blues
cargo - effortlessly cool east-end club, occasional live jazz/funk/nu-jazz, always top quality
the astoria - big rock venue, saw MMW there - they rocked!
the southbank - most of the big national theatres are on the southbank. this is where the likes of wayne shorter, chris potter, joshua redman, john zorn have played recently.

i'm sure there are plenty of others... there must be other londoners on this forum who can back me up...

the jam session scene is also worth checking out including sunday afternoons at the jazz cafe. the small venues with the local bands are always the best entertainment in my opinion. time-out magazine has a good listings section and i would recommend purchasing a copy as soon as you arrive to all tourists.

i mostly play gigs in south-east london... although i would normally advise tourists to avoid the area, i'd love to see any of you at any of my shows...

col

www.geocities.com/col_music

[rob]

Aren't we forgetting the Minton's of South London? The Paradise Bar in Deptford's wednesday night jam sessions. 10 - 2.

[griff136]

and dont forget Smolenski's on The Strand.