"It’s an extraordinary 51 minutes of seamless
music—powerful, multi-hued stuff, with the gravitas of a requiem."
Read review by James Beaudreau at One Final Note at http://www.onefinalnote.com/reviews/s/stevens-john/fast-colour.asp
August 2005
Also read Ken Waxman's review at:
http://www.jazzweekly.com/reviews/nstephens_live@plough.htm
The 6 pieces here form a suite dedicated to South African
bassist Johnny Mbizo Dyani, on this occasion played segue to form a set. John
always had Dudu in mind when writing this material and here, I think, he plays
better than I ever heard him. I occasionally played in Dudus group Zila
and a few months before his untimely death Dudu and I formed a duo in which
he also played piano. We had a fairly regular gig in a bar/restaurant in Soho
and people would often get up in the middle of their meal to dance around
the tables.
Fast Colour played most gigs as a quintet, this was one of the first opportunities
to add South African vocalist Pinise Saul and Evan Parker.
Unfortunately Fast Colour was one of the few groups that John Stevens put
together that never got into the recording studio so this is the first opportunity
for all but those who managed to get to a gig to hear this group.
Recorded from the desk to cassette tape.
Digitised and mastered by Nick Stephens.


