Saturday 5th November, Tickets £12, Doors 7pm, Music 9pm (2 sets, approx finish 11.30pm)

Yolanda Charles & The Deep MO: Album Launch

Funk fusion from this red hot group, known for the super-tight unison riffs between the guitar and band-leader Yolanda on bass, and catchy syncopated rhythms that will get you moving whether you intend to or not! Launching their eagerly awaited debut album, the air will be sizzling with funky energy tonight!

Yolanda Charles - songwriter, bassist, vocalist
Scott Firth - guitar
Robert Mitchell - keys
Miles Bould - percussion
John Robertson - guitar
Berenice Scott - keys
Nigel Hitchcock - sax
Jack Pollitt - drums
Neil Sidwell - trombone
Tom Walsh - trumpet
 

Bassist Yolanda Charles impressed on the scene from the earliest days of her career, playing for Jimmy Sommerville and in the bands Raw Stylus and Urban Species. Beginning to play at 15 with a musical diet of soul, funk and reggae, the journey was set for this amazing bassist who leads this red hot funk fusion band tonight.

Those early live performances led to a stellar session career, working for stars such as Paul Weller, Marcella Detroit, Howard New, Pops Mohammed, Alison Moyet, Desert Eagle Discs, Gabrielle, Robbie Williams, BB King, Eric Clapton, Roger Daltrey, Van Morrison, and even recording bass on a Michael Jackson session with Jermaine Jackson. Other highlights include working with Mick Jagger on the soundtrack for the 2004 remake of Caine classic, Alfie, and performing in Japan with one of their biggest stars, Utada Hikaru. Recent session work includes performing live with Natasha Bedingfield and Sinead O’Conner.

But on to this fantastic band, The Deep MO. Yolanda has been writing songs for almost as long as she has played bass, but it wasn’t until around 2002, working on the Robbie Williams tour, that she stopped leaving her originals on demo-tapes and recorded her first song, ‘Fantasy’, an experience she describes as the most rewarding musically that she’d ever had.

This new impetus led to recording sessions with Carleen Anderson, Shaun Escoffery, Vanessa Freeman and Mandy Lecointe performing on vocals, with the finished work, 2003 album The Game, exploring all the creativity Yolanda’s demo archive had evidenced, a writing and recording process that has continued – in her words, “I got the bug!”

From this, The Deep MO was formed, Yolanda taking over lead vocals alongside some of the band from that previous project. They have been rocking audiences on the London and festival scene ever since, releasing their first EP in 2009, recording a single that year too with The Style Council’s Dee C Lee, and supporting Level 42’s 30th Anniversary tour in 2010.

Having spent the past two years writing with Miles Bould, John Robertson, Monty Joseph, Scott Firth and many other artists preparing albums, the constant creative energy around Yolanda and the band helped them make their own musical hay, and they proudly launch that first album, titled Funk in the 3rd Quarter, here at Hideaway tonight.

John Robertson

The guitarist/producer has worked with Yolanda and Miles since 2005 in the band that led to The Deep MO being formed in 2006. His guitar style, described as blues-rock with effects, is exceptionally well suited to the MO sound and John is the 3rd member of the basic MO trio of Miles and Yolanda you will most often see live.

Writer for David McAlmont, Skye Edwards (from Morecheeba), Anouska de Giorgiou, Lisa Gerrard, Laura Welsh and Plan B, he was an original song-writer member of uber-cool band St Jude and occasionally plays guitar with Grace Jones.

Scott Firth

A Pastorius-inspired bass player born in Birkenhead, who started a reggae band at school just outside Glasgow (who went on to support Aswad on their Scottish tour!), Scott has been The Deep MO’s guitar man since their very first gig at a party, and has since become an integral part of the band’s sound – with Scott’s ear being attuned to the bass, his unison riffs with Yolanda throughout a lot of their songs have a particular tightness and feel.

His amazing dexterity, accomplished, technical and expressive bass playing has led to a career working with Steve Winwood, Morcheeba, Little Axe, Ruby, John Martyn, Elvis Costello, Toni Braxton, Belinda Carlisle, Dominic Miller, Julia Fordham, Sarah Jane Morris, Nigel Kennedy, Pentangle, Mari Wilson, Christie Hennessy, Melanie C, Joan Armatrading and The Spice Girls reunion tour.

Robert Mitchell

A pianist and composer with six albums and two BBC Jazz Award nominations to his name, Mitchell joined TDMO in 2008 after his distinctive style caught the ear on a workshop tour with the band, his beautifully performed solos and superbly syncopated rhythms adding another vital element to the mix.

With a CV including stand-out names such as Cuban violinist Omar Puente, saxophonist Julian Siegel and vibraphonist Corey Mwamba, he has also worked with Courtney Pine, Steve Coleman, Norma Winstone, Greg Osby and Matana Roberts as well as appearing on the USONIC album Evolution. He has also been nominated twice for the Paul Hamlyn Foundation Award (Composition) and in 2009 his group 3io won Best Jazz Album in the prestigious Gilles Peterson Worldwide Awards. Mitchell has been a Steinway Artist since 2009, adding his name to the historic roster that includes Daniel Barenboim, Geri Allen, Billy Taylor, McCoy Tyner, Arthur Rubenstein and our own Joanna MacGregor and Julian Joseph.

Miles Bould

Given his very 1st set of congas by the great Dizzy Gillespie, Miles began to play extensively with many bands including Sava Jazz at the age of 16. Working as a session musician led to performances with Robert Palmer, John Martyn, Suggs, The Beloved, Daryl Hall, Joe Cocker, Eternal, Cher, Simply Red, The Lighthouse Family, Incognito, Level 42, The Pasedenas, Sting, Gabriel and Shara Nelson, and he also formed the band Peoplespeak with fellow TDMO member Scott Firth. His next band, Goosebump, led to work in Japan where he met Yolanda – now his wife – and the seeds of The Deep MO were well and truly sown.

More recent projects include producing a track for Carleen Anderson and further A-list session work with Sonique, Gerard Presencer, Shaun Escoffery, Valerie Etienne, Kylie Minogue, Brand New Heavies, Russell Watson, Summer, Joan Armatrading, Morecheeba, Mansun, Daniel Bedingfield, Lesley Garrett, Neil Stacey, Dominic Miller, Nigel Kennedy,  McFly, Beyonce, Jermaine Jackson and Michael Jackson.

Nigel Hitchcock

Chances are that one way or another you've already heard Nigel Hitchcock. His unique sax sound has contributed to hundreds of albums, jingles and film soundtracks. He has appeared on countless tv shows and toured extensively with some of the world's most well known artists.

In between recording dates during the last 10 years, Nigel has performed to thousands of people around the world with artists such as Tom Jones, Wet Wet Wet, Beverley Craven, Ray Charles and Robbie Williams. A contributor to other projects on the Deep MO record label GROOVE4DAYZ Records, Nigel appears with the band on their latest release FUNK in the 3rd Quarter leading a 3 piece horn section live at the Hideaway as a part of the special 10-piece band to showcase the launch of the debut Deep MO album.

Berenice Scott

Berenice Scott is a keyboard player, vocalist & songwriter. Born in Paris, she grew up in a musical household and is the daughter of Robin Scott (the man behind M and their smash hit Pop Muzik) and the French performance artist and singer Brigit Novik. She started playing the piano at 7 and happily missed school to record her first studio vocal session at 12.

Berenice has appeared as lead vocalist on two albums with Phil Gould of Level 42 - ‘Watertight’ & ‘Terraforming’. As a keyboard player she has performed with Johnny Hates Jazz, David McAlmont, and British band Raygun. With Raygun she supported P!nk on her European ‘Funhouse’ tour. As well as various writing projects, Berenice currently plays keyboards with Heaven 17.

Jack Pollitt

As one fifth of the UK soul sensation Mamas Gun the London born and bred drummer, Jack Pollitt, divides his time between being ‘in a band’ and working as a session musician. A tough balancing act if you can manage it, and so far Jack has enjoyed an illustrious career performing and recording with artists such as Beyonce Knowles, Pharrell Williams, Beverly Knight, Ed Sheeran, Lee Ryan, Shapeshifters, Fran Healy, David McAlmont, Zarif, Dennis Rollins, David Arnold, Sam Brown, Barefoot, Katrina & The Waves, and Ola Onabule to name but a few.

Taking on the role of playing drums for the Deep MO allowing regular drummer Miles Bould to play percussion, Jack adds the superb touch of his sensitive, musical and heavily funky groove. “I am really thrilled to be playing with Deep MO again! A great band for a great project. These are the kind of gigs musicians like me get really excited about”.