ERIC MYERS REVIEWS 1980-87
Eric Myers was the Sydney Morning Herald’s inaugural jazz critic, his first review appearing on February 2, 1980. This folder contains reviews and articles written by Myers up to his resignation in 1982. Text published in the newspaper is reproduced here, with the addition of photographs which may or may not have appeared in the newspaper. In 1983 Myers moved to The Australian, where he was that paper’s jazz critic, until he resigned towards the end of 1987. His reviews for that newspaper appear also in this folder. Articles which appeared in other publications are included here, if they serve to document the performances of Australian jazz musicians. Readers can click on the INDEX button for a list of reviews or articles in this folder.
Brian Brown
THE AUSTRALIAN JAZZ ENSEMBLE: PASSIONATE, COMMITTED PERFORMANCE
by Eric Myers
Sydney Morning Herald, April 10, 1982
The Melbourne instrumentalist and composer Brian Brown is such a distinguished figure in Australian jazz that his rare Sydney appearances will always cause a stir. The first Sydney performance of his new group, the Australian Jazz Ensemble, however, exceeded expectations last Tuesday night. It showed that Brown is in the forefront of what may well be a new direction in Australian jazz — the mature synthesis of free form improvisation and written structures. During one of his introductions, Brian Brown remarked that “the avant-garde is now out of date”…
Allan Zavod
ALLAN ZAVOD BURSTS WITH ENERGY
by Eric Myers
Sydney Morning Herald, April 30, 1982
In a dazzling performance at The Basement on Wednesday night, the Australian expatriate pianist Allan Zavod successfully divided the audience. A zany figure, with a shock of long, curly, black hair exploding from under a canary yellow baseball cap, Zavod showed that his approach has a mixture of virtuosity and showmanship. Some maintained that he has the balance wrong. One fan who left halfway through the performance, remarked derisively: "Allan Zavod is only one step up from Peter Allen"…
Kerrie Biddell
JAZZ IN SYDNEY
by Eric Myers
JAMM Magazine, May, 1982
The brilliant vocalist Kerrie Biddell and her group Second Nature can be seen at two regular gigs in Sydney: Monday nights at The Basement, and Thursday nights at Red Ned's, Chatswood. I have often thought how lucky Sydney audiences are to have the regular opportunity to hear, for the price of a couple of drinks, one of our world-class singers. Not many singers of her quality are out performing in the regular venues. Some friends of mine from England, whom I recently took to hear Kerrie were knocked out…