Flight Call: Live at Ronnie Scott’s

My first foray into the refurbished space upstairs at Ronnie Scott’s was to hear vocal trio Flight Call.

Sometimes everything comes together in a gig, and that’s what happened in the beautifully-refurbished Upstairs at Ronnie Scott’s, where the sound and lighting are great, with a lovely ensemble performing a selection of standards and original tunes.

Flight Call are three individuals singing collectively and collaboratively and bringing their own style and technique: Georgia Cécile, Peter Horsfall (who adds trumpet where appropriate) and Lucy-Anne Daniels. In support is a strong rhythm section of Alex Bryson (piano), Ferg Ireland (bass) and Will Creasey (drums).

The arrangements for these three strong vocalists are clever, complex and deeply entertaining. Some are from the Andy Bey catalogue, including my new ear worm of the Flight Call version of Round Midnight. Similarly, their scatting on Smooth Sailing, the gorgeous Cole Porter Every Time We Say Goodbye and the Roy Ayers’ summer classic Everybody Loves the Sunshine were all perfected on stage in front of a capacity audience.

The entire ensemble performed Alex Bryson’s I’d Have Thought By Now and later the composer himself sang his Let’s Pretend It’s Sunday with Ireland and Creasey.

I first saw Lucy-Anne sing at Ladbroke Hall in September 2023 with Zhenya Strigalev and Soweto Kinch. Lucy-Anne and I then chatted for an episode of Harmonious World in January 2024. In this ensemble she has found a place to shine alongside other superb musicians.

Flight Call are individually outstanding musicians and collectively engaging and entertaining. There’s a great range of artists appearing in this special space above the iconic stage on the ground floor, including vocalist Heidi Vogel, who I interviewed a few days ago for Harmonious World.

Check out some of the future appearances at Ronnie Scott’s - upstairs, downstairs and for the late shows