Pete Roth Trio: Live at The Stables, Wavendon

I caught the Pete Roth Trio live at Love Supreme in July 2025 and it was great to chat with two thirds of them for Harmonious World. Now I’ve seen three of the coolest musicians on the planet give a full-length performance.

With Mike Pratt (bass) back from a hiatus with a repaired arm, and the brilliance of Bill Bruford (drums), the Pete Roth Trio wowed a delighted audience at The Stables. Guitar trio jazz in an intimate setting meant we were all involved - on stage and off. And the sound was just perfect.

Audience engagement was encouraged by the intricate improvisation that took every tune in a number of different directions - with tempos changing and every groove established right where it needed to be. Which, I guess, is exactly what you can expect from musicians of this calibre.

Some of the tracks are Pete’s own, a few by Bill and most by the trio collectively. There was a lovely tribute to the brilliant Ralph Towner, who died a few weeks ago. The PRT version of How Insensitive by Antonio Carlos Jobim was also delightful.

What PRT does spectacularly well is improvise form and structure as much as in the playing of chords: their use of silence and space between notes, solos and sections really is brilliant.

Several of the tunes played were taken from the upcoming (18 September) release of Group Chat. There will be a review in due course. Meanwhile, you can check out my chat with Pete and Mike at Love Supreme in July 2025 on Harmonious World.

Catch the Pete Roth Trio live this summer across Europe and the UK