Scottish jazz pianist Fergus McCreadie played on sax player Matt Carmichael‘s 2021 album Where Will The River Flow alongside bassist Ali Watson and drummer Tom Potter. A love for Scottish traditional music deeply influenced that album, and our reviewer noted how McCreadie’s piano, in particular, kept the listener aware of the tune at the heart of some of those pieces.
For anyone familiar with McCreadie’s own trio featuring David Bowden on Double Bass and Stephen Henderson on Drums, that won’t come as a surprise, for he has been exploring those Jazz and Folk idioms since his debut album ‘Turas’, released in 2018, the same year he reached the BBC Young Jazz Musician finals.
Turas is the Scottish Gaelic word for journey, and his three albums to date translate very much as a journey, one rooted in the Scottish tradition and inspired by Scottish landscapes. His latest offering, Forest Floor, was released back in April and while his definitive style has matured, so has the collective feel of the trio, which must surely come from the assurance and trust gained from playing together for so long.
The album’s pastoral-themed titles forge a connection with nature and the Scottish landscape – The Unfurrowed Field / The Ridge / Glade…and the rather beautiful Morning Moon. There’s also a rich organic vibe to their music that feels stronger on this release and must undoubtedly have been helped by McCreadie’s decision to teach and play the compositions by ear.
One of the things I admire about musicians like McCreadie, Bowden and Henderson is how personally distinctive their music has become….it sounds like them. They have shaped their music through mutual trust, and nothing formulaic is going on here. With this trio, experimentation leads over trends, and long may their journey continue.
Watch them performing Law Hill live.
Forest Hill is out now on Edition Records: https://editionrecords.com/releases/fergus-mccreadie-forest-floor/
Website: https://www.fergusmccreadie.co.uk/