I was lucky enough to see Ella Fitzgerald live at Ronnie Scott’s Club in the 1970s; an event which has always stayed with me. Tonight was an opportunity to relive that time and I wasn’t disappointed.

By Angie Millard

A quartet consisting of a piano, double bass, drums and saxophone were accompanied by a vocalist, these musicians played superbly using music to tell the story of the beginning and gradual development of the most famous jazz club in Europe. There was a video screen upstage and using various images and clips we heard of the good times and the bad. We were told of the exchange of British performers with their American counterparts at a time when the unions made such things difficult. There were problems with unpaid VAT tax and a search for someone to rescue the club financially but throughout it all the jazz survived.

Natalie Williams paid homage to Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone by singing  their famous numbers. Her version of Ella’s Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered was exquisite and the scat singing she produced showed real musicality and rhythm.

The other musicians gave us Oscar Peterson, Roland Kirk and Tubby Hayes, in a series of jazz sets with instrumental solos. There were intriguing stories including one about Ronnie Scott being approached by the Kray twins who wanted him to open a club in Knightsbridge but he managed to decline and stay in Soho. The saxophonist claimed to be playing Ronnie Scott’s first Soprano Saxophone rescued from a record shop in the suburbs which added a sentimental touch to the proceedings.

The finale took us back to Ella depicted on the screen behind them singing: It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t got that Swing, reminding us of her perfect pitch and timing. 

The audience loved it and the musicians took over seamlessly as she sang behind them. It turns out many of the audience had heard Ella live.

What happened to Jazz Clubs? I hear that there is Jazz in a bar in York so why not give it a try?

The Ronnie Scott Story was performed at York Theatre Royal on Friday 2 September 2022