Music Spoken Here presents Chris Bowden ‘The Hypnos Files’
featuring Neil Bullock & Louise Warren
The Marr’s Bar, 12 Peirpoint Street, Worcester WR1 1TA
Thursday 24th April 2025, 8pm doors / 8:30 start
Worcester promoter Music Spoken Here is hosting one of only two UK performances by saxophonist, composer and arranger Chris Bowden at The Marr’s Bar on Thursday 24 April. The event will showcase music from across his 30-year career.
Originally from Birmingham, Chris moved to London in the late ’80s to study at Trinity music college, during the height of the UK jazz and Acid Jazz scene. He regularly joined jam sessions with top young players from the National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO), where a chance encounter with trumpeter James Bromley led to his involvement with K-Creative and a lasting friendship with Gilles Peterson.
Chris immersed himself in arranging, contributing to Jessica Lauren’s Siren Song (1994) and releasing his debut album Time Capsule on Soul Jazz Records in 1996. He later arranged strings for 4Hero’s Two Pages (1998), before releasing his second album Slightly Askew in 2002 on Ninja Tune.
Struggles with addiction brought him back to Birmingham around the age of 30. A key step in his recovery came with a 2007 commission from Birmingham Jazz, resulting in a ten-piece suite titled The Incredible So-called Death of Cash Bodine. His third album Unlikely Being followed in 2018, with Neil Bullock, Jim Watson and Chris Dodd—who’ll all be joining him in Worcester—on drums, piano and bass respectively.
More recently, Chris collaborated with vocalist Louise Warren and Neil Bullock during lockdown, with the resulting album released on Rehab Records in 2022. He continues to perform with younger jazz musicians and groups including Tom Hill’s Detroitwich Funk Machine and Edgar Macias’ Buena Vista Social Club.
The Marr’s Bar performance promises to be a special night, featuring material from all four of Chris’ albums. The band also includes long-time collaborator Simon ‘Palmskin’ Richmond on electronics. With only one other date booked at Peggy’s Skylight in Nottingham, this is a rare chance to hear Bowden’s music live. Doors open at 8pm and admission is £15 on the door, or free for Music Spoken Here club members. For more information, please visit the Music Spoken Here website