Issue #11 - January 2025

Benoit's World News

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had a merry Xmas and a happy new year. I have been off sick since late october hence the radio silence and the belated season greetings. I am truly sorry about my prolonged absence, but please read on…

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2024 was the Year of the Dragon!

2024 was the year of the Dragon, the hottest ever recorded in human history as we officially broke the 1.5 degree increase in global warming. I have definitively tried my utmost not to be full of hot air, but I’m French. I still had the musical fire in my belly, and I even managed to be a high-flyer for a bit with high profile concerts, royal private events in Asia, and some sold out shows at my favourite local club in Hastings (the best gigs of the lot by far). Overall, it has been very busy, very challenging, very exhausting and utterly stressful. I am pretty certain that this dragon belly fire eventually consumed me whole because after 20 years performing on a shoe string, I finally burnt out.

As a result, I ended up coming back sick from India in October. I've been diagnosed with a pneumonia, and tested for tuberculosis (sounds dramatic but there is a lot of that in India). doctors advised me to cancel all my work for a very minimum of three months, and to stay in bed, so I did, and I still do. They did various tests, X-rays and else, but the illness that caused it remains mysterious to this day. Whatever respiratory disease turned in a pneumonia I did contract during my travels, it knocked me out of action in the most absolute fashion. Since I am starting to find the energy to work a little, I would like to whish you all a belated merry Xmas and happy new year.

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2025 is the Year of the Snake

2025 is the year of the snake, a cold-blooded reptile considered a sign of fertility in many cultures. Henceforth, I have decided to be fertile too, and stay home for a long while instead of beating up my guitar, my car, my phone, my computer, and... myself. After 20 years of performing non-stop, I will try do some writing for a change and spend time playing music rather than organising everything and everybody everyday for every job everytime. It is not that I have a choice anyway due to my current health circumstances: I still don’t have the stamina to perform, travel, and manage and promote... 2025 will most certainly be a very bad financial year for me, but I must look after myself for once if I am to carry on with panache.

I guess the silverlining is that during that period I will finally take some time to release my unpublished back catalogue. I have quite a lot of interesting music recorded (I think), and I hope that you will like it. Sadly I won’t make any CD or vinyl, because it’s extremely demanding, it means more things to manage, design, promote and try to sell, spending a lot of time, money and efforts, burning myself out again for some very predictably disappointing results. Nevertheless, you will get the downloads (and make 44.1Khz quality audio CD yourself) or subscribe and get them all. The first release of 2025 is a film soundtrack: “New York 1926”

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New EP: "NEW YORK 2026"

This is the soundtrack we have recorded for an American feature film made by an Oscar winning director in 2022. I have promised not to name them. It is very early jazz, or "Jass" as they used to call it, with such exotic instruments as Tuba and Bass Saxophone among others. The tunes were dug out from the Original Dixieland Jass Band, Fats Waller, and the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra early repertoires. There are some interesting stories about the recording sessions. You can read them and listen to the music exclusively on Bandcamp. And if you buy a download you will me make me very happy and help me to carry on producing music!​

This EP was to be the last recording of the brilliant Graham Read (R.I.P), who died of cancer shortly after, read below...

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Graham Read (1951-2023)

Virtuoso Double bass, tuba and bass saxophone player

Graham Read has been active professionally in the vintage jazz field for about 50 years. He has performed in Europe and Asia with the Temperance Seven and the Pasadena Roof Orchestra as well as with various projects with Keith Nichols (the Midnite Follies Orchestra, the Cotton Club Orchestra...). He also performed extensively with Richard Exall’s Shooting Stars and the Louisiana Rhythm Kings, and was running the Outswingers for cricket at Lord’s.

Over the lengh of his rich and long career, Graham has recorded more than 40 LPs/CDs. He also doubled as John Altman's copyist on many movies including Billy Elliot, RKO 281, Quills & TV series Miss Marple & Peak Practice.

He was an exceptionally talented musician, a fountain of knowledge and a very good man.

He will be missed.

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Upcoming concerts:

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From the author

That’s it folks, It's was a bit long but I hope it was good, or at least "somewhat good". For complaints and accolades please email me, I will respond.

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A bientot. (French: meaning "See you soon")

Benoit Viellefon

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Benoit Viellefon - St Matthews Gardens, St Leonards-on-sea, East Sussex TN38 0TT
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