Billy Cobham brought his Time Machine quintet to Union Chapel as part of a short European tour. His slow careful walk to his drum set belied the high energy performance which the 81 year-old was to unleash. He also brought something of a review of his hugely influential career in presenting songs that represented “a small little window into my career over the past 60 plus years”. With that came a lot of great memories, including his first visit to London when “Horace Silver dragged me to Ronnie Scott’s in 1968”. Not one to dwell on the past, Billy also featured a couple of new numbers from his forthcoming new album (*)
To use a much-maligned term, this was jazz fusion at its finest, characterized by intricate changes in mood, melody and tempo. It was played with passion and drive that was matched by the other members of the quintet. Cobham’s drumming is remarkable whether laying down a groove and letting things get a little funky to working the drums with short explosive solos including one while holding two pairs of sticks. His regular guitarist, Rocco Zifarelli, was at the heart of everything, switching from jazz-rock style shredding, to funk and rather spacey playing on quieter numbers such as Red Moon. This was a new composition with a sweet gentle melody, dedicated by Billy to his wife and sisters (“Very interesting people”!). Gary Husband was with Cobham for the Spectrum 30, 40 and 50 tours and his keyboard playing is phenomenal, from delicate, almost introverted piano solos to full-blooded synth solos. Bjorn Arko is a terrific tenor saxophonist and adds additional colour with his NuRad EWI, adding a quirky solo to an extended and rearranged version of Total Eclipse. Victor Cisternas adds fluid bass lines and even a funky feel on Times of My Life.
Billy introduced a special guest – “London’s version of Gene Ammons”. Dan Reinstein, a stalwart of the London jazz scene, came on stage for the last two numbers. The first one, Tinseltown, was a complete change of mood – swinging hard bop with Billy driving off the ride cymbal. Both saxes solo’d then joined the main melody together with jazz rock guitar. The number eventually segued into Red Baron which was a much more laid-back affair though it did feature duelling saxes.
So, a marvellous evening came to an end to rousing applause from the audience. The most remarkable thing was the fire and passion behind the music. Billy has acknowledged that his playing style has changed with age but it still reflects his deep passion for the music.
TIME MACHINE
Billy Cobham – drums
Gary Husband – keyboards
Rocco Zifarelli – guitar
Victor Cisternas – bass
Bjorn Arko – tenor saxophone, NuRad Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI)
Special guest: Dan Reinstein – alto and tenor saxophones
SETLIST
Times of My Life
A Little Travellin’ Music
Total Eclipse
Bombay Chill
Red Moon
(Drum Solo)
Stratus
Tinseltown
Red Baron
(*) “Times of My Life” is due to be released in 2026 – MORE
