2024
Magy's Farm are proud to present Daniel Rorke Quartet, live in session.
About the session
The first gig of 2024 saw the long-awaited return to the Farm of bandleaders Daniel Rorke and Rick Simpson. Both musicians were part of Linley's 'Ginger's Hollow' album launch back in May '23. On that occasion, they impressed playing Linley's music with American jazz legends Adam Nussbaum and Mark Egan, and after meeting that night, struck up a friendship which resulted in the formation of this unit. The music was exciting, visiting post-bop repertoire but also originals from the band. Rorke's strong tone and Shorter-esque phrasing was commanding as it drove the melody and reinforced strong improvisational messages, while Simpson's almost unique style of motivically developed improvisations and spacious comping were captivating. Redmond, with the reputation of being Ireland's leading jazz bassist now, impressed whether he walked or grooved, fingers driving the bass lines, while O'Donovan, whose soloing was immense when it featured, was impeccable with time and creative with rhythms that proved an inspired platform for the front line, adding colours and reinforcing dynamics as the musicians combined in the tightest of quartets on the night. A fabulous gig, nothing left on the stage, punters buzzing and excited for the year to come.