Threeway

THREEWAY AT TWENTY’

Steve Waterman – Trumpet/Flugelhorn

Steve Lodder – Piano/Keyboards

Ben Crosland – Bass

“The ensemble playing has the togetherness that only comes from top

musicians who know each other well and think as one. Everything is clear and

precise yet full of delicacy and feeling” Dave Gelly, The Observer

“Three stellar musicians…Crosland’s compositions are often quite

captivating, the reactions and interplay between Crosland, Waterman and

Lodder as near to perfection as anyone could want” Peter Vacher, Jazzwise

Threeway came into being in May 2004 over the breakfast table after

Waterman, Lodder and Crosland had, the previous evening, played at a

charity event at the home of two of Crosland’s closest friends. The feeling

was that there was real compatibility between them and something new and

exciting could emerge within the context of a chamber jazz trio without drums.

Over the course of the ensuing 19 years, the band has recorded three

albums, Conversations, Songs of the Year and Looking Forward, Looking

Back, which have all garnered significant critical acclaim and received airplay

on a number of radio stations including BBC Radio 3, Jazz FM and UK Jazz

Radio. Threeway have played festivals and club dates across the country,

engaging audiences with their attractive brand of melodic, fresh sounding,

subtle jazz, the material largely written by all three band members, all the

while developing the intense interplay between the players that so

characterises the group’s identity and sound.

Threeway’s music is heard to best advantage in the concert setting.

Accordingly, this is an ideal group for ‘listening’ jazz venues, arts centres,

music festivals and concert societies.

The band is celebrating its 20th anniversary and to mark the occasion, it

has recorded an album of new compositions with guitar legend John

Etheridge as their special guest. The album, HARKEN!, was released on 5th

July 2024 and was launched at the Buxton International Festival on 8th July.2

Threeway has been touring throughout the year as a trio and also with John

as their special guest.

The band was recently featured on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune presenting

music from HARKEN!

Steve Waterman is an in demand soloist both in UK and abroad. He

has recorded and toured with John Surman’s Brass Project and the Carla Bley

Big Band and has worked with a host of other artists including Vince

Mendoza, Tony Coe, Mal Waldron and Colin Towns. He has recorded a series

of critically acclaimed albums in his own name.

Steve Lodder is a highly regarded sideman for many international and

British musicians including Andy Sheppard, Nana Vasconcelos, George

Russell’s Living Time Orchestra, Sarah Jane Morris, John Harle, Carla Bley

and Monica Vasconcelos. He has been musical associate with Paul

McCartney on the ‘Standing Stone’ and ‘Ecce Cor Meum’ projects.

Ben Crosland is one of the north’s most experienced jazz musicians,

having been leading bands for over 30 years. He has worked as a sideman

with many leading US and UK soloists including Jean Toussaint, Ken

Peplowski, Harry Allen, George Masso, Henry Lowther, Stan Sulzman, Frank

Ricotti and John Etheridge.

PRESS QUOTES

‘’This is a band that gives the term "chamber jazz" a good name. All

three are virtuoso players who know each other so well that their

improvisations just seem to fall into place. It's subtle music – warm, melodic

and gently intriguing.’’ Dave Gelly, The Observer

‘‘HARKEN! marks 20 years of Threeway’s illustrious association, yet

even over that time, the music remains fresh. As a drum free trio, there’s

always been a chamber-like intimacy to their music, spacious, with room-a-

plenty to stretch and relax.’’ Andy Robson, Jazzwise3

‘‘The depth of the experience of the musicians shows throughout this

recording. Their solidarity and friendship elevates their performance and the

strength of the compositions takes the album up a further level. They come

across as relaxed, yet their playing is meticulous. Technique, imagination,

subtlety and charm come together to make this an absorbing listening

experience.’’ Neil Duggan, All About Jazz

‘‘The relaxing interplay between all four musicians is almost telepathic.

The absence of drums allows the participants to play at a much lower volume

than would ordinarily have been the case. The rich detail and tone of each

instrument and each tune are immediately apparent. The addition of Etheridge

was a masterstroke. The keynote of all this music is melody. It seems to me

that each theme could have lyrics written to accompany it. This is music that

could only have been born in England. It is chamber jazz which shares a

pastoral quality with some of the work of Ralph Vaughan Williams and Edward

Elgar.’’ Alan Musson, UK Vibe

‘‘With the pedigree of musicianship on offer, it’s no surprise that

HARKEN! is an album that pleases in so many ways.’’ George Cole, Jazz

Views

‘‘Three great musicians, they are celebrating 20 years together. They

are a veritable repository of skills, as you will discover.’’ Sean Rafferty, In

Tune BBC Radio 3

‘’Threeway celebrate their 20th anniversary with another high class

album release with all three members, plus their guest John Etheridge,

contributing with the pen. All provide excellent offerings but as the main writer

it’s Crosland’s gift for melody and his ability to evoke a sense of place that

carries the day….“HARKEN!” offers further evidence of Threeway’s delicate

strengths with Etheridge adding a little guitar roughage and Lodder providing

additional variety via the use of a range of keyboards.’’ The Jazzmann