MARCH
MARCH
GET ON THE MAILING LIST OR FOLLOW US ON TWITTER FOR WEEKLY UPDATES.
NOT ALL EVENTS ARE PRE-BOOKABLE.
CONCESSIONS ARE FOR STUDENTS WITH VALID ID, OVER 60s & MUSICIANS' UNION MEMBERS.
BK = BEAR KEEPER (MEMBERS)
IF YOU DON'T SEE THE DATE HERE, WE ARE NOT OPEN.
WE CLOSE AROUND MIDNIGHT.
FRIDAY 01 MARCH
Return of the guitars…
OXLEY-MEIER QUARTET
Expect a dazzling display of contemporary fare, ranging from Turkish panache to soundscapes of Latin America to English pastoralism, played on nylon string, steel string, electric, twelve-string, fretless, slide, guitar-synth, glissentar guitars and more!
Pete Oxley and Nic Meier are two masterly guitarists, although very different in style. The array of changing sounds, moods and textures they create is gorgeous, fascinating and apparently endless. They entertain by playing with a spontaneity and an intuitive interplay between them that keeps them fresh and fired up from gig to gig. The duo therefore comes to the performance with what they hope are the audience’s anticipations: to expect the unexpected!
In quartet form, the group features the incredible rhythm section of Raph Mizraki (acoustic & electric basses) and Paul Cavaciuti (drums).
SATURDAY 02 MARCH
MATT EDWARDS
Unconventional yet always full to the brim with groove and power, Matt Edwards is a Blues songwriter, vocalist and guitarist that stands out of the crowd in the UK Blues scene. Hailing from the South of England, Edwards is inspired by a huge wealth of musical genres. From jazz to rock, funk to folk - his style of writing showcases subtle flavours from all styles and gels them into his own alternative Blues-Rock sound.
SUNDAY 03 MARCH
The first Sunday of every month…
JAZZ JAM
OPEN JAZZ SESSION
2PM - 5.30PM
£4 / £3 (BK)
FIRST COME FIRST SERVED
Come to watch, come to play, come to drink... The Jazz Jam is a session led by a great house band, where musicians and singers come to try out material, play old classics and sit in with other players. It is for everyone. Half of the crowd come to play, half come to just watch. It's the sort of gig where you don't know what's coming next.
Find the Jazz Jam organisers on Facebook HERE
MONDAY 04 MARCH
MUSIC ON MONDAYS present…
We host Luton's long-running series of exceptional classical concerts. For the full programme of these multi-venue events, please visit their website HERE
The Luton Music Club welcomes non-members who wish to purchase tickets on the door.
THURSDAY 07 MARCH
BAR OPEN
Lights low, records playing and the best beer, gin and whisky selection in town.
Come for company. Come for solitude.
It's your bear.
FRIDAY 08 MARCH
Bringin’ you the rhythm and blues sound of Chess Records…
THE UNTOUCHABLES
Champions of raw blues and swinging soul, The Untouchables base their sound on the great artists who recorded for Chess Records in the 50s. With a string bass, a vintage drum kit, a cranked guitar through a hot valve amp and a wailing harp, this band turns any venue into a rockin' juke joint.
EMAIL TO RESERVE
SATURDAY 09 MARCH
Launching their new Unplugged(ish) album ‘Down Time’…
PEARL HANDLED REVOLVER
BLUES
DOOR 7PM / MUSIC 8.30PM
£10 / £9 / £5 (BK)
SOLD OUT, SORRY!
“Imagine a late night tavern, exotically scented smoke in the air, Aleister Crowley and Anton LaVey in the corner booth, with Absinthe and out of body experiences on the menu. Pearl Handled Revolver would be the house band.”
Rhythm Magazine
What started as an experiment in playing ‘Filthy Blues’ has, over the years, expanded to incorporate all manner of sonic whims and fever dreams. For a substantial portion of the time they’re under the distinct impression that they are, perhaps, chasing the dragon down whichever darkened alleyway it thinks it might find musical treasures to feed upon. Their desire to experiment mean the results are never predictable. Whether it be in concert or on album, an encounter with Pearl Handled Revolver will leave you dancing to a new set of tunes that you knew existed, but had never dared to seek out before.
To celebrate the launch of their new 'unplugged' album Pearl Handled Revolver will perform a very special showcase at The Bear Club. Their first gig at the venue.
SOLD OUT
‘People often deride the blues as static, but this psychedelic stew of rock and kaleidoscopic blues shows the medium can be progressive if bands sprinkle invention on it as well as this British outfit do.’ – Powerplay Magazine
MONDAY 11 MARCH
MUSIC ON MONDAYS present…
We host Luton's long-running series of exceptional classical concerts. For the full programme of these multi-venue events, please visit their website HERE
The Luton Music Club welcomes non-members who wish to purchase tickets on the door.
THURSDAY 14 MARCH
BAR OPEN
Lights low, records playing and the best beer, gin and whisky selection in town.
Come for company. Come for solitude.
It's your bear.
FRIDAY 15 MARCH
Jazz born in Louisiana…
ADRIAN COX:
PROFOUNDLY BLUE
A highly-acclaimed concert celebrating the traditional hot jazz music of Louisiana-born clarinettist Edmond Hall. The show features leading UK clarinet star Adrian Cox with his first-class band; Joe Webb (piano), Simon Read (double bass) and Gethin Jones (drums).
The title Profoundly Blue comes from the 1941 hit album which featured Hall, along with Meade Lux Lewis and Charlie Christian. Cox leads the quartet with this as a starting point and continues through a programme of lesser known tunes from the albums Rumpus on Rampart Street and Petit Fleur. Together they bring to life a fine selection of Hall’s work with Eddie Condon, Teddy Wilson and of course, Louis Armstrong, in this fantastic tribute to one of the true legends of jazz.
Over his career, Adrian has performed with artists including Wynton Marsalis, The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Dr. John, Maceo Parker, Ronnie Wood, Guy Barker and at countless sell-out shows including Ronnie Scott’s, The Barbican, and The Lincoln Center (New York). This year has seen Adrian receive a full endorsement from Vandoren and a nomination in the British Jazz Awards 2018.
EMAIL TO RESERVE
SATURDAY 16 MARCH
Danni’s back. New tour. New album. New line-up…
DANNI NICHOLLS
COUNTRY
DOOR 7PM / MUSIC 8.30PM
£10 / £9 / £5 (BK)
EMAIL TO RESERVE
“I absolutely love the elegance and beauty of her music”
Bob Harris, BBC Radio 2
With the wind in her sails from receiving two consecutive Americana Music Association UK award nominations (2017 UK Album of the Year for Mockingbird Lane and 2018 UK Artist of the Year), singer/songwriter Danni Nicholls has embarked upon her next artistic journey - her third studio album The Melted Morning with a new producer at the helm. Back to The Bear Club, with a new band, this is the first date of her new UK tour.
“Smoky soul, folk-pop and heart-wrenching alt-country, all in a rich voice”
- Q Magazine
THURSDAY 21 MARCH
BAR OPEN
Lights low, records playing and the best beer, gin and whisky selection in town.
Come for company. Come for solitude.
It's your bear.
FRIDAY 22 MARCH
Rock ‘n’ Roll is here to stay…
THE KRAZY KAT TRIO
The Krazy Kat Trio consists of Billy on lead guitar & lead vocals, Wil on drums & lead/backing vocals & Markus on double bass & backing vocals. Billy & Wil are currently playing in The Sun Records Show & Markus plays in various bands, including a Chuck Berry tribute show. They play Rock n Roll & Rockabilly in authentic 1950's style, covering artists including Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins & Elvis Presley.
EMAIL TO RESERVE
SATURDAY 23 mARCH
It came from outer space…
MARSHIAN TIME SLIP
Trumpeter Steve Fishwick and saxophonist Alex Garnett need no introduction, having been at the forefront of jazz in the UK for decades. They are set to tour their new release, Marshian Time Slip, in March with New York bassist Mike Karn and Matt Fishwick on drums. Marshian Time Slip, a double dedication to Philip K. Dick and saxophonist Warne Marsh, rekindles a project that began some 15 years ago when brothers Steve and Matt Fishwick livedin a flat that happened to neighbor Garnett, less than a stones throw from the old BBC Maida Vale Studios. “It was inadvertently influenced by the chord-less quartet of Ernie Henry and Kenny Dorham and Sonny Rollins and more broadly the Bebop/Hard Bop genre as we didn’t have a piano available in the rehearsal room” - Fishwick.
SUNDAY 24 MARCH
Happy Shark Comedy presents…
THE RABBIT HOLE:
Iain Lee and Katherine Boyle
Iain Lee (11 O’Clock Show, BBC Three Counties Radio, talkRADIO, I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!) and Katherine Boyle (BBC Three Counties Radio, talkRADIO) invite you to join them in The Rabbit Hole, a prerecorded phone in podcast taped in front of a live studio audience. Nothing is planned and anything can happen. The phone lines are opened, and randoms call in, and the audience are welcome to join in if they disagree with anything being said. This is the 2nd time we've hosted The Rabbit Hole at The Bear Club, after a sell out show last year.
THURSDAY 28 MARCH
BAR OPEN
Lights low, records playing and the best beer, gin and whisky selection in town.
Come for company. Come for solitude.
It's your bear.
FRIDAY 29 mARCH
One one and only…
PAUL JOLLY QUARTET
Head honcho of 33 Records and legendary saxophonist Paul Jolly (Straight No Chaser, Mantrata, People Band), brings his quartet back the Bear, ably assisted by drummer Mark Burr, pianist Richard Wilsher and bassist Pete Myatt, playing their hard and funky reinterpretations of jazz standards.
EMAIL TO RESERVE
SATURDAY 30 mARCH
Jazz meets Rock…
FLYING MACHINES
JAZZ
DOOR 7PM / MUSIC 8.30PM
£10 / £9 / £5 (BK)
EMAIL TO RESERVE
"Gritty rock-powered guitar improv"
The Guardian
Featuring some of the most innovative young musicians to have emerged from London’s exploding jazz scene, Flying Machines fuse visceral improvisation with anthemic melodies and lusciously textured soundscapes to captivating effect. Having released their eagerly anticipated second album New Life on Ubuntu Music with glowing reviews in the likes of Guitarist, Jazzwise and Prog Magazine, Flying Machines have firmly established themselves as one of the biggest breakthrough acts to have emerged from the UK jazz scene in recent years.
Alex Munk - Guitar
Matt Robinson - Piano/Keyboards
Conor Chaplin - Electric Bass
Dave Hamblett - Drums
"Prog-ish grooves that spool out of the speakers
like data streams down fibre optic cables"
Jazzwise (One to Watch 2019)