Bill Evans: At The BBC 1965

Jazz 625 was a British television show, hosted by trumpeter Humphrey Lyttelton, that ran from 1964 to 1966 on BBC2; the name comes from the higher-resolution 625-line UHF system that the station employed for broadcast. The show featured a variety of British musicians as well as top American artists such as Art Blakey, Jimmy Giuffre, Dave Brubeck, Oscar Peterson, Thelonious Monk and the Modern Jazz Quartet. The archives thus hold a treasure trove of mid-60s jazz and, thankfully, the 35 mm film containing many episodes has survived and can be seen at a variety of sites online as well as on DVD. On March 19, 1965, pianist Bill Evans and his trio featuring bassist Chuck Israels and drummer Larry Bunker played an hour-long set for the cameras at the BBC Television Theatre in Shepherd's Bush, the results being broadcast over two episodes.

As part of his continuing series of archival releases with the cooperation of the Evans family, producer Zev Feldman has dusted off the audio for both Jazz 625 episodes featuring the Bill Evans Trio to create a double vinyl release for Record Store Day 2026, with CD and digital releases to follow. The audio was restored by Marc Doutrepont at EQuuS, LP lacquers were cut by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab, and the generous full-size booklet includes commentary by Evans scholar Marc Myers, reflections by Israels, James Person from London's Ronnie Scott's jazz club and singer and pianist Jamie Cullum.

"(W)e were damn near perfect at the BBC," says Israels in the notes. "We were playing music that was deeply familiar, which was freeing and comforting." Indeed, the recording session that yielded the album Trio '65 (Verve Records, 1965) was held just six weeks before the BBC session, and five of that studio album's eight tracks are essayed here. As was typical for Evans, the trio was given no set list, nor were rehearsals held. Bunker and Israels simply listened to Evans' piano intro to learn what song they would play next. The main impression from the set is just what a swinging version of the trio this was.

Evans' first working trio with bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian rewrote the rules of the game, and sounded like three musical poets continually finishing each other's stanzas. The trio with Israels and Bunker swings harder, particularly on upbeat tunes such as John Carisi's "Israel," which features a great solo by Israels, followed by a series of traded sixes, first between bass and drums and then by piano and drums. As good as the Trio '65 studio version is, this takes the tune to another level altogether. Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse's "Who Can I Turn To?" also swings, thanks to Bunker's outstanding brushwork and another superb Israels solo. The group's arrangement of George Gershwin's "Summertime" is led by Israels' questioning, upturned bass riff that spurs Evans to some deliciously dark blues comping. This trio is also adept at ballads, of course, and offers spellbinding takes on Victor Young's "My Foolish Heart" and Evans' own "Re: Person I Knew."

Lyttleton's introductions, wry commentary and the trio's opening and closing of each half-hour set with Evans' "Five" theme greatly add to the atmosphere of the set. Listening to the album feels like tuning into a jazz lover's ideal radio station from a different time, when music of this quality was allowed to develop at length before the public. The sound is well-balanced for the times, given that it was recorded in mono for television transmission, though at times the bass or piano signal overloads and distorts. The quality of the music far outweighs this technical caveat, and At The BBC 1965 provides another important piece of the puzzle for the many who find Bill Evans' trio work endlessly enjoyable and fascinating.

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