Charliesax > Charlie Hearnshaw Quartet
alto sax/clarinet ~ guitar ~ bass ~ drums

Original Compositions & Jazz Standards

Charlie Hearnshaw Quartet offers user-friendly original jazz tunes written by the band alongside classic jazz standards and world music.

The band champions old-school values of melody, rhythm, harmony & good bass lines.

History of The Quartet
Formed in 1985 as a vehicle for new jazz, CHQ released it’s first LP So Slam It in 1990 to enthusiastic reviews:

Virile and reflective chamber jazz The Times.
A light and delicate approach to be-bop Time Out, London.

The record received extensive radio play, especially on Radio 2 and the new Jazz FM. That year the band came ninth in
the Guardian Critic’s Poll, quite an achievement for a Devon based band playing original music. 2006 saw So Slam It
re-released in Japan on vinyl and CD. For reviews and soundclips type So Slam It Hearnshaw into Google

In the early nineties the band was recorded several times by the BBC, with two subsequent lengthy broadcasts on Radio 2
and one on BBC Radio Devon. Charlie has recently compiled three albums from recordings made at that time. Play Us
a Standard, Tropical Fish and Chips and Yesterday’s Waltz are available on the Shelly Studios label. The dance-influenced
Indevout was released in 2005. The entire CHQ catalogue is on the band’s website at www.charliesax.co.uk

what the critics say
“Promoters like it because it is modern and audiences like it because it is accessible”. 
Andy Morley, (then) director, Exeter Phoenix Arts Centre

"Quietly ferocious alto sax."
Somerset County Gazette