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	BACK DOOR "Askin' the Way"
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	Stephen Yarwood, December 2003Back Door These guys added a whole new dimension to what on the surface looked like a jazz group, but was really far more than that. Seemingly appearing out of nowhere in the early 70s with a totally new take on the 3 piece sax/bass/drums format, they received much critical acclaim but ultimately didn't sell enough records. Sounds a familiar story, Joe Public never knows when he's well off. We can thank the Lion Inn, Blakey Ridge, a remote pub hidden away on England's North Yorkshire Moors and its enthusiastic landlord Brian Jones, for nurturing the extraordinary talents of Colin Hodgkinson (bass), Tony Hicks (drums) and Ron Aspery (sax & flute). The Lion provided a regular gig and as the word began to spread Brian even financed the recording and initial pressing of their eponymous debut album in 1972. Entirely instrumental and without overdubs, this album defined their sound. OK but what's the music like? Short self composed tunes from Aspery and Hodgkinson extend the various jazz, blues and funk traditions that inspired them. The arrangements are tight, within which are fleeting windows for improvisation. I guess the most innovative thing about the whole package is Colin Hodgkinson's approach to the electric bass. In his hands the Fender Precision fulfills the roles of bass, rhythm and even lead guitar giving the potentially sparse sounding trio a much richer palette of sound than might be imagined. Nothing has sounded quite like this before or since. Big names across the Atlantic began to take notice and almost overnight they found themselves supporting Chick Corea's Return to Forever in a highly successful series of gigs at Ronnie Scott's in London. Shortly after they were signed by Warner Brothers and the first album re packaged and re released. The second album Eighth Street Nites (1973) was recorded in New York with ex Cream producer Felix Pappalardi at the controls. The gritty sound of the first album was augmented by vocals (from Colin) on a couple of Leadbelly numbers and occasional electric piano (Ron). The focus was shifted slightly but the fire, finesse, wit and skill were still present in bucketloads. They toured Europe and the States supporting other big name admirers, most notably Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Two more albums were recorded but failed to match the stunning first two releases. On Another Fine Mess the changed and expanded line up (Dave MacCrae - keyboards all tracks, Bernie Holland - guitar on a couple of tracks) seems to smooth out the sound making them sound like a lot of other funk/jazz influenced rock bands of the time. Activate (Tony Hicks replaced by Adrian Tilbrook) was produced by Carl Palmer and is apparently an improvement, I have yet to hear this album so will reserve final judgement. By 1976 it was all over and the individual members moved on to diverse and extremely successful careers in the music industry. There was a brief reformation in the mid 80s for a couple of festivals, then in the late 90s Ron and Colin began recording a few bits and pieces which eventually evolved into a new Back Door album. Askin' the Way (March 2003), combining new material with a few reworked oldies, was launched with a return to Blakey, their spiritual home. This was indeed exciting news, but would they still have the fire after all this time? I agonised for some weeks over whether to make the difficult journey from the south east of England up to that remote corner of the North Yorkshire Moors. In the end I reluctantly decided that the practicalities of a long journey, work and family commitments, and of course cost, outweighed the desire to see my favourite cult band attempt to roll back the years. I read about the shows, they'd had to play an extra one to satisfy the demand. The old magic was still there, they were hot as hell!! Oh well I thought, another time another place. Sadly it wasn't to be. Unbelievably, as as I wrote this (28th December 2003) I read of the death of Ron Aspery on 10th December after a long illness. He will be sadly missed. I sincerely hope he has gone on to a better place, his musical contribution down here will not be forgotten. BACK TO MUSIC PAGE
	Issue 09 Bass Guitar Player Magazine, Oct 2003 Bassist Colin Hodgkinson was featured in BGM's issue 4 and revealed that a new Back Door album was imminant together with re-recording's of six of their classic tunes plus thirteen brand new tracks. 'Askin' the Way' is the result that will delight the fans of the legendary trio. With some of their early tracks being recorded in the early seventies the new recordings not only give a hi-fi like quality to the numbers but the band have re-arranged the tunes no doubt encapsulating the many improvisations that they performed whilst touring. The new tunes show that Back Door aren't going to mess with their jazz / fusion roots, which is good news indeed as it offers the perfect platform for Hodgkinson's unique bass playing style. The CD is currently only available from either any of the Bass Centre stores or direct via the labels website.
	John Fordham, Friday April 18, 2003, The Guardian In the early 1970s an alto sax-led trio blew into Ronnie Scott's from a pub gig in the middle of the Yorkshire moors, had the punters spilling their drinks with astonishment from the opening number, went on to make four albums for Warner Brothers and tour the globe, then disappeared. Back Door suited the funk-powered jazz climate of the time because they were earthy, bluesy and soulful - but they were worlds apart from much of the swaggering licks-laden American music of the time. At the band's core was a startlingly spontaneous relationship between alto sax player Ron Aspery and a bass-guitar phenomenon, Colin Hodgkinson - the UK's own Jaco Pastorius. This CD has 19 punchy pieces from the original line-up reformed. There are alto meditations over bass drones; slowly-developing sax funk lines over an accordion; blues-guitar vamping and sometimes almost an acoustic-folk sound from Hodgkinson; and some soul-sax balladry from Aspery that would make David Sanborn listen up. Back Door itself is a guffawing, raw-edge cruise over a boogie bassline that makes you feel you're right there with them in the crowded pubs in which they honed this style. The empty pint-glasses and spilling ashtrays on the artwork are nothing less than truthful about this music's roots. *****************************
	Jazz UK May 2003 Cultural Foundation is a music collective based in Rosedale, North Yorkshire. It devotes iteself to "music for musicians", with particular emphasis on independent creative work in the north-east. There's plenty of offbeat music in the Cultural Foundation catalogue, but readers with longer memories will be fascinated by news of an album by re-formed Back Door, the great British jazz/blues/fusion trio of the 1970's. Back Door's Askin' the Way (CULT 023) is available now, call 0845 458 4699 or check www.cultfound.org. ----------------------------**********
	Dave Gelly, Sunday May 18, 2003, The Observer "For once the word 'legendary' can be correctly applied. This band started up about 30 years ago in a remote pub on the North York Moors, went on to make four terrific albums and a world tour and then seemed to dissolve into thin air. It was such a remarkable outfit - just three musicians playing five instruments among them - that people who heard them live still talk about it. And now, here they are again, with a new CD. Ron Aspery on saxophone and keyboard, drummer and occasional accordionist Tony Hicks, and bass guitarist Colin Hodgkinson are all virtuosi, but that is only the start. Together they constitute a kind of group mind that conceives and executes entirely unclassifiable but compelling and intensely joyful music". ----------------------------**********
	JAZZ in London, June 2003 "Sunday 12th July in Waterlow Park - The return of the legendary Back Door" ----------------------------**********
	Brian Blain, June 2003, the Musician "For me Back Door was the band of the seventies. Its unique blend of almost free jazz, rock patterns and blues connected with a much wider audience than non-traditional groups were able to manage at that time, with four albums for Warners and US tours to prove it. Then they split, saxophonist Ron Aspery to a successful life as a media composer and session musician, drummer Tony Hicks to Australia, and bass guitarist Colin Hodgkinson to continue the life of the wandering troubadour with bands from Whitesnake and Cozy Powell to Jan Hammer and inumerable blues outfits. Which means that I slipped this brand new reunion CD into the machine with some trepidation. After 30 years would the old magic still work? Miraculously it does .... there is real passion in the sound of Aspery's saxophone, and Hodgkinson's unique bass style will probably still cause younger bass players to wonder how he does it. Finally, to lock these ingredients together is Hicks's loose and powerful drumming, in perfect empathy with his two old musical mates. I can see why they have gone for the Guinness and fags in the ashtray cover - there was always something of the English lad about the way they put a unique spin on American raw material - but it doesn't really prepare you for the haunting beauty of tunes like the title track, Spare the Tears, Snab's Rag, or The Cold Light of Day. Not that they can't still 'get down' and Shaken by Love and The Sleaze, the closest Hodgkinson comes to a convntional funk bass line, suggests that on a live date this band could still cut it with the younger chaps". ---------------------** *******
	Paul Donnelly, Monday 16th June, 2003, ejazznews Thirty years ago Back Door were flogging their debut album across the counter in The Lion Inn on Blakey Ridge out on a remote part of the Yorkshire moors. Though no record company would touch it at first, you probably can’t buy it anywhere now. A collectors’ item, without a doubt. Back Door rose to a certain kind of fame and ended up on world tours, before the inevitable break-up and return to relative individual obscurity. Now they’re back, gigging at the same pub. The reason being there’s a new album to promote and, like the very first, this one sees them on an independent label. It also finds them doing what they’ve always done best. They play a tight fusion of the blues with jazz sensibilities. Although they often supported prog-rock noodlers – I saw them with PFM – they always kept their tunes brief and succinct. I have no doubt that Ron Aspery could have recorded solos to match his contemporaries on either alto or soprano but he exercised restraint. He showed how it could be done. The longest tune here is only 4.09 and he’s still a master of the subtle nudge and nuance. Listen to the title track for instance, it just gets better with each version. Any of the newer ballads such as Hurlingham Down or the blues-drenched Spare Me The Tears show him at his lyrical best. And he accompanies himself on piano for music to help nurse your hangover, The Cold Light Of Day. All of these also show the Aspery/Hodgkinson flair for the concisely melodic. Drummer Tony Hicks always played what mattered and he is doing it just as well now, propelling these little gems and adding just enough to fill the spaces. No solos either, though he’s picked up accordion en route, and treats us to a little extra colour. What can be said of the virtuoso bass man? He knows when to attack and when to lie low. All sorts of daft comparisons were made once but he is simply Colin Hodgkinson, his own man, playing in his own way, leathery, supple and gritty. Though a couple of older tunes are taken at a slightly slower tempo, it isn’t all bluesy reflection. There’s still the jostle of Vienna Breakdown with mercurial sax and throbbing grounded bass and Slivadiv, still taut and wiry, given a new free- ish opening from sax and drums. For those who like it rockier there are a couple of new pieces, Drinking With Boxers and Get Lucky, which are buoyant and loose, affording opportunities for anyone wanting to play air-saxophone. I have one quibble. How come there’s no singing? There should have a been a vocal track or two since Hodgkinson has a certain way with Robert Johnson songs. But that aside this is a welcome return for one of the more enduring and unique trios of that era, the ones who didn’t make the concept album or perform with three-ring circuses on ice. They just played bloody great music. They still do. In case you have any difficulties finding it, which is quite likely, go straight to sales at www.cultfound.org where there is a secure on-line purchase facility. ---------------------** *******
	Christophe Wagner, Taz, 25th July, 2003 Wiederbelebt Im Zeitalter der industiell fabrizierten Popstars, klingt die Geschichte von Back Door wie eine Sage des kassichen Altertums. Back Door war ein Trio, das in einem abgelegenen Pub in den Mooren von Yorkshire als Hausband auftrat. Weil sie bei keiner Plattenfirma unterkamen, finanzierte ihnen der Pubbesizter des "Lion Inn" die erste Produktion. Die Platte schlug wie eine Bombe ein. Ihr Vollig eigenstandiger Stil aus Blues, Jazz und Rock erregte derart grosses Aufsehen, dass das Album binnen kurzem von Warner Brothers ubernommen wurde. Was folgte, war ein internationaler Triumphzug. Allerdings zehrte der Druck des Big Business an der Substanz: Nach drei weiteren Alben warf die Band das Handtuch. Letztes Jahr haben sich die drei Musiker im Gleichen Pub wiedergetroffen und erneut eine Einspielung gemacht. Wer befurchtete, das dabei nur ein lauer Aufgus verganener Glorie herauskommen wurde, sieht sich getausht. Vital wie in der Fruhphase geht das Trio zur Sache. Colin Hodgkinson greift machtig in die Saiten und lasst seine Bassgintarre in typischer Manier knarren und heulen. Sein akkoedisches Spiel liefert das Gerust fur die Songs, die von Ron Aspery in wunderbar singenden Saxofonlinien weitergesponnen werden, angetrieben vom federnden Puls des Schlagzeugers Tony Hicks. Im Lion Inn in Blakey Ridge standen die Leute Kopfwie vor 30 Jahren.
	Back Door Biography (Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Muse UK Ltd, 1989 - 2002) This jazz-rock trio from Blakey, Yorkshire, comprises Colin Hodgkinson (b. 14 October 1945, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England; bass/vocals), Ron Aspery (saxophone/keyboards/flute/clarinet) and Tony Hicks (drums and accordeon). The trio attracted much interest as a result of Hodgkinson's unique, adept full-chording bass technique. Their critically acclaimed first album, recorded in 1972, was initially released on the independent Blakey label. The praise and attention generated by the album resulted in the band signing to Warner Brothers Records, who later reissued the set. Subsequent releases, which included production work from Felix Pappalardi and Carl Palmer, failed to capture the spirit of the debut set or the fire of their live performances. By the time of the fourth album, Activate, in 1976, Hicks had departed (replaced by Adrian Tilbrook), and the group split the following year. Aspery went on to work with the Icelandic jazz rock group Mezzoforte, while Hodgkinson guested with various artists including Alexis Korner, Jan Hammer and Brian Auger. The original line-up of Back Door reunited in the new millennium to record the studio album, Askin' The Way DISCOGRAPHY: Back Door (Blakey/Warners 1972)****, 8th Street Nites (Warners 1974)***, Another Fine Mess (Warners 1975)***, Activate (Warners 1976)**, Askin' The Way (Cultural Foundation 2003)****. ---------------------** *******
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