Music, an Aberdeen sound before we leave. After a search of the local pubs, Nan found a promising venue only a few blocks from our hotel: Sunday Afternoon Jazz at the Blue Lamp. A quick trek along Aberdeen’s granite sidewalk and we arrived under a large blue lamp only to discover locked doors. No sound from behind the door, no cancellation notice on the door, only the locked heavy brown varnished door, grey granite wall, and an empty street. Another door farther along Nan decided to try; a slight push opened to a glass-paned wooden revolving door and to a large space with a crowd of Aberdeen locals. Two friendly and welcoming ladies at a table near the door collected our entry fee. Every table and chair were taken in front of the band stage, but I saw several rows of chairs in the back with a few empty. I claimed two. A space between a row of chairs led to the bar counter, and the pub’s patrons waited in a long line to order their drinks. Sitting in the back row, I could see cast iron columns supporting a riveted beam and brick vaulted ceiling, and along the upper section of the columns were remnants of a connection used for another purpose in this building’s historic past.
Matthew Kilner’s Jazz Quartet was introduced, and after the band’s introduction, saxophonist Kilner announced they were going to start by performing his rendition of “The More I See You,” a Big Band classic first played in 1945. Kilner’s rendition was lengthy and enjoyable, one of those once in a lifetime awe experiences. Nan’s father JD Jackson, of Scottish heritage and known for his love of jazz, would have appreciated this Aberdeen scene.
