The Telegraph 50 Best Jazz Albums of 2015

Jazz may have grown into exotic regions far beyond its roots, but there’s still a place for a beautifully played swing album, as this one is. Although one can hear the influences in numbers such as Poinciana, where the slinky drums of Bobby Worth recall the classic recordings of the Ahmad Jamal Trio, these three put a subtle spin on old favourites without striving to be original. Pianist Jonathan Vinten has an elegant turn of phrase and can certainly swing.  Overall it’s a delightful listen. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/best-jazz-albums-of-2015/

Steyning Jazz Club 2016 Review by Denis Cummings

Jonathan brought his trio to The Steyning Jazz Club earlier this year, and the whole club - without exception - loved the evening with a capital L. Jonathan clearly had given the structure and sequence of the playlist a lot of thought, and the evening was a delight of well balanced and much loved music for the whole audience. Jonathan is such an articulate and delicate player that he can deliver across a broad range of music, played across an even broader range of styles -  dipping into classical music with elegant brio and the secure touch of a master classicist.
Steve Thompson on double bass,and occasional vocals with Bobby Worth on drums provide brilliantly matched musical dynamics. The trio was wonderful, and I had difficulty clearing the hall after the final number with the audience crowding around the band. One of my members said to me “If you brought us this band every month, I would come every month” 
Please don’t tell Jonathan this, or I’ll be in trouble with my programming!

www.steyningjazz.co.uk 

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Jazz Journal March 2016, Dave Gelly OBE

First, let me say that it's a relief to hear a new piano trio in which all three instruments are doing what they're supposed to do, and doing it with such skill and poise. Jonathan Vinten is a great band player and a terrific accompanist. He's played with pretty well everybody on what may still be called the mainstream jazz scene in Britain and on the Continent, and even survived relatively unscathed a longish run with George Melly and the Feetwarmers. But leading a piano trio is a whole other thing. You have to make all the decisions, not just about what to play, but how to approach each piece and shape its performance.

In this case the programme follows the broad, central path of piano jazz: Tatum, Oscar Peterson, Ahmad Jamal, and so on. Not only does Vinten have the requisite skill to do this, he can catch the essence of a style without explicitly imitating one. His own compositions fit happily into the repertoire too. Bobby Worth and Steve Thompson combine to build a firm but flexible supporting structure, at the same time catching every nuance. Good rhythm teams are quite rare nowadays, so that's not just a polite closing remark.

Alyn Shipton, Presenter of Jazz Record Requests, BBC Radio 3

 The jazz piano trio has been around for a long time, and particularly in the second half of the twentieth century it developed in leaps and bounds. Pioneers like Art Tatum and Nat King Cole used a guitar rather than drums, but the principle of a musical conversation between the participants was established from the outset. Jonathan Vinten’s trio is a perfect example of how that informal interaction has matured into a mini-art form all of its own. Jonathan is a pianist of wide-ranging interests and styles, who has worked with a huge cross section of the UK’s jazz players. Bobby Worth is renowned for his taste, skill and talent at the drums, and Steve Thompson is devoted to creating a warm, full-toned acoustic bass-sound.

There’s a nod to Tatum in the trio’s version of Lullaby of the Leaves, which Art recorded as a solo in 1940, with Jonathan Vinten’s downward runs hinting at the old master’s style. Then we’re off on a survey of how the trio has grown and flourished over time. The format was taken forward by Ahmad Jamal, whose hit version of Poinciana is referenced here, and who brought a sense of space to the genre. Simultaneously, Oscar Peterson embarked on an exploration of the great songwriters, bringing songs like Gershwin’s The Man I Love and Porter’s Night and Day into the trio repertoire. Sweet and Lovely with the bass in the foreground, recalls the great Bill Evans trio, whereas the traditional The Water Is Wide is a song recently re-popularised by Geri Allen in her trio, accompanying the saxophonist Charles Lloyd. Jonathan has also added his own compositions for good measure, showing how thoroughly immersed he is in the world of immaculately played swinging jazz, which are the bywords for the entire album.