Chris Jagger’s ATCHA

CHRIS JAGGER

‘Whatever else I have done, I always come back to music' says Chris, who has also  worked in the theatre, radio and journalism and 'any other damn job that will pay the rent.'

Nowadays it is making music that pays the rent.  Having established  Atcha!  in the mid nineties,  Chris has had the satisfaction of seeing the reputation of the band  grow steadily and signing with the major German label SPV in 2006 has helped confirm Chris’ own reputation as a songwriter and performer.

Always acutely tuned in to things musical, Chris has been singing and playing from an early age.  He shared many of the same musical influences as his brother, but also ventured further into fields now known as World Music. For example, in the sixties, he spent 6 months studying singing in the foothills of the Himalayas and he still has a great affiliation for Indian music.

In the seventies, Chris made two records for Billy Gaff and David Geffen and these albums have now achieved cult status. Later,  Chris worked as a lyricist with Franck Langolf and contributed lyrically to two Stones albums (Dirty Work and Steel Wheels).

It was in 1994 with the release of  Atcha (Rock the Zydeco on Curb Records in the USA) that Chris established his musical identity and plotted a course that he is still pursuing. That course combines CJ's interest in Zydeco, Cajun and Country with the underlying strands of R'n'B, Rock and World music.

In 1996 Chris recorded an acoustic album, From Lhasa to Lewisham with long term associates Ben Waters and Charlie Hart and there followed the highly rated but little known 'Channel Fever' with full line-up.

Act of Faith has  brought Chris and his music to a wider audience, in Europe, Australia, Japan and Canada.  Besides writing and touring with the band, Chris has recently been recording radio shows for broadcast in the US, and filming material for music documentaries  soon to be released in Texas and throughout the US.

Look up Chris on www.chrisjaggeronline.com

Chris and Mick

Charlie Hart

Charlie Hart is a multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer.  He has worked with Chris over many years in many capacities. In Atcha! he plays accordion, fiddle and keyboards.  He has worked with Ian Dury, Ronnie Lane, Alexis Korner and Eric Clapton and various African artists. Charlie has an impressive track record as a composer of music for animated films, one of which, ‘Triangle’, gained an Oscar nomination in 1994. He also appeared in Mike Figgis’ Stormy Monday. See www.charliehart.com

Jim Mortimore

Jim Mortimore is a musician, composer, DJ, engineer and producer. He has worked with Herbie Flowers, Chip Taylor, PP Arnold, Geoff Muldaur, Arthur Brown, Big Sugar, Turning Green, Shona Foster, My Rocket 88.  Jim has composed music for film and theatre productions, including one recently staged at the Lyric Theatre. Jim co-produced, mixed, played electric and acoustic guitars on Act of Faith. Look up Jim (Jimmortimore) at  www.myspace.com.

Malcolm Mortimore

Malcolm Mortimore. Born in London. Was a member of Gentle Giant , Ian Dury and the Kilburns ,The Frankie Miller Band .Then as a freelance drummer, tours and sessions for……….. Neil Diamond ,Tina Turner ,Tom Jones , Arthur Brown , Paul Butterfield , Flaco Jimenez and Van Morrison. Jazz Artists……Barney Kessel, Buddy Tate, Oliver Jones, Maxine Sullivan , Charlie Byrd.

Check out www.malcolmmortimore.net

‘Act of Faith’

Album from Chris Jagger’s ATCHA! Released in 2006

Chris Jagger’s Atcha!, probably the most original band on the British roots scene, are releasing their third album, ‘Act of Faith’.

The new album follows two previous acclaimed recordings released during the 1990s, Rock The Zydeco ( a.k.a Atcha, released on Sequel Records , UK, and Curb Records, USA)  and Channel Fever (Hypertension Records,Germany).  Building on Chris’ wry, often poignant  songwriting, the new album clearly cements the band’s position amongst the finest exponents of earthy swamp blues, cajun and roots-rock.

Described as ‘gumbo blues’ by Observer and Jazzwise critic, Stuart Nicholson, Atcha! deliver their most mature and compelling album to date.   The new album comes after a year of club and festival appearances that included the Marlborough Jazz Festival, Glastonbury and numerous European festivals, where Chris and the band have a devoted following.

Not only does the new album feature new slants on the hard driving cajun rockers and growling blues that the band has become well known for, but it reaches deep into slippery New Orleans funk with ‘15% Extra Free’ and swinging country/zydeco on ‘Got Me Where you Want Me’ (featuring the great female singer Sam Brown). ‘DJ Blues’ is the first ever recorded duet of the Jagger brothers, and the desolate haunting ‘Junkman’, one of Chris’s greatest ever songs, features an unforgettable atmospheric guitar cameo from David Gilmour.

This new CD from Chris Jagger and his band is produced by Chris’s long-time musical partner Charlie Hart and the band’s brilliant young guitarist Jim Mortimore.  Released in Europe in March 2006, the album has attracted considerable positive attention, and the band is now performing at clubs, theatres and festivals across Europe. Following the creation of Atcha! Records,  Act of Faith is now also distributed in Japan, and will shortly be available in N.America.  The album will be re-launched in UK by the Blue label in April 2007.

‘Chris showcased his tunes with a spirit and spunk that made family ties beside the point’. (Billboard)

‘very engaging’; ‘if the Faces or Pogues had been from Louisiana they would have sounded like this’; ‘this Jagger is a sly sharp songwriter’. (Daily Telegraph)

‘he does the job with so much joi-de-vivre that he and his four good-timey chums might well kick more life into your next party than anything released by the Stones in the last decade’; ‘when the band locks into a bubbling groove, they mix up a potent brew’. (Mojo)

‘heir to the throne left vacant by Ronnie Lane’s Slim Chance’; ‘Channel Fever finds Jagger writing strong enough songs to make his brother jealous’. (Q magazine)

‘plays the old styles with plenty of heart’; ‘a genial take on a range of American styles’; ‘solid, danceable beat’. (Daily Mail)

‘genuine British Zydeco’n’Country package.  The crazy thing is that it works’; ‘you could easily mistake this for the genuine American article’. (Hi-Fi News)

‘Chris Jagger plays roots music as it should be played. thoughtful yet hard-hitting music’ (Maverick)

top-notch Cajun-flavoured R&B’  -  ‘Mick’s really very good brother’  (Time Out)

Discography:

GM GMS 3                            Something New/Joy of the Ride (1973)

GM GML 1003                      You know the name but not the face (1973)

Asylum 7E 1009                  The adventures of Valentine Vox (1974)

Sequel NEXCD 258              Atcha !(1994)

HYCD 298 176                     From Lhasa to Lewisham (1996)

Viceroy 54189-2                  Knights of the Blues Table (1997)

Latent Talent 1                   Channel Fever  (2001)

SPV    78572                       Act of Faith (2006)