Chapter 6: Times in my life - The search for a Voice (Part 2)




Estelle writes ...


On my swing
Zimbabwe

Bare feet grounded deep in spiky grass leaning back on the throw of two and sinking my eyes into cloud-circles. I wasn't looking for my voice, I was zooming forward speeding through the sky until my daydreams took me beyond the blue and into space. That's what I imagined while singing on my swing and it was a good place to be. 

I'd watch ants and beetles for hours on end, crouching in a sandpit building towns and cities around them or climbing up a tree. If there was a breeze I would sing along to the rhythm of leaf and twig shadows dancing in the semi shade. Playing with my friends was fun but I loved being on my own more, chasing those elusive shadows with my voice in the outdoor flow.

It all seemed to come to an end too soon.The last of the hot bright light fading into dusk and another day was done. If I wasn't singing myself to sleep at night there'd be a new melody to chirp along to on one of my mum's records when it was too cold to go outdoors. Nature was my first influence and still is my main source of inspiration.
18 going on 19
in the garden at
WEA Records
Face down with my head resting on my arms listening to Nancy Wilson on the reel to reel or Ernestine Anderson swinging like crazy on a cassette someone gave me was my first introduction to jazz singing. The freedom of expression that was Betty Carter and Shirley Horn's unmatched interpretations followed.

Lorez Alexandria singing 'Baltimore Oriole' is still way ahead of it's time, not just vocally but instrumentally too. A strong but subtle recurring bass riff and the drumming far out in front. This track has been remixed countless times but the original version could've been recorded yesterday. The unsung heroes and heroines of beautiful or unusual songs whether self penned or retold are usually the ones I gravitate towards. Those with a unique sound and tone that is identifiable as theirs and theirs alone.


Doing another demo
Was it sitting at the back of the room in a jazz club blocking one ear and softly scatting along to solos and harmonising with melodies that helped me find my voice? I'm sure it must've helped! I know that most musicians I have worked with, have taught me something about interpretation, dynamics and phrasing. Drummers and bass players have been and still are some of my best teachers.
The way the singer relates to a song is a reflection of who they are and how they feel. It's not just technique or stylistic elements that are important, it's about living the song. I don't think you ever stop finding your voice. Its a journey of sound that doesn't end. Joni Mitchell singing 'Both Sides Now' on her concept album of the same name (May 2000) is a very different song to the one she sang in the 1960's. This release demonstrates how her life's experiences have enriched what was already a masterpiece in song writing over thirty years ago.
Richard Kaby's rainbow
Every song has a story. I was walking in the bush in Botswana in 1987 when a cool breeze and a sudden cloudburst inspired me to write what was then 'Tswana Skies.' I got soaked but had a notepad in my bag so jotted down the words after the storm had subsided. A few drops were still falling from the sky while the sun was starting to set but I couldn't see a rainbow. It was twenty years later when I recorded an official version of this song for my 'Information' album. Producer and songwriter Craigie Dodds was another important teacher in my life. He showed me how to go inside and look deeper. How to make the mental journey to my memories and relive those moments in real time with honesty.

Who we meet and who we work with can add a lifetime of experience in one sitting and being older or wiser doesn't always enter into the equation. 


Jan writes ...
I met Estelle on line. A zen moment on My Space looking at the photographs of Richard Oakland. Clicking on the music player her song 'Where is the Rainbow?' came out of the speakers, wafting half way across the world into my studio in Tennessee. That did it. I knew I wanted to work with her.
One Halloween I went to see her at the Pizza Express Jazz Club in Dean St. London. We kept in touch and as I settled into my new other life in the UK I realised Estelle would be the person to bring the Freeman/Pulsford songbook alive.
And here we are now. Nearly a year later with 16 songs ready to record, lots of preproduction work, pictures, videos, rough mp3s, tryout arrangements, charts written, travels from Switzerland to Suffolk to London to virtual space and back. Late night and early morning Skype sessions with brainstorming sessions to make your head ache. Lyrics and keys tweaked. Charts transposed. Recording engineer and studio contacted - not to mention considering the musicians who will play with Estelle … there's a lot to making an album! Oh did I mention the budget? Lots of spreadsheets and flow charts - and that's before we play a note.
We are blogging the adventure and getting ready to crowd source the album. The audience will be part of the making of this album - true patron of the arts. It's a brilliant alternative concept to the old corporate way of doing things and makes the listener more involved with the music from start to finish.
Estelle is a fantastic performer, writer and artist. Her illustrious career in South Africa paved the way for London. The time is right to launch a new collection of classic songs into the world of jazz and beyond with Estelle Kokot at the front of the stage.




Chico writes ... 

One of the most treasured times in an artists' life is when he/she realizes that he/she has something to say that is worth sharing with the rest of the world and when his/her skill set reaches the point where that expression of one's self becomes realistic. This is the moment where the discovery of one's voice is tangible existence, something real that can be informed by ones life and experiences, where the expression takes shape and begins its' journey of developing metamorphosis.

One begins to feel the need to document the metamorphosis, to observe the change and submit to it's calling. The finding of one's voice is one of the single most important achievements in an artists life, the identifying element and true resonance of the truth within. It is the true expression of the "Times in One's Life."



Photo by Marcel Meier



Chapter 5: Will I see you in the morning? - The search for a Voice (Part 1)





Chico Writes... 
The thing about music is that no matter what you compose or write there needs to be someone, a warm body to provide the voice to express the message. This can be an instrumentalist, singer or poet. The difficulty is to find the right/best voice to express the voice that lives inside the material.

John Coltrane was a voice, his own voice when it came to expressing his music. Duke Ellington was a voice who used his orchestra, made up of some of the most vociferous musicians, as an instrument to express his inner voice as a composer. Von Freeman, my father, had the most unique voice on the tenor saxophone that I have ever heard. His voice was all encompassing of the history of the instrument yet completely original. We as artists from the beginning are always looking to find our voice, when we have found our voice the artistic journey becomes more satisfying and the laying of the foundation of our legacy begins. 


The search for a voice is ever present, it occupies all areas of artistic endeavor whether one is a painter, musician, singer, composer, thespian et al. The finding of one's own voice must sometimes come through the voice of another. It can be the co-members of a band, a singer who sings your songs, another group of musicians who play your compositions or simply a poet who recites your words in prose to music or the simple use of them to express their own voice in their artwork such as a photographer or painter, in a simple table book.



It's a wonderful journey that has great rewards with simple discovery. One's voice can be one's own muse. Now that is something special.







Photos by Hans Kumpf:Top photo- Von Freeman, Middle photo - Chico Freeman and Arthur Blythe, Bottom photo - Franco Ambrosetti and Chico Freeman.


Jan writes ...
        The creative world is fuelled by dreams and driven by dreamers who who have managed to turn their dreams into reality.
It seemed I had been searching for singers for years … 

Back in 1993 Cyndi Lauper walked into English Valley Music Studio and opened her mouth to sing - I welcomed her home. She had the voice I always wished I'd had. It belonged with my music. To work with someone of that calibre was a privilege - they don't come around very often.

After Cyndi left in 2001 my quest for a voice continued. So many singers would jump on the bandwagon looking for an easy ride with no concept of how hard they would have to work. Writing and recording songs is an exceptionally enjoyable pastime but what comes next is what turns dreams into reality. I saw many wannabes running away once reality stared them in the face. Was it a fear of failure that made them retreat into the comfortable role of armchair general, blaming everyone but themselves for the reason they weren't a household name? 

If you want the corporate money you have to play by the corporate rules. The music 'business' isn't going to change for you . . . It takes balls to be out there. Cyndi used to say to the members of her road encourage who were foolish enough to criticise  'Listen Pal you wear the dress, you'll see … ' and then run off to the gym, in between interviews, photoshoots, hairdressers, singing lessons, writing, plotting tours, album covers, oh yes and being a mother.

I have never been particularly comfortable at the front of the stage. My strength lies in the back supporting those who shine in the spotlight. We can't all be superstars - the trick is to find something you are really good at and enjoy and claim your niche. Follow happiness. If you can pay your bills you've 'made it'.  I shine at the back of the stage. I love writing music for other people to sing. I love co-writing music and words and playing and programming the music in the background, providing the wind beneath their wings …

I have been so lucky to have some wonderful singers record my music, aside from Cyndi Lauper I can count Darlene Love who recorded 'Night of Peace' co-written with Seth Glassman and Faye Tozer of Steps who did a wonderful job on the co-written 'If you Believe' and Vaneese Thomas who sang 'Empty Promises' for the film 'All the way to the Top" One of the first Freeman/Pulsford collaborations. I also have to mention Happy Charles who sang my demos for many years. We also worked on many Dance tracks with DJ Julian Marsh and a lovely couple of Xmas albums.

And then I met Estelle … 




Estelle writes ... 
I sing, write songs, play piano and have an obsessive compulsion to rearrange everything that's put down in front of me! My musical leanings curve towards jazz but I love straight ahead melodies too. There's a vast amount of instrumental stuff (all genres) that I appreciate and enjoy but a good song always gets my ear. I find it hard to categorise music. If I love what I hear, it doesn't matter what it is or where it comes from. Sometimes that beauty can be harsh and stark like being in the Namib Desert, there's liquid somewhere in that sand.

Strong characters with a unique instrumental voice, these are
the musicians I like to work with. I've never enjoyed being 'backed' in the conventional sense. It seems like lemon without honey and ginger in a hot rum drink. Give me some cayenne, then we add the spice and start stirring till we feel it simmering!

Back in 2005/2006 a good jazz shark whispered 'go have a look, you will love it' about Myspace. I remember thinking it was all a bit out there and edgy... it didn't take me long to adjust and soon I was feeling brave enough to upload photos and was excited and inspired by all the wonderful musicians and artists who were using the site. I enjoyed this new world of making friends I couldn't touch or smell and whose shadows would probably never overlap mine! This is where I encountered Jan Pulsford via a comment she left on Richard Oakland's photo of a poppy. We stayed in contact on line but it was more than a few moons later before Jan came to see my Halloween show at the Pizza Express Jazz Club in Soho.

Touching base every so often on Skype, Jan sent a couple of tracks she had co-written with Chico Freeman. I was struck by what I heard. The musical synergy between these two people was obvious. The songs resonated with me and though I know it sounds a bit bold to say so, I feel like they have been waiting for me to find them, these songs. The variety, life's experiences so eloquently expressed, each one has it's own personality. I couldn't wait to start exploring the possibilities and learning them!


Jan's lyrics effortlessly interwoven with Chico's melodies and at times intricate harmonic structures inspire me to not only dive deeply and swim inside the music, but to look at drawing from my own experiences. In December 2012 Jan and Mr Freeman came to visit. I knew straight away that this was going to be a lot of fun and that working with these two passionate and talented people would have quite an impact on my musical life! 

How it all ends up taking shape over time, the one thing we have is the love for what we do, bonding us as our story unfolds. For me that is the musical heart speaking loud and clear.
Softly gentle or from a place deep and strong, the singer's voice has no sound without a good song.





Chapter 4: Sugar Rush - Expression of the soul in song (Part 2)


Chapter 4: Sugar Rush - The Expression of the Soul in Song - Part 2

Chico says... 

In Jazz we say that improvisation is just spontaneous composition, the fashioning of melodies and rhythmic phrases that come together to create and express stories is a skill that comes with time and patience.

Like anything else, the longer and the more you do a thing the better you become at it. It is this way with all disciplines, and notably in music, repetition is practice and the right practice gives the right results. Practice does not make perfect,"Perfect practice makes Perfect".

After having begun this journey of "words from music" we evolved, we progressed, and the joy afforded of expressing love, pain, understanding and a plethora of other emotions thru music was rewarded with more music and the great pleasure of touching other human beings.






Jan writes ...


 The creative rush is similar to a lot of other things that give you a high. That intense feeling of satisfaction when everything has slotted into place. The euphoric delight in creating something out of nothing. The capturing of a moment, developing an idea, turning a thought into a tangible reality.
Songwriters share the most intimate of moments. Lyrically you have be prepared to lay yourself bare - the writing room can become a confessional and a secret fantasy room. A place where we become what we imagine, where we imagine how other people felt. We experience the emotions of what we write about. We are the alchemists turning thoughts into gold. It is a very powerful experience.

If you're lucky you find someone that ignites a spark that sets off an explosion of creativity. Cyndi Lauper's voice provided one such spark, Chico's melodies another. You write like you're on a creative honeymoon - there aren't enough hours in the day to get it all done.

Chico and I wrote using Skype. We were only in the same physical room a few times in New York and Tennessee everything else was done in a virtual space. Both of us producers and programmers we translated our ideas into the computer using Logic audio. We would throw ideas around and then individually hone them via Midi, swap audio files and then  mix and bounce the demos.



We experimented with all kinds of music. We flirted with RnB, Gospel, Triphop and Electronica sending tracks out to all and sundry. Wrote the music for Audrey Tautou's film 'All the way to the Top', plus an album for Greek singer Athina. Tried mixing jazz with electronica in the Zolace project, even wrote a couple of country songs . . music is music and that's what was driving us.

We just kept writing and writing. 

Something I tell aspiring writers is that you have to do it every day to keep the channels open and the energy flowing. Our catalogue kept growing but we could never find the right person to sing the songs. Neither of us had continued or developed our singing voices enough to perform to a good enough standard. We needed a singer that was as good as we were on our respective instruments. Someone who was an equal.

One day we both started thinking about legacy. Here we were with hours and hours of music but none of it available for anyone to hear but ourselves. A cathartic exercise for sure but we started to wonder what would happen to all the hard drives full of unreleased music, the unfinished songs - the culmination of over a decade's worth of work.

Enter Estelle ... 

Chapter 3: Across the bridge - Expression of the soul in song (Part 1)


Jan writes ...
Words and music have vibrations. 
To explain how the writing process works for me, you have to understand that - So I felt I could hear words that had the same vibrations as Chico's music. To use an old hippy phrase, I tuned in.
Yes, often I would contribute to the music in the same way Chico would contribute to the words but his older, finished and recorded tunes spoke to me. 
Starting with the title I would play the melodies over and over and let the story of each song unfold. He might explain the inspiration behind the music and title which gave me a starting point to invoke the meaning of the song and how it would take shape.
      I can remember where I was for the writing of each song - sitting on the chair by the phone in the studio at English Valley, being in the studio cottage on the phone, driving through the fields and seeing the last full moon of a summer in Tennessee - Looking out of Felicia's window in New York right through to now, in Suffolk back in the  UK, where I finished some of the song lyrics of this album. Who knew when they began where they would end up?

The circle is nearly complete ... 






Chico writes ...
When you find the joy in your work, you'll never work a day in your life.

I had always wanted to find a writing partner who could take my ideas and emotions and translate them into poetry, to not only express the things I wanted to say but to transform them into musical wonder, and to contribute to the wonder with feelings of their own. Because we inspired each other, I believe that we were able to make poetry of music and music of poetry. It is a gift that I will be forever grateful to have experienced.