Tom Skinner – Voices of Bishara

“Voices Of Bishara” stands for the bearer of good news. Like the album of the same name released in 2022 by British drummer and percussionist Tom Skinner, which he recorded together with his school friends, saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings and bassist Tom Herbert, as well as cellist Kareem Dayes and saxophonist Nubya Garcia. After two releases under the alias Hello Skinny, “Voices of Bishara” is Skinner’s first album under his own name. It is based on the “Played Twice” series that regularly takes place at London’s Brilliant Corners club: a classic jazz album is played in its entirety, after which a group of top-class musicians improvise the material once again. That night, it was the Blue Note album “Live Time” by Tony Williams with Sam Rivers, Richard Davis and Gary Peacock, and the response material became “Voices Of Bishara”. It was, says Skinner, “an attempt to create something true through collaboration and community in a time of increasing dishonesty and disinformation.”