Original jazz tribute honours 100 years of Richard Burton

A new jazz suite inspired by Richard Burton’s 1965 memoir A Christmas Story will receive its world premiere on December 10, as part of the actor’s centenary celebrations.

Swansea Jazzland’s production brings together composer and bandleader Dave Cottle and narrator Griff Harries, a historian, musician and official guide for the Burton Centenary, in a collaboration that blends literature, Welsh heritage and live jazz.

The suite takes its cue from Burton’s reflective account of a single Christmas Eve from his childhood in Port Talbot. In the story, eight-year-old Richard, living with his older sister following the death of their mother, is sent out for the evening with his unpredictable Uncle Dan while his sister lies gravely ill upstairs.

Their wander through the town leads to a community bonfire where miners and neighbours gather to sing, a moment that became central to Cottle’s musical imagination. “The emotions of Welsh community, family and Christmas really stood out to me,” he explains. “I wanted those feelings to be present in every piece.”

Cottle approached the project with a clear intention to stay close to the spirit of Burton’s writing.

“I was determined to get the musical emotions connected with the story,” he says. “That meant really responding to Burton’s words rather than writing over them.” The result includes three original songs and several instrumental sections that move between hymn-like passages, swing and high-energy bebop.

Among the highlights is Off You Go, Boyo! a fast bebop piece written for the moment Richard is sent from the house, and A Little Piece of Ash Wood, a gentle Latin-inspired song that echoes the warmth and unity of the bonfire scene. “Each piece is scored, but with big spaces left for the players to interpret,” Cottle says. “It always comes back to the theme and the lyrics.”

For Griff, the project began during the research he carried out as spokesperson for the Burton centenary. “I read the book and really enjoyed it, and from that the germ of an idea was born,” he says.

He describes the collaboration as completely natural. “My enthusiasm was infectious and Dave ran with it. The words are all Burton’s. I would never change them.”

In keeping with jazz tradition, Harries said: “the quintet performing the suite will not have rehearsed the music beforehand, it will be just a couple of hours before the gig we get together for sound check and will top and tail the pieces before performance.”

Performing the story with live jazz, Harries says, reveals its emotional depth in new ways. “The person who benefits, realises the intricacies and enjoys the marriage of Burton’s words and Dave’s music most is me. How lucky am I?”

There are hopes to tour the suite after the premiere, and early ideas are forming for a companion jazz suite based on Dylan Thomas’s A Child’s Christmas in Wales.

You can book tickets here.