Miles Gilderdale

Last updated June 07, 2019

Miles Gilderdale (born in Kingston, Jamaica ^[1]) is a member of smooth jazz group Acoustic Alchemy and plays the steel-string acoustic guitar and electric guitar.

Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island. In the Americas, Kingston is the largest predominantly English-speaking city south of the United States.

Jamaica is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning 10,990 square kilometres (4,240 sq mi) in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the fourth-largest island country in the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about 145 kilometres (90 mi) south of Cuba, and 191 kilometres (119 mi) west of Hispaniola.

Smooth jazz is music that evolved from a blend of jazz fusion and easy listening pop music, featuring a polished pop feel with little to no jazz improvisation. The genre arose in the mid-1970s in the United States, although it was not named "smooth jazz" until the 1980s. Traditional jazz players and jazz purists did not embrace the popular style: Jazz Journal's "Sound Investment" column stated in November 1999 that it "would cover an extremely wide spectrum of jazz styles" while avoiding smooth jazz.

In 1996, Gilderdale became a member of the contemporary jazz group Acoustic Alchemy and has collaborated on seven releases, including 2001's Grammy nominated AArt. Gilderdale contributed to the group's 1998 release Positive Thinking... and was selected by Greg Carmichael for the steel string acoustic chair which was left vacant by the passing of the group's original founder, Nick Webb.

Acoustic Alchemy is an English smooth jazz band formed in England in the early 1980s by Nick Webb and Simon James.

<i>AArt</i> 2001 studio album by Acoustic Alchemy

AArt is the eleventh album to be released by smooth jazz band Acoustic Alchemy. It contains more tracks than any other studio recording by the band, with fourteen.

Greg Carmichael is a British guitarist and member of contemporary jazz group Acoustic Alchemy. His primary instrument is the nylon-string acoustic guitar. He joined the band in 1985 as a partner with steel-string guitarist Nick Webb to work on the band's first album, Red Dust and Spanish Lace, and has been at the forefront of the band ever since.

A seasoned guitarist and performer, Miles Gilderdale first became known in the UK and Europe to audiences in the 1980s as the lead singer and guitarist in York/Harrogate-based soul band Zoot and the Roots which also included the sax player Snake Davis. He has worked on stage with artists as diverse as Ben E. King, Ronnie Wood, and Jools Holland, as well as having done numerous live BBC Radio 1 broadcasts and TV appearances.

York is a city and unitary authority area in North Yorkshire, England, with a population of 208,200 as of 2017. Located at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss, it is the county town of the historic county of Yorkshire and was the home of the House of York throughout its existence. The city is known for its famous historical landmarks such as York Minster and the city walls, as well as a variety of cultural and sporting activities, which makes it a popular tourist destination in England. The local authority is the City of York Council, a single tier governing body responsible for providing all local services and facilities throughout the city. The City of York local government district includes rural areas beyond the old city boundaries.

Harrogate Town in North Yorkshire, England

Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa waters and RHS Harlow Carr gardens. 13 miles (21 km) away from the town centre is the Yorkshire Dales national park and the Nidderdale AONB. Harrogate grew out of two smaller settlements, High Harrogate and Low Harrogate, in the 17th century. Since 2013, polls have consistently voted the town as "the happiest place to live" in Britain.

Zoot and the Roots were a British jazz band based in York during the 1980s, fronted by Miles Gilderdale and featuring saxophonist Snake Davis. It also featured future video game music composer, Grant Kirkhope on trumpet.

Gilderdale has composed material for the award-winning computer game Broken Sword by Revolution software and regularly has incidental music feature on TV and Radio which he writes with the independent production company MZen

Broken Sword is a franchise centered on a series of adventure games. The first game in the series, Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars, was released in 1996 by English video game company Revolution Software. The first sequel, Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror, was released a year later, and was followed by three more sequels: Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon in 2003, Broken Sword: The Angel of Death in 2006, and Broken Sword 5: The Serpent's Curse in 2013. A remake of the first game in the series, known as Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars – The Director's Cut, was released in 2009, and a remake of the second game in the series, Broken Sword: The Smoking Mirror – Remastered, in 2010.

When not touring with Acoustic Alchemy, he can be often spotted gigging around the UK with The Blueflies, a funk/blues outfit composed of Miles, ex-Zoots bassist and co-songwriter Gavin Ewing and drummer Paul Stipetic. While allowing Gilderdale to rock-out and improvise, The Blueflies hard-edged funk blues sound is in contrast to his 'smooth jazz' solo work and performances with Acoustic Alchemy.

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<i>The Beautiful Game</i> (album) 2000 studio album by Acoustic Alchemy

The Beautiful Game was the tenth full-length album by Acoustic Alchemy, and marked a turning point in the career of guitarist Greg Carmichael.

<i>Positive Thinking...</i> 1998 studio album by Acoustic Alchemy

Positive Thinking... is the tenth and final album recorded by Acoustic Alchemy for GRP in 1998.

<i>Sounds of St. Lucia: Live</i> 2003 live album by Acoustic Alchemy

Sounds of St. Lucia: Live is a live album released by Image Entertainment, on both CD and DVD, of a performance by Acoustic Alchemy at the tenth St. Lucia Jazz Festival in 2000.

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References

↑ Stated on the Sounds of St. Lucia: Live DVD at time index 12:38

External links

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[1] Stated on the Sounds of St. Lucia: Live DVD at time index 12:38