Meet the band: Lewis Sallows (Saxophone/Reeds)
It's time to meet another one of Down for the Count's fabulous musicians - this week Polis caught up with saxophonist Lewis Sallows.
Main photo credit: John Morrow
When did you start playing the saxophone?
It all started in a school assembly when I was in Year 5, where they asked the joining students what musical instrument we’d be interested in learning. They described the saxophone as the one you could use to wake your parents up in the morning, so of course I went with that one. I turned up to my first lesson without a sax, because I didn’t realise you had to collect one beforehand, and the grumpy teacher told me where to rent one from. But when I opened the case, I was surprised because I was expecting a trumpet. So, not only was I confused by what it looked like, but I also didn’t know how the parts fit together. Thankfully, a more clued-up friend showed me.
How did you get into jazz and swing music?
A piano teacher at the school ran a jazz group, and I joined that in Year 6. We were introduced to jazz and improvising, and a seed was sown – that was the start of my journey.
How did you start gigging?
I started doing gigs with my friends, local festivals (a friend’s mum actually set one up herself), wrote a few songs and covers. In Year 9, my class was split up into groups for a musical project, so I partnered up with a guitarist and a singer to do a cover of Bruno Mars’ ‘The Lazy Song’. We played at the school concert and just got on so well – we’re still friends!
You grew up in Hertfordshire – was there much of a jazz scene there?
There was different stuff going on, but while I was growing up, I was very much out of the loop. Because I lived so rurally, London felt really far away even though it’s not. And Hertfordshire is so big that even the stuff that was happening was quite far away. But there’s a saxophonist called Anna Horton who played in my grandparents’ village with her band – I think that must’ve been my first jazz gig, and the first time I heard someone perform original compositions as well.
Photo credit: Trevor Bailey
Do you have a favourite jazz record or performance?
Cannonball Adderley’s Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at "The Club" is definitely one of my favourite records.
Would you ever do a cover of something from that?
No, I wouldn’t do it justice! I’ve learnt all the songs, but I would never play them to an audience.
Would you say he’s an influence?
Yeah. I wouldn’t say I sound like him, but I listen to him every day. I don’t know if they transfer to my playing, but I also really like Kenny Garrett and Remy Le Boeuf (no relation to Shia!) – an amazing saxophone player who also arranges and writes for big band.
Best gig you’ve ever been to?
Specifically for the saxophone playing, there was one at PizzaExpress Jazz Club with Will Vinson. He and his band had just done a load of dates together, and their interaction was insane – I remember being really inspired by that. Also, seeing Soweto Kinch at the CBSO Centre in Birmingham when I was a student there. His music is so well thought-out, and he’s an incredible rapper as well as writer and saxophonist, so seeing him in that amazing space was another top experience.
How long have you been with Down for the Count and how did you first get involved
I’ve been with them for just over two years. I was invited along by [saxophonist] Alex Western-King when the band were touring the Midlands and the North. At the time, I had other stuff on but I was determined to make it work. My car was in the garage, so I had to catch a 5am train from Birmingham on one of the days to make it to some teaching I was covering, then catch a train back up to the next gig. After four days of going up and down on trains from teaching to gigs, carrying everything with me – suitcase, suit carrier, saxophone – I got back to a full day of teaching. It was horrible!
What a stalwart! Do you have a favourite show (or memory) with Down for the Count? I’m guessing it wasn’t that run of gigs…
Those gigs were good! But one of my favourite memories is Alex Western-King making [trumpeter-arranger] Simon Joyner spontaneously perform a blues number called Spicy Rice because he’d eaten some rice that was spicy just before the gig. Another favourite is from the first Down for the Count gig I did, where I was on the edge of my seat listening to how in sync the horn section was. Incredible.
Favourite song to perform with Down for the Count?
I think ‘When You’re Smiling’ because Marvin [Muoneké] sings that really well, and I like hearing the tenor players go to the front of the stage and just… shred!
What’s the best thing about performing with Down for the Count?
Playing so regularly with a great horn section means you can really finesse the details. And if new musicians come in on a gig, it’s very easy for them to slot in because everybody is so together.
Photo credit: Taylor Hilton
What musical projects are you involved with outside of Down for the Count?
I play in some bands with people I met at uni in Birmingham, as well as with a guitarist called Aiden Pope who has an octet. I also play with jazz composer Olivia Murphy’s jazz orchestra – we’ll hopefully have an album out this year, as we recorded last October. I’m always tinkering away at my own music at home, but it’s a work in progress and hasn’t been heard by the public yet. I’m a bit of a perfectionist.
Are you looking forward to any particular gigs?
The one I’m looking forward to the most is probably the Transatlantic cruise. I don’t think I’ll get seasick, I think I’ll be fine.
What are your hobbies when not performing?
I like to track down good coffee. I enjoy running, cooking. I’ve got a few curry recipes, a really good paneer masala up my sleeve. But my proudest achievement is my Sunday roast. And I’m known for my Yorkshire puddings. [Editor’s note: this wasn’t known among Down for the Count – we demand proof!] During the Covid lockdowns, I also got really good at competitive Pokémon – I didn’t ever get the top spot, but I made the top 100!
Finally, did you ever get to wake your parents up with the saxophone?
No, I woke them up with a clarinet. It was 7 o’clock on a Sunday.
About the author
Polis Loizou-Denyer is Down for the Count's marketing and communications officer. Though it's a long time since he played an instrument himself, he likes to keep creative with his own writing, performing, theatre making, filmmaking and oral storytelling.
