After years hidden away, Oldham’s memorial to six local volunteers who died fighting fascism in the Spanish civil war has been restored to public view, marking both a victory for campaigners and a renewed tribute to the town’s proud International Brigade heritage, says ROB HARGREAVES
Latest editorial
An exceptionally brilliant eclecticism
Chris Searle on Jazz
While pretending to seek peace, Europe is heading toward a collision course with Russia – using security guarantees, troop deployments, expropriation and censorship as tools, writes SEVIM DAGDELEN
Alba party leader KENNY MacASKILL makes some suggestions on how to save our pubs and reduce irresponsible drinking
The catastrophe unfolding in Gaza – where Palestinians are freezing to death in tents – is not a natural disaster but a calculated outcome of Israel’s ongoing blockade, aid restrictions and continued violence, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE
Opinion polls point to electoral collapse, parliamentary rebellion and a looming leadership challenge as Starmer’s Labour haemorrhages working-class support and the far right exploits the vacuum left by a hollowed-out party, says NICK WRIGHT
The long-term effects of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange mean that the impact of war lasts well beyond a ceasefire
Jaki Byard
Sunshine of My Soul (High Note)
A Matter of Black and White (High Note)
The Late Show (High Note)
THE most eclectically brilliant and versatile pianist of a century of jazz, Jaki Byard — born in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1922 — could play everything, in every piano style or genre, from blues, gospel and stride to post-bop and the avant garde.
As a young man, and later in the US army, he played a host of instruments — piano, trumpet, guitar, drums, trombone, as well as tenor saxophone on which he was excellent.
Similar stories
Ben Cowles speaks with IAN ‘TREE’ ROBINSON and ANDY DAVIES, two of the string pullers behind the Manchester Punk Festival, ahead of its 10th year show later this month
This is poetry in paint, spectacular but never spectacle for its own sake, writes JAN WOOLF
JOHN GREEN surveys the remarkable career of screenwriter Malcolm Hulke and the essential part played by his membership of the Communist Party
ANDY HEDGECOCK relishes two exhibitions that blur the boundaries between art and community engagement