Sassafras Trio plus Lucky Oceans & Marc Osborne

Formed in late 2015, Sassafras has now established a reputation as one of Perth’s premier gypsy jazz groups. The band performs in a range of different formats, all of which have one thing in common: the core string trio of Lachlan Gear, Aaron Deacon, and Pete Jeavons (the “Sassafras Trio”).

In their own right, the Sassafras Trio has performed at numerous venues around WA and festivals including The Bonjour French Festival (2016), Jazz By The Bay (2017), The King Street Corner Pocket Festival (2018), the WA Guitar Festival (2021), and the York Festival (2021 & 2022). Additionally, the Trio has performed many shows as part of the larger Sassafras groups at venues such as The Ellington Jazz Club and The Duke of George, and festivals including the Perth International Jazz Festival (2017), The Oz Manouche Festival (Brisbane, 2018), and The Perth Festival (2021).

For this special event, Sassafras Trio will be joined by not one but two special guests. The first is none other than Grammy-award-winning, world-renowned pedal steel player Lucky Oceans. Lucky’s pedal steel and voice bring western swing and country sounds to the party, which are the perfect foil for the gypsy jazz of Sassafras.

The second special guest is saxophonist Marc Osborne who is a well known performer around the music Perth scene. Marc plays with a wide variety of artists/bands such as The Late Night Organ Donors, Steve Hensby, and Kate Pass Kohesia Ensemble (to name just a few), as well as leading his own quartet which featured on his debut album ‘People’ released in 2018.

Expect repertoire from Django Reinhardt, Hank Williams, George Benson, Jimmy Bryant, and many more. There’ll be toe-tapping jazz, high-octane gypsy classics, western swing, groovy blues, and a whole bunch more in between. Throw in a few original compositions from the band and some South American flavors as well, and you have all the ingredients for a great night of engaging and eclectic music that is guaranteed to please.

Lucky Oceans – pedal steel & vocals
Marc Osborne – tenor saxophone
Lachlan Gear – acoustic guitar
Aaron Deacon – acoustic guitar
Pete Jeavons – double bass

REVIEWS

“Despite their small acoustic makeup, the three-piece provided a driving rhythm section, intricate solo work, and sweetly lyrical melodies… the room was crowded with an enthusiastic audience, and no one wanted it to end.” - Rosalind Appleby, Noted, July 6th, 2018

“The Sassafras instrumentalists excelled throughout the evening, with virtuosic solos and seamless transitions. The acoustic guitar playing from Lachlan Gear and Aaron Deacon was perfect and lovely… Pete Jeavons’ reliable double bass playing shows his great experience.” - Mariyon Slany, Artshub, Feb 1st, 2016

“Acoustic gypsy jazz band Sassafras presented a world-class musical performance to the capacity audience that filled (the) Ellington Jazz Club…” - Steve Baitz, Seesaw Mag, Jan 26th, 2019

“The (Perth) International Jazz Festival is a serious affair… there was, however, a moment of joyous gypsy-style jazz from Sassafras, a local group who took the audience on a pleasure-filled journey, aided by brilliant gypsy guitarists…” - Ron Banks, The West Australian Newspaper, June 2017