Loughton Synagogue transformed into a jazz club for the night when it hosted Jeremy Sassoon and his Musicians of Jewish Origin concert.
The concert had been organised and sponsored by Deborah Shulton, in memory of her late father Ken Turner.
In Deborah’s welcome speech she explained that Ken was a big fan of Jeremy’s, after hearing his version of the beautiful Marc Cohn song The Things We’ve Handed Down when it was featured on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs.
Ken, together with Deborah and his elder daughter Tracy, subsequently went to a number of Jeremy’s concerts and became one of his biggest and possibly oldest fans.
Deborah told the Essex Jewish News: “When I was looking to do something in honour of Dad’s memory – this concert seemed the perfect choice.”
The evening – which was arranged by the Loughton Shul events team with the help of Mark Kass from the National Jazz Archive – was a complete sell out.
All 150 tickets sold within two weeks of going on sale, leading to a waiting list being created.
On the evening itself Jeremy was blown away with the warmth that was in the room, as well as the audience participation throughout the concert.
Proceeds from the evening were donated to Loughton Shul and the Made with Love Chicken Soup Run.
