God is in the house. Paul Edis Trio @ Cherry Tree Restaurant.

Paul Edis (pno); Mick Shoulder (bs); Adam Sinclair (dms).

According to legend, Art Tatum walked into a club and Fats Waller stopped playing and said, "God is in the house." He may well have done although, equally, he could have said, "Gordon's on the house" suggesting that the management give him a free shot of his favourite tipple.

That's as maybe but tonight, after Paul Edis' rendition of Tatum's version of Tea For Two, maybe he will acquire the accolade of the ultimate deity. It was an outstanding performance in an evening of outstanding performances both on the stand and in the kitchen - God was certainly in the kitchen tonight - how else could my Slow Cooked Shoulder of Pork, Mustard Mash and Red Cabbage have tasted so good?

The set opened with They All Laughed and I began the evening with Confit Pear and Celeriac Tarts, Pear and Vanilla Puree. 
How High The Moon, Corcovado, Alice in Wonderland, The Preacher, The Nearness of You and It Had To Be You all part of the build-up to the Tatumesque explosion.  

Later, Paul "premièred" an original composition, Cherry Tree Blues in honour of the popular restaurant. He should compose one for the chef - not a blues but a variation on Ode To Joy which my  Clementine Jelly, Spiced Apple Sorbet.surely was.

Adam Sinclair, who played so well with Simon Spillett last Thursday, maintained his good form tonight keeping it swinging and exchanging some exciting fours with Paul. Mick, as ever, laid back, cool and absolutely rock solid without being rigid - a great trio.

I couldn't stay to the very end but that in no way reflects on the music which was superb.

Lance.

CD Review. Renegade Brass Band - Radio Rebelde.

Hot on the heels of last night's Hoochie Coochie gig comes this EP/CD - Radio Rebelde.

It's a belter of a disc featuring much of last night's material capturing perfectly the mood of the music. In many ways this has the advantage over the live set inasmuch as I can actually make out the hip hop lyrics on the disc and clever they are too.

The ensemble sound is powerhouse plus - with 3 trumpets, 2 trombones and 1 tenor sax in the front line it couldn't be anything other. Add the congas, sousaphone, drums and the mysterious DJ Scratcher and the result is an hypnotic rhythm that goes straight to your feet - get up and boogie boys.

The arrangements are first class absorbing the soloists into the structure without loss of tension.At a fiver it's a steal.

Visit www.renegadebrassband.com and listen to Barrio.

Lance

Tonight at the Cherry Tree.

It's the Paul Edis Trio (Paul (pno); Mick Shoulder (bs); Adam Sinclair (dms)) tonight at Jesmond's number one jazz/dining establishment. Music from circa 7:30pm.
Lance.

Causeway Update.

The new season at the Causeway pub in Hartlepool starts this Wednesday 8^th February at 8.30pm.

The house band featuring; Jeremy McMurray on piano, Peter Ayton on bass and David Donnelly on drums will be joined by Ray Dales on Alto Sax and Tony Maxwell on vocals. It promises to be a fantastic night of entertainment!

Our guests for the coming season include some of the finest jazz musicians in the area, they include;

Feb 22nd Lewis Watson
March 7th James Birkett
March 21st Ruth Lambert
April 4th Graham Hardy
April 18th Sue Ferris.

Jeremy McMurray.

Anth Purdy @ The King’s Arms, Seaton Sluice. Sunday 5th February

Anth Purdy (gtr).

Arriving at a freezing, wind-swept Seaton Sluice – to the north Blyth’s off-shore wind turbines winking and waving through the gloom, the reassuring pristine-white St Mary’s lighthouse to the south – the King’s Arms was a welcoming sight from the main road. Would there be room at the inn? Just about – snug was the word. The beer ranged from session beer Deuchar’s IPA (3.9%) to the formidable Old Peculier (5.6). I opted for a pint of the formidable. 

A beautiful f-hole Gibson in repose, an as yet unoccupied stool, things were set fair. 

Guitarist Anthony Purdy cut a figure; youthful, chiseled looks, sharp suit, braces ‘n’ all. The publicity poster for the gig – ‘Swing Jazz Guitar’ – extolled the genius of Charlie Christian and Les Paul. Perhaps we’d hear reference to Barney Kessel or our own James Birkett? Purdy, a personable character, name-checked a raft of jazz ‘n’ blues guitar greats - Charlie Christian, Django Reinhardt, T-Bone Walker, Les Paul and Hank Marvin. ‘Hank Marvin!’ I hear you say. Why not? This was a guitar gig by a rockabilly player digging into the history of the music. He assumed – rightly – that the audience wasn’t a bona fide jazz crowd and mixed it up to good effect. 

Almost all of the tunes were Purdy’s, drawing heavily on the styles of his guitar heroes. Furthermore, Purdy worked with his own rhythm guitar backing tracks throughout. ‘Backing tracks!’ I can hear the hoots of derision from here. Don’t knock it, I say. Each of the tunes was brief and to the point. Purdy thought this rather apt as the guitar masters of the 30’s and 40’s were restricted to little more than two minutes due to the limitations of the phonographic recording process of the era. 

Stompin’ at the Savoy opened the set followed by any number of albeit highly derivative original compositions – Swiss Miss, Jazzin’ with the 125, Paris 1939, Dustbowl and others. Another pint of the formidable in hand and a second set of more of the same went down well. The 6 O’clock Jive, Mockingbird Swing, Jitterbug Stomp and Ain’t Misbehavin’. Purdy presented an entertaining set of tunes, lovingly played with a distinct jump-jive feel and this made for a welcome change to the usual take on the period guitar styles. 

The King’s Arms’ publican is supportive of Purdy’s efforts and there is another chance to hear him on Sunday 4th March (check out Bebop Spoken Here nearer the time). Meanwhile visit Anthony Purdy’s Myspace page – www.myspace.com/swingjazzguitar.uk

Russell      

Renegade Brass Band @ Hoochie Coochie

Don't ask me their names - even the band's website doesn't give them - strange!

Nevertheless, that's their problem.

I have to be honest, I'm not into Hip Hop.  I appreciate and often enjoy the impetus of the rhythm and the vocal versatility but, at the end of the day, I like to know what the song is all about!

There's an old standard - I Like To Recognise The Tune - with Hip Hop I like to recognise the words!

Having got that out of the way, the band are  superb and they soon hooked the dancers!

The solos were brief and integrated into the ensembles. A couple of the trumpets, the tenor and trombone had flurries but this isn't a soloing band, The power is in the ensembles and the opener practically lifted the roof off Hoochie Coochie. The sousaphone guy looked as though he had a python entwined around him but it was only the outré lacquering of the instrument.

Down on the dance floor a couple of street hoofers went through a stunning routine that almost emulated the Nicholas Brothers (see previous post).

It was fun - CD review to follow.
Photos.

Lance..

Multiple Choices Today

If you fancy some bracing sea air then the King's Arms at Seaton Sluice could be just the place for you.
Anth Purdy - a name I must confess that is new to me - is playing solo guitar. The poster in the right hand column promises Swing Jazz Guitar and quotes Charlie Christian and Les Paul to define his style. Sounds good to me.
Inland Newcastle's Jazz Café Jam Session offers musicians the chance to jam although starting times are becoming more and more erratic.
Jazz Café favourites Lindsay Hannon Plus  move down the road 'apiece to the Bridge Hotel where they are tonight's Splinter @ The Bridge attraction - 8:00pm £5.
Funk and Soul and Rock 'n Roll at Hoochie Coochie tonight with the Renegade Brass Band. Start probably about 8:30/9:00pm with doors opening at 7:00pm. It's free..
Lance.

Symphonic Django @ Cadogan Hall, Chelsea. Friday Feb. 3

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra w.Martin Taylor (UK), guitar; Florin Niculescu (RO/FR), violin; Ola Kvernberg (NO), violin; Andreas Ôberg (SE), guitar; Jon Larsen (NO), guitar; Diego Imbert (FR), bass; Alexander Hanson (SE), conductor.

Cadogan Hall, I'm told, is London's newest concert hall and I was delighted to have the opportunity to visit and hear Martin Taylor playing Django's music with the Royal Philharmonic  Orchestra thanks to an eve of birthday treat.

It was wonderful! The orchestra gave a flawless performance blending easily with the soloists. Martin Taylor, as ever all things to all men, played brilliantly whilst the Romanian violinist Niculescu proved to be the perfect Grappelli-like foil.
For the second set we began with the original Hot Club line-up sans orchestre and it was great to see the orchestra sitting back, relaxing and enjoying the magic sounds. This was the whole mood of the evening really, nothing formal just pure enjoyment.

Personally, great as Martin was, I preferred the sound of the Maccafferri guitars and in particular the Swede Ôberg - this was truly an international event! -  whose sound was richer and more authentic than Taylor's.

Blue Drag, Swing 39, Manoir de Mes Réves, Nuages, Belleville just some of the numbers that we enjoyed.
At the end, the audience, myself included, whooped and holllered - we just didn't want this evening to end!

Liz.

Nicholas Brothers. The greatest dance sequence.

The band was Cab Calloway and the film "Stormy Weather" - remember seeing it at The Pearl in Willington Quay. Talk about a fleapit! There was more than the band jumping that night! Still a great film with Fats Waller, Lena Horne and the fabulous Nicholas Brothers - they made Astaire and Kelly seem like wannabees on Strictly Come Dancing!

CD Review: Various Artists - Spiritual Jazz 2: Europe

This is a very moving disc - although not a Spiritual person myself I feel the power of the music coming through. The blurb is right when it describes this as A heady mix indeed, stirring jazz overtures with orchestra and choir, festival performances recorded live from the grassy heartlands of central Europe, modal montages inspired by pilgrimages to Asia and Africa, experiments in rhythm and sound where modern jazz meets traditional Balkan and Flamenco folk music. 

The track listing is indicative of just how European this music is with Michael Garrick representing the UK and other familiar names such as Dusko Goykovic, Albert Mangelsdorf, Barney Wilen and Hans Dulfer also reaching out to give their country a say. It is varied yet still compelling without straying too far from the contemporary scene and I don't think there is one track I would veto although the Dulfer one was borderline!

Spiritual Jazz – European style, brought to you by the ever impressive Jazzman Records, run by (Jazzman) Gerald Short in London who is to be commended for producing such a rare collection.. It will be available from Monday 6 February on CD and also 2xLP (180g/gatefold). Each track has been digitally restored from the original master tapes, and the release features comprehensive liner notes with individual notes on each track with original stories direct from the musicians and artists. Most of these tracks have never before been reissued – previously only available on rare LPs that change hands for mega bucks.

Tracklisting:

01. Erich Kleinschuster Sextett - Communion [Austria]

02. Albert Manglesdorf Quintet - Varie [Germany]

03. Michael Garrick Sextet - Temple Dancer [UK]

04. Raphael - Archangelo [Belgium]

05. Barney Wilen - Africa Freakout [France]

06. Nicolai Gromin - Corrida [Czechoslovakia]

07. Heikki Sarmanto - Duke and Trane [Finland]

08. Wroblewski Jazz Quintet - Nana Imboro [Poland]

09. Dusko Goykovic - Bosna Calling [Yugoslavia]

10. Pedro Iturralde - Las Morillas de Jaen [Spain]

11. Hans Dulfer & Ritmo-Natural - Candy Clouds (Part II) [Holland]

Lance.

Simon Spillett @ The Corner House

Simon Spillett (ten); Paul Edis (pno); Mick Shoulder (bs); Adam Sinclair (dms).

Phew! I forecast that this Jazz North East gig would be good and it was - was it not?!

Every saxophone player in the region should have been there - listening, learning, then going home to practice or maybe jump off the Tyne Bridge!

From the opening bars of Jerome Kern's No One But Me it jumped. Spillett cruised through the changes with a dexterity (and I use the word advisedly) that few saxists could match. Simply awesome.

Tubbs' Off The Wagon kept the temperature high before cooling down with Lalo Schifrin's The Right To Love played with a Stan Getz feel to it. Oleo, taken at approximately twice the speed of light, got the adrenalin going at the same tempo. The set finished with By Myself - Fred Astaire sang it in the movie The Bandwagon - he couldn't have danced to this version!

This was some gig and there was more to come.

A special mention for the Edis Trio who matched the star every bar of the way complementing his solos and shining brightly in their own right. Adam Sinclair in particular held the bridge firmly as the tenor-man fired both barrels at him without removing the Steve Brown-like smile off his face.

Apart from his playing Spillett has developed a Ronnie Scott/Alan Barnes/Humph style wit that kept the audience amused in between numbers.

A pint of Bombardier was called for after this!

Second set and we were off to Royal Ascot for a five furlong sprint that culminated with another blistering round of fours. Five furlong sprint? This was the Gold Cup!

More announcements not least being the complimentary mention of this blog! Thank you Simon.

Where Are You? and more sumptuous balladry before Dizzy's Tin Tin Deo and a final Cherokee put the lid on a magnificent evening.

Come December there will be other nights like this but they won't thrill me etc.....

I will say it again - Phew!

Photos.

Lance.
PS: Catch the Paul Edis Trio at the Cherry Tree Restaurant, Jesmond on Monday Feb. 6.

An Invitation From Brian Bennett (OBE?)

Join us on the River Tyne for a 3 hour, full-river cruise to celebrate The Queen's Diamond Jubilee and enjoy a unique view of the Newcastle & Gateshead Quays, Bridges and changing vistas of the river all the way to the mouth of the Tyne. 

As part of this event, the VCJ are leading a 'Jubilee Parade' followed by more than 100 paraders along the Quayside prior to boarding the cruise boat - band and guests will assemble on the Quayside next to The Pitcher & Piano Bar at 11.45am -  small Union Jack hand flags are encouraged but not essential.

The Vieux Carre Jazzmen shall perform during the cruise and a hot meal will be served at 1.30pm. 

The date for your diary is Tuesday 5 June, 2012. Tickets are £25 which includes hot, home-made Pie, Peas & Mash – also the Millennium bridge will open for us to sail under so make sure you bring your camera. 

Our cruise boat is the 'LATIS' which has a spacious main deck, promenade deck and saloon bar that serves beers, wines and spirits. 

The cruise will set sail from Newcastle Quayside (adjacent to The Pitcher & Piano Bar) at 12.30pm prompt (boarding from 12 noon) arriving back at the Quayside at 3.30pm. 

To reserve your place(s) call 0191 252 9429 or 07710 528413. 

Brian