Later...with Knats (June 21)

Sunday's Later...with Jools Holland features Tyneside's very own Knats! From Alexandra Palace Theatre, London, some bloke called Jools Holland introduces Shania Twain, Sam Smith, Arlo Parks, Angine de Poitrine and the boys - Stan, King and Ferg! If you're in Radio Times and on BBC Two you've probably made it. Tune in at 10:00pm.

Russell 

Press release: Yellowjackets to play two nights at Zeffirellis

The multi Grammy Award winning Yellowjackets are at Zeffirellis in Ambleside on Tuesday June 30 & Wednesday July 1 (8.00pm start both nights). 

Tickets £35.00 or  side seats £28.00 (to book visit the online calendar in the Live Music tab and select either June 30 or July 1 or call 015394 33845). 

These Are the only UK appearances of their European tour.

Russell Ferrante (keys, piano); Bob Mintzer (sax); Dane Alderson (bass); William Kennedy (drums)

“Jazz buffs know about the Yellowjackets. This is a Grammy-winning band that writes and performs intricate compositions that cross countless boundaries.”
- The Arts Fuse

Keb’ Mo’ @ Union Chapel, London

Keb' Mo' (vocals, guitar, harmonica) + Robbie Cavanagh (support)

Sometimes the simplest evenings turn out to be the most memorable.

As I made my way to Union Chapel there was every chance this was going to be a wet one. The skies over North London were heavy with grey cloud and umbrellas were very much at the ready. Yet somehow, whether through luck, timing or a little divine intervention, the rain never came. Instead, the clouds gradually parted and shafts of evening sunlight began to stream through the chapel’s magnificent stained-glass windows, filling the vast space with a constantly shifting palette of colour and light.

Dan Johnson with the Dean Stockdale Trio @ Blaydon Jazz Club - June 15

© Roly

Dan Johnson (tenor sax); Dean Stockdale (keyboards); Mick Shoulder (double bass); Abbie Finn (drums)

A first appearance at Blaydon Jazz Club for tenor saxophonist Dan Johnson. A familiar face in the ranks of many a big band, this evening's concert would be an opportunity to hear Johnson in a small group setting. The Black Bull faithful duly turned out and, encouragingly, one or two new faces came along to to see - and hear - for themselves what Blaydon Jazz Club is all about. 

In possession of a big sound, tenor saxophonist Dan Johnson opened with All the Things You Are. A little tentative, perhaps, no rehearsal, tunes which would usually be topped and tailed, it took a while for Johnson to relax into it. The trio - pianist Dean Stockdale, bassist Mick Shoulder and drummer Abbie Finn - hit the ground running: Bridge Street, Blaydon is familiar territory to these guys. 

Grant Russell Quartet @ the Moor Club, Stockport - June 14

© Jeff Pritchard

Grant Russell (bass); Kyran Matthews (tenor sax); George King (keyboards);  Luke Flowers (drums)

This quartet, I was surprised to learn, was formed back in  2013. All four musicians are much in demand and it must be difficult to get them all together in one place to play the sort of hard-driving music they like.

Grant Russell ls the leader of this remarkable quartet, his formidable technique  commanding the attention of the Moor Club audience. It is the ideal venue to demonstrate his talent. Kyran Matthews is well known to jazz followers in the UK and I have seen him many times in large and small ensembles and he is always amazing.

R.I.P. Abdullah Ibrahim (1934 - June 15, 2026)

Legendary South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim passed away earlier today at the age of 91. Originally known as Dollar Brand, with the change of name came a change of musical direction. The township influence remained but the essence was less rhythmic and more harmonically adventurous resulting in some of the most beautiful piano jazz heard either side of the Atlantic.

These qualities were evident on several occasions in the north east. Particularly at the now long gone Gateshead International Jazz Festival which was a much loved event held at the then Sage (now Glasshouse). 

Album review: Alejandro Falcón – Falcón In Blue (DOT Time Records)

Alejandro Falcón (piano); Arnulfo Guerras (bass); Ruy López Nussa (drums); José Julián Morejón (bongoes, percusión) + Orlando Valle Maraca (flute); Ted Nash (tenor sax); Rachel Terrien (trumpet); Roni Ben-Hur (guitar); Emir Santa Cruz (tenor sax); Mayquel González (trumpet); Janio Abreu (soprano/tenor sax); Pedro Pablo Gutiérrez (acoustic bass)

Some albums tell you exactly where they come from within a few bars.

 

Falcón In Blue is one of those records.

 

Close your eyes and you can almost feel Havana around you. The heat rising from the streets. The sound of conversation drifting from open windows. Music spilling from doorways and courtyards. A city where rhythm is woven into everyday life and where the line between tradition and modernity feels wonderfully blurred.

 

That spirit runs through every note of Alejandro Falcón’s latest album.

 

Big Phat Pod

Nick Mondello kindly sent this fascinating clip.

LINK

Sunday night @ The Globe: Eddie Gripper Trio - June 14

© Sheila

Eddie Gripper (piano); Clem Saynor (double bass); Patrick Barrett-Donlon (drums)

It was with an air of joyful anticipation that I sallied forth to the corner of Railway and Plummer where that edifice  to jazz in Newcastle, the Globe, plays host to top notch bands from both near and afar.

I was particularly looking forward to last night's offering, the Eddie Gripper Trio, having found their most recent album, Americana, very pleasing albeit not what it said on the tin. The Americana that Gripper found his inspiration from was a six weeks long jaunt hitch-hiking from the northern tip of Alaska to the sweltering heat of California.

All the tracks from the album were played, preceded by introductory remarks by Gripper which helped paint a fuller picture of the background to each one.

Late Night Chicago Radio with Denny Farrell (June 12-16)

Bob Brookmeyer: Louisiana.

Dinah Washington: Ain't Misbehavin'.

Wes Montgomery: ? .

North Sea Jazz Ensemble: I'm Just a Lucky So and So.

Bennie Green (pianist): Just a Gigolo.

Peggy Lee: Sugar.

Jo Stafford: Imagination.

Phineas Newborn Jr.: Sometimes I'm Happy.

Paul Desmond, Dave Brubeck: You go to my Head.

Lou Rawls, Les McCann: Willow Weep For me.

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