Classic Swing @the Crescent Club, Cullercoats - June 5

Jeremy McMurray (piano);  Jim McBriarty  (clarinet, soprano sax, vocals);  Alan Marshall (tenor sax, clarinet);  Neville  Hartley (trombone, vocals); Alan Rudd (double bass); Ian Stocks (drums), Olive Rudd (vocals).  

A slightly depleted crowd of regulars today with several stalwarts off on holiday. However, the unusually empty chairs were quickly taken up by some new faces who were checking out what The Crescent Club has to offer. As I was leaving they were talking of coming back and bringing friends. Be prepared to get there early if you want a seat otherwise you’ll be standing at the bar!

The band kicked off, as they always do, with an instrumental written specifically for them by Tommy Moran, Classic Swing, setting the scene for two hours of (what it says on the tin) classic swing music from the 1920s, '30s and '40s. 

Jazz Time Aycliffe Radio - Sundays 6.30-8.00pm (repeated Tuesdays 8.00-9.30pm).

https://www.ayclifferadio.co.uk/listen.

Playlist 07/06/26 (repeated Tuesday 09/06/26)

RIP Sonny Rollins: Sonny Rollins, Sonny Rollins and MJQ,

Requests: Cannonball Adderley/Louis Hayes, Clark Terry Sextet w. Ben Webster.

Memories of Cole Porter: Ella Fitzgerald, Lee Morgan, Ella Fitzgerald.

Requests: Frank & Duke, George Wettling, Johnny Hodges, Kenny G.

Tony Eales’ Best of British Big Bands: Tubby Hayes Orchestra.

Requests: Marc Johnson.

What’s on in the NE: Sarah Spencer's Transatlantic Band, Eddie Gripper.

For the Enthronement of the Bishop Of Durham: Oscar Peterson/Joe Pass.

Miles Davis remembered:

Aycliffe Radio is available on DAB in County Durham & the Darlington area or via your smart speaker.

Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox: The Future is Vintage @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead - June 4

Willie Ray Moore Jr. (MC, vocals); Effie Passero (vocals);  Tatum Langley (vocals); Katrina Lomis (vocals); Jacob Dupre (piano); Adam Kubota (MD, double bass, bass); Jack Amblin (drums, washboard, vocals); Kyle Morgan (tenor sax, clarinet, flute); JP Floyd (trombone, drums); Demi Remick (dancer) + others

Postmodern Jukebox, PMJ for short, is a global phenomenon. Touring worldwide, year round, often with two or three shows on stage at the same time somewhere on the planet. This evening, PMJ returned to Gateshead's Glasshouse. Earlier visits to Tyneside date from pre-Covid times when the riverfront venue was known as Sage Gateshead. 

The Future is Vintage, two hours, straight through, PMJ's legion of fans knew what to expect. A non-stop, all-singing, all-dancing revue, rehearsed to the nth degree, each and every member of the ensemble hitting their cues. 

Press release: Tonight (June 5) @ GCT - Double Big Band Show

Strictly Smokin’ Big Band are thrilled to welcome the phenomenal IKS Big Band (pictured right) from Frankfurt, Germany for a very special trans-European big band celebration at Gosforth Civic Theatre on 5th June.

​Founded in Germany and renowned for their precision, energy and adventurous programming, the IKS Big Band has built a reputation as one of Frankfurt’s leading large jazz ensembles. Blending classic swing tradition with contemporary big band writing, their performances are characterised by tight ensemble playing, bold brass, and a fearless commitment to the full power and colour of the big band sound.

​

Joining them are Newcastle’s own Strictly Smokin’ Big Band (pictured left), one of the UK’s most dynamic and high-octane large jazz outfits. Known for their explosive live shows, deep swing feel and flair for theatrical presentation, Strictly Smokin’ have carved out a reputation for delivering big band music with both reverence for the tradition and a modern edge.

Album review: Clara Haberkamp - Love Maps (TYXart records)

Clara Haberkamp (piano, vocals, composer)

Hailed as "one of the most distinctive pianists on the German jazz scene" and described by herself as a genre-open pianist and composer, on the strength of this, and a previous album. Clara Haberkamp is certainly all of those.

As such it is difficult to decide which idiom a particular track is aimed at as quite often the horses are changed midstream which adds to the variety and gives the reviewer the opportunity to throw in that good old jazz phrase the sound of surprise which is always a useful tool to have on standby.

Album review: Mark Christian Miller - Strange Meadowlark (Sliding Glass Door Productions)

Mark Christian Miller (vocals, piano, arranger tk 9); Chris Dawson (piano, arranger); Joe LaBarbera  (drums); Chuck Berghofer (bass); Robert Kyle (tenor sax, flute. alto flute, arrangements); Josh Nelson (piano tk 7, arranger tks 7, 9)

For one reason or another this one never quite reached the top of my review pile - there always seemed to be some upstart jumping the queue - 'shy boys etc.'.

This is an unforgivable oversight on my behalf not least because a) it's been smouldering in my in-tray since February, b) with so many female singers arriving by trains and boats and planes, a new male voice makes for a pleasing contrast and c) it's a damn fine record!

Album review: Jon Batiste – Black Mozart: Batiste Piano Series Vol 2 (Decca Records)

There are very few musicians working today who seem genuinely incapable of being confined by genre. Jon Batiste is one of them.

Over the last decade he has become one of the most recognisable musicians on the planet, yet he has achieved that status by doing precisely the opposite of what the music industry usually demands. Rather than choosing a lane and staying in it, Batiste has spent his career moving effortlessly between jazz, classical music, soul, gospel, R&B, film scores, popular music and outright performance art.

For many people he first appeared as the charismatic bandleader on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Others discovered him through Pixar's Soul, for which he shared an Academy Award. More recently there was the extraordinary American Symphony, the deeply personal project and documentary that revealed both his immense ambition and the challenges he and his wife, Suleika Jaouad, were facing away from the stage.

R.I.P. Ron Escheté

Maurice Summerfield has sent me the sad news of the passing of guitarist Ron Escheté on May 20.

I never got to hear Escheté live although I was familiar with his excellent work with the Gene Harris Quartet, A particular recording that moved the earth for me was the Gene Harris' Quartet recording with Frank Wess on flute and tenor - It's the Real Soul.   

Several guitarists paid tribute HERE.     

Ron Escheté was 77. Sadly missed. Lance

Stockport Jazz

Sunday 7th June 2026

Stockport Jazz welcomes the return of multi-saxophonist Rod Mason to the Moor Club, with Paul Hartley (guitar), Ken Marley (bass) and Dave Walsh (drums).

8-10pm, doors open at 7.30pm

£5 entry on the door, all welcome

The Moor Club, 35 Heaton Moor Road, Stockport SK4 4PB  (next to the Elizabethan PH)

Single review: Tony Adamo - It’s Gotta B U! (Saint Jaz Records)

Tony Adamo (vocal, hipspokenword, music and lyrics); Mike Clark (drums); Richie Goods (bass)

The Heavyweight Champion of hipspokenword strikes again with a muscular straight-ahead offering titled It’s Gotta B U! The pulsating track simmers straight-ahead over Killer Joe-like changes and vibes all sent up by a B-3 heavy groove with bassist Richie Goods and “Headhunter” Mike Clark driving.

It’s a shorter track in which Adamo again uses his ultra-cool vocal styling to offer a jazz history lesson and a soulful message pointed right at you, the listener. You’ve got to be cool indeed and hand it to Adamo that in this age of fabricated and less than sincere unhip jazz offerings, Adamo is genuine, sticks to his pure jazz guns, and knows his endgame is to deliver utter hipness.