Bebop Spoken There

Melissa Aldana: ''Having to play a ballads album, which is something very revealing for a saxophone player, would help me to question some new aspects of how to go deeper into sound." (DownBeat May, 2026)

The Things They Say!

This is a good opportunity to say thanks to BSH for their support of the jazz scene in the North East (and beyond) - it's no exaggeration to say that if it wasn't for them many, many fine musicians, bands and projects across a huge cross section of jazz wouldn't be getting reviewed at all, because we're in the "desolate"(!) North. (M & SSBB on F/book 23/12/24)

Postage

18621 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 485 of them this year alone and, so far this month (June 14) 37

Reviewers wanted

Whilst BSH attempts to cover as many gigs, festivals and albums as possible, to make the site even more comprehensive we need more 'boots on the ground' to cover the albums seeking review - a large percentage of which never get heard - report on gigs or just to air your views on anything jazz related. Interested? then please get in touch. Contact details are on the blog. Look forward to hearing from you. Lance

From This Moment On

June

Tue 23: Alan Law Trio @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 2:00pm. Free.
Tue 23: Jude Murphy & Dan Stanley @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Wed 24: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 24: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 24: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 25: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 25: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00. Subject: Forgotten Ones & Any Quintets.
Thu 25: Edgar Ho Trio @ Newcastle Arts Centre. 7:30pm. Free. Brilliant alto sax, piano & double bass trio. Unmissable!
Thu 25: Paul Skerritt @ Angels' Share, St George's Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle NE2 2SX. 8:00pm. Free. Booking advised (0191 200 1975). Skerritt w. backing tapes.

Fri 26: Finn-Keeble Group @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £9:00.
Fri 26: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 26: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 26: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 26: Clark Tracey @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Newcastle Jazz Festival. £26.00. Day 1/2.

Sat 27: OUTRI @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £13.01. 1:00-1:45pm. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2.
Sat 27: Tees Bay Swing Band @ Richardson & Westgarth Sport & Social Club, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. Note change of venue.
Sat 27: House of the Black Gardenia + Magpies of Swing @ The Cumberland Arms, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sat 27: Mark Toomey Quartet @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 2:15-3:15pm. £13.01. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2.
Sat 27: Alexia Gardner Quintet @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 3:45-4:45pm. £13.01. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2.
Sat 27: Rory Ingham @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 5:30-6:30pm. £19.51. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2. Ingham w. Dean Stockdale, Ian Paterson, Dave McKeague.
Sat 27: Castillo Nuevo Trio @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30pm. Free.
Sat 27: Laura Jurd @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £26.00. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2. Sat 27: Brass Fiesta @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 10:30pm. Free.

Sun 28: Musicians Unlimited: Big Band Blast @ West Hartlepool RFC. 1:00-3:00pm . Free.
Sun 28: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 28: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Table reservations (0191 261 8000). Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 28: Tim Kliphuis Trio @ St Mary’s Church, Wooler. 3:00pm. £18.00., £6.00. A Wooler Arts Summer Concerts event. Tim Kliphuis (violin); Nigel Clark (guitar); Roy Percy (double bass).
Sun 28: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 28: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 28: An Evening of Jazz @ St James’ Church, Copper Chare, Morpeth. 7:30pm. Tickets: £10.00 from 01670 788869 or 01670 519923. Mid Northumberland Chorus (MD Robin Forbes, Emma Straughan, piano) w. jazz trio featuring Edgar Ho, Oscar Ho & Dave McKeague & special guest Emily Masser. Performance inc. Bob Chilcott’s A Little Jazz Mass + George Shearing’s Songs & Sonnets.
Sun 28: Led Bib @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £15.00., £12.00. JNE.

Mon 29: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Sunday, August 03, 2008

MacJazz Says ...

It was the late 1940's and a new music had arrived from America, they called it Be-Bop ! An early purchase from my favourite record shop was the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Quintet playing ' Loverman ' Sara Vaughan supplied the vocal. Was I lucky to be around to hear this musical revolution ? You bet I was! Lance says ... This posting actually turned up on 16 April this year but somehow or other got shuffled out of the system! Apologies to MacJazz and don't say 'Typical Sassenach!'
at

5 comments :

Lance said...

I came into jazz in the early '50s by which time Bop had been assimilated into the modern jazz canon and Bird was no longer seen as a trailblazer - "just" a very fine alto player!
The revolutionary of my early days was Gerry Mulligan and his pianoless quartet although the first modern discs I bought were Dizzy Gillespie's "The Champ" and Earl Bostic's "Flamingo".

Sunday, August 03, 2008 12:00:00 pm
Anonymous said...

It was Kenton that did it for me. Worshipped the guy as did a lot of us. Now most of it sounds pretentious and dated whereas most of the Woody Herman sides from the same period still sound good.
Anyone else want to tell Lance where it all began for them?

Sunday, August 03, 2008 9:53:00 pm
Anonymous said...

Mine began with my dad introducing me to wonderful vocals like "Laura" He was a fine guitarist. I grew up with Django,Hoagey and the like. Sunday nights at our local cinema were the bands of Ken mackintosh, Ted Heath etc.It was the big American bands though that really excited me. Radio Luxembourg was where we learnt the words to the current fave songs. Ella was my first real introduction to the American Songbook, and seeing her at the Leeds Odeon, age 16(me) performing one of the "Jazz at the Philharmonic" concerts was pure magic. After that I was hooked!
Music is like life blood to me and I feel fortunate to have been around to see/hear all those great artists in my younger years.Mel Tormé remains one of those singers who never disappoints.I listened to his recording of "I'll be seeing you" yesterday, I thought to myself, it doesn't get much better than that.

Monday, August 04, 2008 3:07:00 pm
Anonymous said...

Omitted to say that the Mel Tormé recording was with the great George Shearing accompanying.What a combination!

Monday, August 04, 2008 3:19:00 pm
Anonymous said...

The first jazz radio programme I listened to was on Radio Luxembourg. It was the Pye records spot between 7:15 and 8:30 every night. I seem to thing it was Midnight in Moscow by Kenny Ball that I bought after hearing it on that show.

My first move into real jazz was by way of Latin ( all the Jobim stuff ) and solo piano players such as Pete Jolly and Dudley Moore

Tuesday, August 05, 2008 8:01:00 am

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