Bebop Spoken There

John McLaughlin: ''It was then that Coltrane came along and single-handedly brought this dimension of spirituality into jazz. It was a pivotal experience to me.'' (DownBeat September, 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

19,012 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 876 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Oct. 16) 55.

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

October.

Sat 17: SunOrbitUs @ Culture House, Sunderland. 11:00am - 5:00pm. Closing event in a year-long piece of music. 11:00am-1:00pm Improvisation workshop w. Faye MacCalman; 2:00-5:00pm Collective Improvised Performance by Sunderland residents. SOLD OUT!
Sat 17: Tees Bay Swing Band @ Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal.
Sat 17: Martin Taylor @ Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle. 7:30pm. £48.72; £43.37. Solo guitar. SOLD OUT!

Sun 18: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 18: Creakin’ Bones & the Sunday Dinners @ Tyne Bar, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Jump jive.
Sun 18: Guisborough Big Band @ Redcar Rugby Club. 5:00-8:00pm. ‘Charity Big Band Birthday Bash’ in aid of Parkinson’s UK & Young Sounds UK. Free (donations on the door).
Sun 18: Martin Taylor @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £23.30. Solo guitar.
Sun 18: Ben Crosland Quartet with Steve Waterman @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 19: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 19: Sue Ferris Quintet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 20: Alan Law @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 2:00pm. Free. Alan Law (piano) w. Pete Tanton (trumpet, flugelhorn).
Tue 20: Graham Hardy’s Eclectic Quartet @ Queen’s Head, Rothbury. 7:30pm. £11.00. Tickets from Tully’s, Rothbury. Coquetdale Jazz. Note change of venue.
Tue 20: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Alan Law, Paul Grainger, Scotty Adair.

Wed 21: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 21: FILM: Blue Moon @ Washington Arts Centre. 1:00pm. £4.50 (inc. bf). Biopic of lyricist Lorenz Hart.
Wed 21: De'Sean Jones’ Urban Art Orchestra @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £10.00.; £5.00. student, unwaged; free to Mercury Awards ticket holders. De'Sean Jones (tenor sax, EWI); Tjoe Man Cheung (guitar); Mikele Montolli (double bass) + others TBA.
Wed 21: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 21: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 21: Roby Glod-Steve Sewell Quartet @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 8:00pm.

Thu 22: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 22: Mercury Prize @ Utility Arena Newcastle. 8:00pm. £60.25.; £48.75. Line-up inc. Knats.
Thu 22: Dean Stockdale Trio @ Bandstand!, Exhibition Park, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Tickets: £10.20 (inc. bf) via Instagram. Dean Stockdale (piano); Mick Shoulder (double bass); John Bradford (drums).
Thu 22: Olly Styles Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £7.75.

Fri 23: Sara Oschlag w. Arnie Somogyi Trio @ The Lit & Phil. 1:00pm. Sara Oschlag (vocals); Ben Lawrence (piano); Arnie Somogyi (double bass); John Hirst (drums). SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: Emma Fisk’s Hot Club du Nord @ Gala Theatre, Durham. 1:00pm. Durham Jazz Festival. SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 23: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 23: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 23: Maja Bugge & Dave Evans @ Claypath Deli, Durham. 7:00pm. Durham Jazz Festival.
Fri 23: Knats @ King Street Social Club, North Shields. 7:00pm. £17.00., £14.70., £11.30., £5.50. SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: King Bees @ Billy Bootleggers, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. Superb Chicago blues band.
Fri 23: Sara Oschlag & Arnie Somogyi w. Ben Lawrence @ Ship Isis, Sunderland. 7:30pm. Sara Oschlag (vocals); Ben Lawrence (keyboards); Arnie Somogyi (double bass).
Fri 23: Ronnie Scott’s Soho Songbook @ Redhills, Durham. 8:00pm. James Pearson (piano); Sam Burgess (double bass); Chris Higginbottom (drums); Alex Garnett (sax); Polly Gibbons (vocals). Durham Jazz Festival. SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: SwanNek + Jacob Egglestone @ Fabio’s Bar, Durham. 9:00pm. Durham Jazz Festival.

Monday, December 22, 2008

Oscar Peterson Trio Live at Ronnie Scott's - BBC 4

A typical Peterson bravura performance - has there been a more technically accomplished pianist in jazz? I don't think so although Tatum, of course, ran him close. In this set from 1974 the great man was joined by Barney Kessell on guitar and Niels Henning Oersted-Pederson on bass and it says much that Peterson towered so much above the other two that their true status was somewhat submerged.
Prior to the arrival of Barney and Niels, our man had played a couple of unaccompanied numbers; "I Should Care" and a particularly impressive version of "This Nearly Was Mine". I've always felt the Rodgers and Hammerstein tune never reaches its potential when sung in the semi-operatic manner demanded of it in "South Pacific" and here Oscar totally stripped it of any sentimentality even to the extent of adding some stride-like touches without losing its harmonic attraction.
Although not in the driving seat, Barney did have a couple of decent solos but it is my feeling that a guitarist - any guitarist - is on a hiding to nothing when Oscar is in full flight. (Roly says "Click here to Check Lorne Lofsky out" - see comments)
An enjoyable half hour.
The docs that followed on Billie and Bird were, to say the least, harrowing.

8 comments :

Anonymous said...

One of the Peterson guitarists I like very much is Canadian Lorne Lofsky. He is a wonderful player - some nice examples of his unique playing are on YouTube. He can fly with the best but also seems nowadays to play a lot of subtle finger style harmony (with thumb pick)- and does it beautifully.
Roly

Lance said...

As you have remarked, another unsung hero. Plus at this stage in his life Peterson was as flamboyant than when he was at his peak thus leaving more spaces.
Someone once described Peterson (or was it Buddy Rich or both?) as a steamroller with a formula One engine!

Anonymous said...

Yes a good description - I actually got into jazz via Peterson. That great album 'Night Train'. I liked R&B and folk blues incl. blues & boogie woogie pno (Jimmy Yancey/Meade Lux Lewis etc)then saw Peterson probably on The Palladium TV show and was hooked. Dare I say it though - whilst he was a phenomenal pianist I don't think he was a great accompanist - tended to be a bit over busy. Be interested to see what others (specially pianists) think of this viewpoint. Gulp. I'll probably get slapped down.
Roly

Lance said...

Interesting point re Oscar. I think that if you are looking for an accompanist then guys such as Hank Jones or Ellis Larkins spring to mind. Put people like Peterson, Tatum or Garner with an instrumentalist (Tatum/Webster springs to mind) then you have to regard them as, in classical terms, a double concerto with bass and drums being the sole accompanists.
How about Brubeck/Desmond? How do you rate Dave as an accompanist?

Anonymous said...

An interesting topic and although I didn't see the concert in question, ( I hope it wasn't one of those recorded shortly before his death, when he was literally playing with one hand, which was sad to watch) but I agree with Roly in this respect----- Oscar was, without doubt, a phenomenal player with a flawless technique, immaculate harmonic sense & "hair -raising" drive & swing and in this respect had no equal. But he was a very competitive player who, I guess, found it difficult to play second fiddle to anyone, and on some recordings, you almost feel that he is goading rather than accompanying in a sympathetic manner.
I am not too familiar with his work with vocalists apart from Ella & Fred Astaire but I have never considered him to be alongside Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones or Ellis Larkins as an accompanist. But I do remember a series of recordings he did with other virtuoso players such as Freddie Hubbard, Joe Pass, John Faddis etc which were virtually face to face "warfare". One got the feeling that Oscar was saying "this is how brilliant I am so let's see if YOU can stay with me".
I remember one of the tracks on the album with Freddie Hubbard, which was at breakneck speed, where they were swapping 4s & 8s with astounding brilliance until Freddie became so exasperated with the increasing complexity of Oscar's breaks that he collapsed into a series of whinnying & farting noises. Oscar had proved his point!
It must have been difficult for him to contain himself when accompanying lesser mortals but as Anne will confirm, the "fireworks" are for the solos & not for the accompaniment. But HEY,if that's his only flaw, I'LL settle for that on the same terms!!!!!
Bill and Anne

Anonymous said...

A fair assessment Bill. I do like accompanists who listen/react and play 'in the gaps' - Russ Freeman with Chet Baker is a nice example.
But Peterson has his place at the absolute pinnacle when it comes to virtuoso, 'lead from the front' jazz piano.
I've got a DVD where he plays with both Ray Brown & NOHP and some of his playing on that is just breathtaking. So is their's!
Peterson was a lovely guy too, do you remember when BBC gave him a series of chat shows. He seemed a bit uncomfortable doing the Parky bit but his genuine nature shone through and incidentally he sang a nice Nat Cole inspired vocal too. Changing tack what about the unsung Freddy Cole? Another master musician.
Roly

Anonymous said...

Peterson could be a little busy in comparison to some other pianists (ideal for the trio stuff) but having said that, I've never found it irritating, so presumably it's not too busy?!

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