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Bebop Spoken There

Kurt Elling: ''There's something to learn from every musician you play with''. (DownBeat, December 2024).

The Things They Say!

Hudson Music: Lance's "Bebop Spoken Here" is one of the heaviest and most influential jazz blogs in the UK.

Rupert Burley (Dynamic Agency): "BSH just goes from strength to strength".

'606' Club: "A toast to Lance Liddle of the terrific jazz blog 'Bebop Spoken Here'"

The Strictly Smokin' Big Band included Be Bop Spoken Here (sic) in their 5 Favourite Jazz Blogs.

Ann Braithwaite (Braithwaite & Katz Communications) You’re the BEST!

Holly Cooper, Mouthpiece Music: "Lance writes pull quotes like no one else!"

Simon Spillett: A lovely review from the dean of jazz bloggers, Lance Liddle...

Josh Weir: I love the writing on bebop spoken here... I think the work you are doing is amazing.

Postage

17630 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 904 of them this year alone and, so far, 49 this month (Dec. 20).

From This Moment On ...

December

Tue 24: Lindsay Hannon & Mark Williams @ Ernest, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 11:00am-1:00pm. Free.
Tue 24: Paul Skerritt @ Mambo Wine & Dine, South Shields. 1:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.

Wed 25: Wot? No jazz!

Thu 26: The Boneshakers @ Tyne Bar, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. The 17th annual Boneshakers’ Shindig.

Fri 27: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 27: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free. Business as usual!.
Fri 27: Jason Isaacs @ Seaburn STACK, Seaburn. 3:30-5:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Fri 27: Michael Woods @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Country blues guitar & vocals.

Sat 28: Jason Isaacs @ St. James’ STACK, Newcastle. 11:30am. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Sat 28: Fri 20: Castillo Nuevo @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30pm. Free.
Sat 28: Jude Murphy, Rich Herdman & Giles Strong @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 28: Ray Stubbs R & B All-Stars @ Billy Bootlegger’s, Stepney Bank, Newcastle. 9:00pm. Free.

Sun 29: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 29: Alexia Gardner Quintet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 30: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 30: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Wheatsheaf, Benton Sq., Whitley Road, Palmersville NE12 9SU. Tel: 0191 266 8137. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 30: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 4:00-6:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.

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

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Enrico Tomasso w. The Swing City Trio @ Trinity Church Centre, Gosforth.

Enrico Tomasso (tpt/vcl), Steve Andrews (ten/clt), Roly Veitch (gtr/vcl), Roy Cansdale (bs).
The centre adjoining the church was crowded - surely the hippest congregation in town.
And deservedly so.
This was an evening of jazz that swung, and I use the word advisedly, from delicate chamber jazz to straight down the middle solid stompology.
The delicacy came from, no prizes for guessing, Roly Veitch. Using a lightly amped Epiphone Roly gave us chorded solos a la Carl Kress or Dick McDonough coupled with some nice single string, more modern, explorations. Add his vocals on "I Saw Stars", "I Wished on the Moon", "The Touch of Your Lips" and you had surely the perfect example of, let's call it, "Gentlemanly Jazz" and to hell with the sexists!
Roy Cansdale provided the perfect link, in the absence of a drummer, between guitar and front-line. He was there all the time, a tower of strength in both support and the occasional break or solo - chapeau!
Which brings us to the main event.
Steve and Enrico slugged it out like two heavyweights at Madison Square each alternatively complimenting and outdoing the other. Steve's moment of glory was surely his rendition of "Body and Soul" - he has the Hawkins' sound off to a tee, as well as the licks, yet still managed to make it his own - doubt if I've heard him blow better. Enrico came back counter-punching in the up-tempo section but I think Steve edged that one on points.
Enrico's piece de resistance was Berigan's "I Can't Get Started". I've often thought I never want to hear that tune again yet, when I do, I still love it and Signor Tomasso did it more than justice.
Honours even I guess. Steve played some great clarinet and introduced the numbers with more than a touch of humour whilst Enrico charmed us with his singing - "I've Got The World on a String" being but one delight - and his soaring flights of fantasy into the approaches to the stratosphere.
All this and a full house. Perhaps jazz should move out of the pubs and into the churches!
Lance.

2 comments :

Liz said...

Roly singing "I wished on the moon"
sounds like my idea of Saturday night nostalgia...lovely stuff!
Liz

Roly said...

Thanks for the nice words about the Trinity gig Lance.
I absolutely enjoyed that and what a treat to play to a full room. Playing jazz is a labour of love with a lot of frustations along the way but then, once in a while, you are in a situation which makes you appreciate why you do it.
Re the Epiphone, it's not a semi-acoustic (that usually means acoustic body but with a pick up - a lot of archtop jazz guitars have built in or floating pick ups) - no, the Epi is a pure acoustic instrument. But although the old pre-elec dance band type guitars are built to be loud you still would hardly hear it in a group and that's why pick ups and amps took over in the 40s - Charlie Christian et al.
But to me, nothing touches the pure cutting acoustic rhythm sound, so miking up the gtr thru the PA using a condenser mike is often used by players who want to recreate that type of sound.
I must admit that although for years I've played electric archtop (latterly with Jim Hall being my idol) nevertheless I'm now just more and more drawn to pure acoustic guitar for the dynamic response and touch you can get. Electrification kinda of levels all that out. And to
me '4 to the bar' rhythm on elec archtop usually sounds naff (I've tried it for years and am rarely happy with the basic sound - mellow elec guitar and '4 to bar' rhythm just don't go together. Mind you good old Jim Hall made it work somehow but he would always find a way to make beautiful music.
The player who has turned me on to all this is Bucky Pizzarelli. Although he usually plays a 7 string amped semi acoustic in the Van Epps tradition you sometimes hear him on CD
(eg. I saw stars by Becky Kilgore) on an old acoustic (probably an Epiphone) and he is an absolute master at that '4 to bar' plus chorded solo style. Also Barry Galbraith was great at that.
Ah well, that's enough of my rambling. All interesting stuff.
Roly.

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