Bebop Spoken There

Art Blakey (to Terence Blanchard): ''You ain't Miles find your own shit to do!'' (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

18504 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 368 of them this year alone and, so far this month (May 7 ) 22

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

May

Wed 13: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 13: Jam session @ The Tannery, Hexham. 7:00pm. Free.
Wed 13: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 13: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 13: Hey Remember This @ Elder Beer, Heaton, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00. JNE.

Thu 14: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00. Subject: Philip Larkin’s Jazz Experiment.
Thu 14: Jerron Paxton @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). Superb country blues.
Thu 14: Solcade @ the Bridge Hotel, Newcastle. 7:00pm. EP launch. Rivkala & co..
Thu 14: Jacob Egglestone @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Egglestone (guitar); Jamie Watkins (bass); Jack Littlewood (drums) & guests.
Thu 14: 58 Jazz Collective @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 8:00pm. Free.
Thu 14: 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 15: Conor Emery Quartet @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Line-up Emery (trombone); Alix Shepherd (piano); John Pope (double bass); Abbie Finn (drums). SOLD OUT!
Fri 15: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 15: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 15: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 15: Gerry Richardson Quartet @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm. £13.01 adv., £15.00 on the door. Old Black Cat Jazz Club.
Fri 15: Puppini Sisters @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. CANCELLED!

Sat 16: Sing Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £27.50. Tutor: Alexia Gardner. God Bless the Child - Lady Day!. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 16: Kaberry Big Band @ the Seahorse Pub, Hillheads Rd., Whitley Bay NE23 8HR. From 7:30pm. £15.00
Sat 16: Lady Nade @ Arc, Stockton. 8:00pm. ‘Lady Nade sings Nina Simone’.

Sun 17: Glenn Miller & Big Band Spectacular @ Forum Theatre, Billingham. 7:30pm.
Sun 17: QOW Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £14.00., £12.00., £7.00. Spike Wells, Riley Stone-Lonergan & Eddie Myer.

Mon 18: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 18: Mark Williams Trio @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 19: GoGo Penguin + Daudi Matsiko @ Wylam Brewery, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £22.00 + £4.40 bf.
Tue 19: Danny Lowndes’ Hot Club @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £15.00 + £5.00 bf.
Tue 19: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young (piano); Paul Grainger (double bass); Mark Robertson (drums).

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Alan Glen Trio Take it to the Bridge One More Time.

Alan Glen (pno), Jim Crinson (bs), David Carnegie (dms).
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Dave Weisser (tpt/vcl), Doug Fielder (ten), Barrie Ascroft (pno), Jim Crinson (bs), Mathew Office (gtr), Eric Stutt (dms).
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There are some nice things that happen monthly. Counteracting the bills there are things like a favourite magazine dropping through the letterbox, your paycheck going into the bank, the wife going to stay with her mother for a few days; an endless list. My monthly fix is when the Alan Glen Trio play the Chilli.
This is always an eagerly anticipated event even if tonight raised some initial doubts.
Doubts, I hasten to add, that were hastily dispelled.
In a nutshell, Pope, John, couldn't make the gig - presumably he had some Papal duties to perform - and regular Chilli Bull fiddle man Jim Crinson stepped into the breach totally unrehearsed.
The 'boy' did good! Jim handled everything that was dished up and emerged with his reputation untarnished.
Love For Sale, I Should Care, a Glen original entitled Big Deal in Ocho-Rios, Alone Together, What's New, It Could Happen to You and Autumn Leaves. A set list to salivate over and when played by Maestro Glen it is as near to perfection as you'll get on a cold night in Heaton (substitute Heaton with anywhere).
The flurry of notes, the (seemingly) eleven fingered chords, the sheer inventiveness of his improvisations - his fingers leave few notes untouched as he shows what can be done with the well-tempored klaviarchord - all serve to remind me why each monthly visit from the trio is eagerly awaited. Anyone with a modicum of interest in jazz should have been here tonight to witness an artist re-writing modern jazz piano.
David Carnegie, once again, as he did with Extreme Measures on Sunday, demonstrated his all-round versatility (of which we'll hear more).
Jim Crinson? He came off that stage a star.
Earlier, the Take it to the Bridge gang had played a set that had Dave working out on My Foolish Heart - he really got his chanting chops into this one.
Doug played a gentle, probing, tenor solo round the sequence keeping the mood going whilst, on guitar, young Mathew also had his say. I think Dave should let Matt play a trio/quartet feature with the rhythm section, give him a chance to fly.
In the final set the band did things to In Your Own Sweet Way and Whisper Not before David Carnegie returned to the stage - on piano.
The number was a blues in F - Blues For Duane.
David took the Freddie Hubbard tune to the cleaners. I can honestly say that this was the best blues piano solo by a drummer I've ever heard unless Harley Johnson's a drummer.
Lance

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