Bebop Spoken There

Ludovic Beier (Django Festival Allstars): ''Manouche means 'free man,' and gypsies have been travelers since they migrated west from India to Europe.'' (DownBeat March, 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

18383 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 247 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Mar. 17 ), 57

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

March

Mon 30: Gerry Richardson Quartet @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm.
Mon 30: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 31: Bede Trio @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Albert Hills Wright (alto sax); Finn Carter (piano); Michael Dunlop (double bass).

April

Wed 01: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 01: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 01: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 02: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00. Subject: Musicians playing classical & orchestral music.
Thu 02: The Noel Dennis Band @ Prohibition Bar, Albert Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RU. 7:00pm (doors). £10.84. Quartet plus special guest Zoë Gilby. Over 21s only.
Thu 02: Renegade Brass Band @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors).
Thu 02: Shalala @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £7.00. adv..
Thu 02: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Preview - Lewis Watson Quartet @ The Cherry Tree

I was meaning to leave a comment on Lewis Watson's last gig at the Cherry Tree but didn't get round to it. However, as I see he's appearing there again tomorrow night it's another great opportunity to hear a terrific player who is not gigging nearly enough.
Lance has described the last gig in detail but I must say I wondered how Lewis's robust and constantly inventive style would go down with an audience accustomed to the more standard (but very excellent) music usually provided by the GAS men and women at the CT. I needn't have worried. By the end of the evening couples were happily dancing what I would have called a slow smooch as Lewis was digging seriously low notes from beneath the floorboards of the restaurant in 'Body & Soul'.
They continued through the gloriously melodic 'Softly as in..' and were delightfully unperturbed as he segued into Bird's 'Now's the Time' (by special request). I did wonder if the dancers knew that the riff for this tune was turned into a raunchy rock and roll number about a dance called the 'Hucklebuck'. The chorus which explains how to do the dance ends:'Wriggle like a stick, wobble like a duck, That's what you do when you do the Hucklebuck'.
JC.

1 comment :

Lance said...

JC! I want to see you and your good lady doing the above actions even though it may mean the vice squad closing the place down!

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