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Bebop Spoken There

Ambrose Akinmusire: “ I am certainly always aware of what the masses are doing. And when I see too many people going one way, I'm going another way - even when I don't know what's over that way". DownBeat, March, 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

16287 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 169 of them this year alone and, so far, 41 this month (Mar 18).

From This Moment On ...

March

Tue 19: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Tim Johnston.

Wed 20: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 20: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 20: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 21: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 21: Castillo Neuvo Trio + Conor Emery & His ‘Bones Band @ The Grove, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:30pm (7:00pm doors). £10.00. (£7.00. student).
Thu 21: Remi Banklyn + Chris Corcoran Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.50. Chicago blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Thu 21: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Ragtime piano.
Thu 21: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 22: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 22: Nauta + Remy CB + Last Orders @ Hoochie Coochie, Newcastle. 8:30pm (7:30pm doors). Free.
Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. £15.00. Opus 4 Jazz Club.
Fri 22: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 23: Jambone @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 6:30pm. Free (ticketed). End of term performance in the Northern Rock Foundation Hall.
Sat 23: Milne-Glendinning Band @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 23: Red Kites Jazz @ Rowlands Gill Community Centre NE39 1JB. 7:00pm. Tickets: £12.00. (gibsidecommunityfarm@gmail.com). A ‘Build a Barn’ fundraiser. BYOB, tea/coffee available.
Sat 23: New Century Ragtime Orchestra @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £20.00. + bf (book in person at venue - no booking fee!). Featuring pianist Martin Litton.
Sat 23: Pete Tanton’s Cuba Libre @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 24: Musicians Unlimited @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 24: Luis Verde @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Verde (alto sax); Joe Steels (guitar); John Pope (double bass); John Hirst (drums). Alto sax brilliance!
Sun 24: Elsie Franklin @ The Globe, Newcastle. 3:00pm. £10.00. Country blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Sun 24: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay Metro Station. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: Las Vegas Live with the Rat Pack @ The Forum, Billingham.
Sun 24: Ian Millar & Dominic Spencer @ Otterburn Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00.
Sun 24: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Note start time - 7:00pm.
Sun 24: Bold Big Band @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 25: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 25: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Erin Dickins Interviewed - A Bebop Spoken Here Exclusive!


1: Great album and such a great mix of tunes - standards like Can’t We Be Friends - how did you know that is my favourite song! Who shared the vocal?
Songs come from all kinds of sources…..I just adore that song! I was doing a regular gig at a fantastic little Italian restaurant called Scossa, in my hometown. A member of the staff, my friend Greg Rohman, had a jazz mix up while we were loading in one night. I told him how much I liked his taste and he burned me a disc of that mix. Well, I first heard this song (done by Ella and Louis Armstrong) while I was in the car and I had to pull over. It just knocked me out!
From the first listen, I knew exactly whom I wanted for the duet – my producer, Jesse Frederick. Jesse and I have been great friends and singing partners for many years and we are totally inside each other’s heads. I knew the key would be perfect for him, so I took a big leap of faith and tracked it.  He kept saying, “No, you should get a well-known jazz-er to do it.”  So, I actually talked to Jon Hendricks about the solo. But before I took it to him up to New York, Jesse recorded a reference vocal of the male part so Jon could hear the duet. It was perfection. Jon loved the recording, but was doing some touring at the time, so we couldn’t get him in the studio soon enough to lay the vocal.  I was secretly glad, because I really, really wanted Jesse to sing it!  And guess what? Jesse’s original reference vocal, which he sang in one take, is the final that you hear on the CD. He is an absolutely amazing singer, and I am a very happy artist!! I would LOVE to have Jon on something soon, and I’ll work on that!
 2: Can I be honest and say I don’t recall you with Man Tran? I remember Janet and Laurel so maybe you were there before them? If that was the case, going by your photo today you must have been 6 years old!
Totally! I was young enough that my mother had to sign my deal with Capitol Records!!! I was a founder of the original group with Timmy, Pat Rosalia, and Marty Nelson. Laurel and I used to do a lot of studio work together back then and Janis and I were friends, but didn’t work too much together. They started in maybe 1973 I am thinking? I attribute all my years of clean living for my youthful looks and my great memory! LOL!
3: When you left MT did you pursue a solo career immediately or was it for family reasons (I know I could check all this out but nice to have it from you.)
No, I actually got into doing studio work. New York was the heart of the recording industry and there were amazing projects going on. I recorded with Jaco Pastorius, The Talking Heads, Yoko Ono, Leonard Cohen, Gregg Allman, Roberta Flack, and many, many others.
4: Do you work with a regular band or various musicians according to the gig?
All of the above.  In a perfect world, I’d like to have the same cats play all my gigs, but that only happens when touring. I play a lot with just solo piano - with an amazing musician named Stef Scaggiari. My favorite configuration is rhythm, three horns, accordion, synth for color and a couple of singers.
5: The band on the CD is just perfect and the songs - woo-hoo! Love the title track!  Who wrote that one?
The band on the CD is astounding. My feet never touched the ground during those tracking sessions! Rob Mounsey is singularly the most tuned-in pianist I have ever had the pleasure of knowing!! His feels and melodic sense are impeccable. David Finck, Francois Moutin and Ray Marchica were just over the top, too. Totally delicious.
Bobby Troup wrote the title tune, Nice Girls Don’t Stay for Breakfast, for his wife, Julie London, with co-writer Jerome Leshay. I can just picture her singing it. I love that sultry, velvet-y melody. And I love tunes with a hook and a little humor. Yep, great tune.
6.Did you have a particular artist who inspired you to go in the direction you have taken?
All of them!  It’s not so much an artist as the music itself that is my muse. When I hear a great melody or an amazing groove, I am hooked. Music owns me and I find it irresistible. It just fills every cell of my being with joy!
7: Do want to just add a few things here that may interest lovers of your/our kind of music in the UK?
Oh, gee. Well, I am into a ton of things. I adore animals and would have a hundred if I could! I love to cook and travel. And tennis….love to play  tennis. And I love writing. Writing is a very cool way to find out about yourself. Sometimes the things that come out of my mind are a total surprise to me! I spent much of my youth with horses - riding and hunting and showing. It taught me responsibility, forgiveness and compassion. I am a student of A Course in Miracles and I think that my life is filled with miracles everyday.
8: If you do come to Europe/UK let me know - I’ll be first in line!
Sign me up! I am looking for an agent in the UK and Europe? Any ideas?
Lance, is there a chance that you might review the CD on your site? Thank you so much for all the help and support you give to indie jazz artists, and for your very kind words to me! Hope to meet you in person very soon!
Peace and Pearls,
Erin
May 2011.
Lance.

3 comments :

Liz said...

another example of your encyclopedic music memory and interviewing skills..well done Lance, you bring your subjects to us in many ways, and none better than this.
Liz

Lance said...

Never mind my "interviewing skills" the main person here is Erin who I think is a really fine singer and who deserves wider recognition.
But thanks anyway Liz - I'm flattered.

Liz said...

to be honest Lance, I wasn't familiar with her singing. However I am familiar with your sterling work on this site, hence my praise for you rather than the lady. I shall now make a point of listening to Erin as you are seldom wrong in your judgement!
Liz

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