Bebop Spoken There

Gary Bartz: ''Music is nature's gift to man. It's the only religion. We're living in a terrible era, but what a beautiful thing music is. Look how it brings us together like religion is supposed to; and with no language barriers.'' (Jazzwise 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

18897 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 761 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Sept. 11.) 40.

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

September.

Thu 17: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 17: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 17: Front Porch Blues @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 17: Amphitrio @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £7.00. Andrei Petrache (piano); Mike Alex (double bass); Philip Goron (drums).
Thu 17: Miles 100 @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00., £10.00., £7.00. Jack Courtney (trumpet); Sue Ferris (tenor sax); Tom Atkinson (guitar); Alan Law (piano); Deon Krishnan (bass); Jeff Armstrong (drums). A night of Miles Davis.
Thu 24: 58 Jazz Collective @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Stranton, Hartlepool. 8:00pm. Free. .

Fri 18: Danny Lownes’ Hot Club @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 18: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 18: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 18: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 18: Mark Williams Trio @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm. Old Black Cat Jazz Club.
Fri 18: Emma Fisk’s Hot Club du Nord @ St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. 7:30pm. £10.00., £5.00. student.
Fri 18: Rivkala + Beccy Sloan @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £10.00.

Sat 19: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. All welcome.
Sat 19: Sing Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00-5:00pm. £27.50. Tutor: Alexia Gardner: Nina Simone. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 19: Ray Stubbs’ R&B All Stars @ Billy Bootleggers, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free.

Sat 19: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. All welcome.

Sun 20: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 20: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 20: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.

Mon 21: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 21: Lewis Watson Quartet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. Coltrane centenary.

Tue 22: ???

Wed 23: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 23: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 23: Lewis Watson Quartet @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 7:30pm. A John Coltrane Centenary Concert (b. 23. 09. 1926). SOLD OUT!
Wed 23: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thursday, October 04, 2012

CD Review: Tom Gibbs - Fear of Flying.


Tom Gibbs (pno); Will Vinson (alt/sop); Euan Burton (bs); James Maddren (dms).
Gibbs, an Englishman living in Glasgow, may well have a fear of flying but he has no such qualms when at the keyboard - he soars! Likewise Vinson, an Englishman living in New York also takes to the sky with apparent ease floating above the trio like a graceful swallow that occasionally morphs into a bird of prey.
Add 'first callers', Maddren and Burton and you have the recipe for a very listenable quartet.
The nine tracks are all originals by Gibbs and give him a lot of cred on Composer Street. His modus operandi, he says, is to "Start off with some chords that attract me, then I'm playing away and singing at the piano until a tune sticks."
Well these tunes certainly stuck and not just with himself but this listener too. Some great titles - Daily Brad, Tiny Leaps and The Smile That Never Forgets are my favourites and I have to say the music lives up to the titles!
The most fascinating track though is Farming Stock. Gibbs, it would appear, attempted to play a gut-bucket twelve-bar backwards eventually sending the song in the direction of a mangled Scottish reel - love it particularly for Vinson's cool sounding alto! Vinson, I think is inspired by Gibbs' compositions who in turn is inspired to play at the top of his game by the saxman. Burton's bass-lines slot in perfectly as indeed they did on his own album Occurrences which also has Vinson and Maddren on the team. In fact these days it's difficult to avoid the outstanding percussionist - it seems everybody wants him!  
The Quartet take to the road in November:
Nov. 22: Aberdeen The Blue Lamp.
Nov. 24: Edinburgh - House Concerts at 42 Royal Park Tce.
Nov. 25: Newcastle - Splinter @ The Bridge.
Nov. 26: Leeds - Sela Bar.
Nov. 27: Cardiff - Dempsey's.
Nov. 28: London - 606 Club. - The official Launch.
Nov. 29: Poole - Soundcellar @ The blue Boar..
Tom Gibbs - Fear of Flying is released October 15 on Whirlwind Recordings WR4626.
Lance.
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