Total Pageviews

Bebop Spoken There

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

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

17641 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 915 of them this year alone and, so far, 60 this month (Dec. 26).

From This Moment On ...

December

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. CANCELLED!
Mon 30: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 4:00-6:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.

Tue 31: Jason Isaacs @ Seaburn STACK, Seaburn. 12 noon-2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Tue 31: Lapwing Trio @ Wallington (National Trust), Cambo, Morpeth NE61 4AR. 12 noon & 2:00pm. Admission to site £19.00.
Tue 31: Jason Isaacs @ St. James’ STACK, Newcastle. 3:30-5:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Tue 31: Archie Brown & Friends @ Tyne Bar, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 4:00-8:00pm. Free.
Tue 31: Jan Spencelayh Quartet @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 5:00-9:00pm. A NYE ‘Dinner-Dance’ event. £42.99. Featuring special guest Mick Donnelly.
Tue 31: Jack Logan @ The Robin Hood Inn, East Wallhouses NE18 0LL. Tel: 01434 672549. 7:00pm. £59.95. ‘New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner’. Rat Pack etc.

January 2025

Wed 01: Revolutionaires @ The Old Barrel (Flatties), Boldon Colliery. 3:30pm. Free. Excellent rhythm & blues.

Thu 02: ???

Fri 03: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 03: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 03: John Gregory @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Country blues guitar.

Sat 04: Rivkala @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 04: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £5.00. Xmas party (rescheduled from early December).

Sun 05: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 05: Salty Dog @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Americana, jazz & blues.

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

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

CD Review: Chris McNulty - The Song That Sings You Here.


Chris McNulty – voice; Ugonna Okegwo – bass; Marcus Gilmore – drums; Paul Bollenback – guitars; Andrei Kondokov – piano; Graham Wood – piano & Rhodes; Igor Butman – tenor & soprano sax; Anita Wardell – guest vocals.
(Review by Debra Milne)
Chris McNulty is a New York based jazz singer, who has established her reputation over the past decade or so playing in the US, Australia and Europe. The album was recorded with her regular group of international musicians from New York, Australia and Russia

The selection of material and the restrained backing evoke an intimate jazz club, with nicely swinging tunes such as How Little We Know, and some beautifully sung ballads, in particular Horace Silver’s Lonely Woman. The 1930s song The Lamp Is Low is also well done, and builds from a vamp with guitar, piano and vocal into a lively Latin number, with the addition of British born/Australia raised singer Anita Wardell. McNulty’s  vocals have the most attitude,  and some great rhythmic scatting, in the Fats Waller song, Jitterbug Waltz, followed in a similar vein by solos from Igor Butman on tenor sax and Paul Bollenback on guitar. The most unusual track is Song for Marta; it has an Eastern European feel, and was originally composed when McNulty was a teenager.  She recorded the vocal outdoors in Pennsylvania, on a glorious spring day – the birdsong and thunder are genuine.  An exquisite piano accompaniment by Graham Wood was added later.  The sessions for this album were recorded in just one day, and as a result, it has succeeded in conveying the feel of a live performance by this accomplished singer, with a distinctive jazz voice.
Debra Milne.

1 comment :

Hil said...

I checked out her website and really liked what I heard. On another album Chris does a good version of a Burt Bacharach/Hal David all-time favourite of mine "Make it easy on yourself"

Blog Archive