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Bebop Spoken There

John McLaughlin: '' A Love Supreme coincided with my search for meaning in life". (DownBeat, March 2025).

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

17873 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 194 of them this year alone and, so far, 41 this month (March 14).

From This Moment On ...

MARCH 2025.

Wed 19: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 19: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 19: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 20: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, Holystone. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 20: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: Nicknames.
Thu 20: Terri Green Experience @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £15.90.
Thu 20: King Bees @ The Cumberland Arms, Byker, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). Superb blues band.
Thu 20: Lindsay Hannon Trio @ The Harbour View, Roker, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Hannon’s ‘Tom Waits for No Man’ set.
Thu 20: Ray Stubbs R&B All Stars @ Mill Tavern, Hebburn. 8:30pm. Free.

Fri 21: Paul Skerritt @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT!
Fri 21: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 21: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 21: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 21: Giles Strong Quartet @ 1719, Hendon, Sunderland. 7:30pm. CANCELLED!
Fri 21: New Century Ragtime Orchestra @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Featuring special guest Martin Litton (piano).

Sat 22: Jason Isaacs @ St. James’ STACK, Newcastle. 12:30-2:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Sat 22: Jason Isaacs @ Seaburn STACK, Seaburn. 3:30pm-5:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Sat 22: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 22: Swamp Stomp String Band @ The White Room, Stanley. 7:45pm.
Sat 22: Rivkala @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Country blues guitar & vocals.

Sun 23: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 23: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: Mississippi MacDonald @ Georgian Theatre, Stockton. 3:00pm. Blues.
Sun 23: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Barrels Ale House, Berwick. 7:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: The Great Deceivers @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Tom Atkinson & co play King Crimson (1969-1974). Atkinson (guitar); Josh Bentham (alto sax); Stu Dawson (bass); Jeff Armstrong (drums).

Mon 24: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 24: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Tue 25: Fred Wesley & the New JB’s @ The Cluny. 7:30pm (doors). £27.50. POSTPONED! New date Wednesday 26 November.

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

Friday, March 28, 2014

CD Review: Basin Street Brawlers - It's Tight Like That

Pete Horsfall (tpt/vcl); Ewan Bleach (clt/sax); Malcolm Earle-Smith (tmb); Colin Good (pno); Martin Wheatley (gtr/bjo); Dave O'Brien (bs); Mez Clough (dms).
(Review by Lance).
A breath of fresh air might seem to be a strange description of a band playing music from the early part of the last century but after so many 'boundary bursting' CDs of angry young men seeking to extend the jazz horizons it's nice to wallow in the ambience of good tunes played by young(ish) musicians with a melodic flare to their improvisations.
Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against progress and I appreciate the need for young musicians to look to the future. However, it isn't always a journey I want to take with them.
The Basin Street Brawlers do their battling with velvet gloves rather than bare knuckles pickled in vinegar which makes for a relaxed atmosphere. Influenced by bands such as the Louis Armstrong All-Stars, Eddie Condon, Jack Teagarden and Alex Welsh they remind us of that golden era. Close your eyes and you could be in Jimmy Ryan's, Eddie Condon's or even Cook's Ferry Inn.
I wouldn't be so bold as to make comparisions with the originals - neither would the band I'm sure - but, nevertheless, this is still a fine disc well capable of standing on its own 14 feet. 
Tracks: If Dreams Come True; Just One of Those Things; If Only You Knew; All My Life; How am I to Know; Stars Fell on Alabama; Once in While; It's Tight Like That and Swing That Music.
The disc starts and ends (almost) with A Smoooth One interspersed with introductory remarks by one Natty Bo. There's also a delightful bonus track in the form of Strayhorn's Lotus Blossom. If Only You Knew is an original by Horsfall well worthy of entering 'The Repertoire'.
The Brawlers can be heard in London at Wilton's Music Hall, The Nightjar and The Blues Kitchen. there are also a couple of CD Launch Parties set up:-
May 15: The Royal Albert Hall's Elgar Room.
June 8: London Swing Festival @ Bishopgate Institute, Liverpool Street.
Basin Street Brawlers - It's Tight Like That is a limited edition CD with only 500 available.
Lance.
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