Michael Lamb, Darren Owen, Gordon Marshall, Ken DeVere (tpts); Gareth Weaver, Chris Gurgi-Smith, Michael Fletcher (tmb); Peter Morgan (bs. tmb/MD); Alan Marshall (alt/sop/clt/fl), Kim Webb (alt/clt), Richie Emmerson (ten), Peter Hepplewhite (ten); Sue Ferris (bar); Gavin Smith (pno); Roy Willis (gtr); Alan Smith (bs); Barry Black (dms); Ruth Lambert (vcl).
Quite a few deps and unfamiliar faces tonight. Long time since I heard Barry Black - still a very fine drummer. Richie Emmerson blew excellent tenor whilst regular tenor player Alan Marshall proved equally adept on alto. Michael Lamb, moonlighting from the Strictly Smokin' Big Band took care of the jazz trumpet pad. Ruth was, quite simply, Ruth. Just as Ella was 'Ella' and Billie was 'Billie'.
Because of the influx of 'foreigners' (sounds like the UKIP manifesto) the band wasn't, perhaps, as tight as normal but quite often a degree of looseness helps a band to swing more and there were no complaints on that score - how could there be with Barry behind the kit?
Love For Sale kicked things off - tell me, is there a big band that doesn't have the classic Buddy Rich version in the pad? Later, we had Buddy's West Side Story Medley. Gordon Goodwin was in there but no Sammy Nestico. A couple of Bob Florence's - Carmelo's By the Freeway being particularly outstanding. Maybe one day they'll pick up on Flo's Trash Can City.
Bill Brittain - I don't know if that is the correct spelling, I should have asked him as he was sitting in the row behind me - has now retired. His replacement, Gavin Smith (if your name is Smith or Marshall you stand a fair chance of getting on this band), featured on Don't Get Around Much Any More.
Ruth sang Come Fly With Me, Over the Rainbow (inc. verse), Embraceable You, I Get a Kick Out of You, Teach Me Tonight, Lady is a Tramp, At Last, Get Happy and, for an encore, Mack the Knife.
During the interval I high-tailed over to the Steamboat for a pint and a few words with a girl named Sue and Richie Emmerson.
The Way You Look Tonight, which opened the second set, was one of the numbers that reminded me of the close attention this band gives to detail and dynamics.
Don't wait till May to catch them in Spennymoor - see the postscript below.
A lift home from Miles (Watson) rounded off a perfect evening. Thank you Miles.
Lance.
PS: Big band fans, you can hear the CHBB for free at an open rehearsal on the first Tuesday of each month at the New Crown Hotel, Mowbray Rd., South Shields. As I say, it's free and kicks off about 7.30pm.
This Sunday at Hoochie Coochie the Strictly Smokin' Big Band ignite at 5pm and, earlier, at the Park Inn, Hartlepool, the Musicians Unlimited Big Band preach the gospel - doors 12 noon.
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