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Bebop Spoken There

Trevor Mires: ''My mum is a Dean Martin fan: I'm not, so I would grab my skateboard and get out of the house whenever I heard "Everybody Loves Somebody, Sometime." ". (Jazzwise, April 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

17957 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 278 of them this year alone and, so far, 34 this month (April 14).

From This Moment On ...

April 2025.

Mon 14: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 14: Zoë Gilby Quintet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 15: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Abbie Finn.

Wed 16: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 16: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 16: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. CANCELLED!

Thu 17: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: Only Six Standards.
Thu 17: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

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: Jason Isaacs @ St. James’ STACK, Newcastle. 1:00-2:45pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Fri 18: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Seaburn. 3:30-5:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.

Fri 18: Alexia Gardner @ Fika Gallery, Oldgate, Morpeth NE61 1LT. 7:00pm. Trio (Gardner, Alan Law, Jude Murphy).RESCHEDULED FOR JUNE 13

Fri 18: Sarah Jane Morris & Tony Remy: The Sisterhood @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £25.00.

Sat 19: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 1:00-3:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Sat 19: Joseph Carville Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 19: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 20: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 20: Salty Dog @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 20: Spilt Milk @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Sun 20: Tweed River Jazz Band @ The Barrels Ale House, Berwick-upon-Tweed. 7:00pm. Free.
Sun 20: C.A.L.I.E @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

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

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Diachronix at the Jazz Cafe, November 29

Gabrielle Heller (vocals, electronics, percussion); Steve Glendinning (guitar)
(Review by Ann Alex/photo by Mike Tilley).
There was a full house for this unusual gig from Gabi and Steve, including people from Germany and Brazil.  The material covered jazz standards, Gabi originals in cabaret style, a bit of blues, and numbers written by Sting, Billie Holiday, and others.  The general theme was ‘The City’, well illustrated by adventurous use of electronics, with sirens and people rushing about.  And the percussion made an effective appearance even in the first song, about not being able to get out of the city, when Gabi made a defiant ‘chock, chock’ sound by hitting a bar with a stick.  (What is this called,  BSH readers?)   Steve showed his considerable talents throughout the whole set, many long solos, up and down scales, chords galore, guitar wizardry, but always fitting to the song being sung.
We had Gabi’s song Wallflower; then a song about early life before cities, with made-up language which sounded like ‘skee ya dum day’, very imaginative; Sting’s Hole In My Life with a scat refrain; a softer-voiced Angel Eyes with an exquisite guitar solo; Holiday’s Tell Me More And More And Then Some in an upbeat version; songs dedicated to the boat people, with an African style introduction, Kurt Weill’s My Ship, merged with a Latin bossa novarish song Little Boat, and to round off the first set, a blues, Sail On.
The second set opened with a song by Queen Dead On Time, with another good guitar solo to suit travelling in a city; then Gabi read excerpts from a poem Electricity (I’m not sure if this works at a jazz gig); a lovely version of the mythical Nature Boy followed; then came I Will Say Goodbye; True Love, written by Gabi and her husband; Tom Waits’ song about putting on a performance, with interesting use of a walkie talkie microphone. Kurt Weill’s Speak Low was the last song I heard properly as the Metro called me home, so I left to the sounds of Billie Holiday’s Don’t Explain.
I enjoyed this gig immensely, but I wonder if the sound levels needed some adjustment as Gabi’s voice was very loud on some songs, giving a very in-your-face effect.  Just a thought and I don’t know if other people noticed this.
Ann Alex

1 comment :

Lance said...

The "Chock Chock" was either claves or castanets or a combination of both!
And yes, particularly down front the sound level did seem high.

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