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Bebop Spoken There

Steve Coleman: ''If you don't keep learning, your mind slows down. Use it or lose it''. (DownBeat, January 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

17733 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 53 of them this year alone and, so far, 53 this month (Jan. 20).

From This Moment On ...

January 2025

Sat 25: Boys of Brass @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 3:30-5:30pm. Free.
Sat 25: New '58 Jazz Collective @ Jackson's Wharf, Hartlepool. 6:30pm (doors). Free. A Burns' Night event. Jazz, swing, funk, soul, blues etc.
Sat 25: Edison Herbert Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 25: Red Kites Jazz @ Parish Hall, St Barnabas’ Church, Rowlands Gill. 7:30pm. £10.00. BYOB (tea & coffee available), raffle. Proceeds to St Barnabas’ Church. Performance feat. Shayo (vocals).
Sat 25: Jack & Jay’s Songbook @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 26: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Graham Hardy Eclectic Quartet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm.
Sun 26: Ruth Lambert Trio @ The Juke Shed, Union Quay, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Jazz Jam Sandwich! @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 26: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Barrels Ale House, Berwick-upon-Tweed. 7:30pm. Free.
Sun 26: Gratkowski, Tramontana, Beresford, Affifi @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00. JNE.
Sun 26: Jazz Jam @ Fabio’s, Saddler St., Durham. 8:00pm. Free. A Durham University Jazz Society promotion. All welcome.

Mon 27: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 27: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Tue 28: ???

Wed 29: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 29: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 29: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).

Thu 30: Matters Unknown (aka Jonathan Enser, Nubiyan Twist) + support TBA @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 8:00pm (7:00pm doors). £12.22 (gig & food); £9:04 (gig only).
Thu 30: Soznak @ The Mill Tavern, Hebburn. 8:00pm. Free.
Thu 30: Struggle Buggy @ Harbour View, Roker, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Rhythm & blues.

Fri 31: Alan Barnes Quartet @ The Old Library, Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland. 12 noon-2:00pm (two sets). £12.00. admission (card or cash at the door). Barnes (alto sax, baritone sax, clarinet); Alan Law (piano); Mick Shoulder (double bass); Tim Johnston (drums). Note change of venue, no longer at Mrs M’s as advertised, the concert will be in the Old Library (Bishop Auckland Jazz’s regular venue). Important! It’s a ‘BYOB’ arrangement - ie bring your own booze (and/or tea, coffee, soft drinks).
Fri 31: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 31: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 31: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 31: Café Orkestar @ Café Under the Spire, Gateshead. 6:00pm. ‘Klezmer, Gypsy Jazz, Balkan & More!’.
Fri 31: Nothing in Rambling @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £10.00. + bf. Country blues duo.
Fri 31 Zoë Gilby Quartet @ Wylam Institute. 7:30pm (7:00pm doors). £15.00. + £1.50. bf.
Fri 31: Creakin’ Bones & the Sunday Dinners @ White Room, Stanley. 7:45pm. £10.00 + bf. Jazz, blues , jump jive, rock ‘n’ roll.
Fri 31: Alan Barnes Quartet @ The Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. £15.00 Barnes (alto sax, baritone sax, clarinet); Alan Law (piano); Mick Shoulder (double bass); Tim Johnston (drums).
Fri 31: SwanNek + Rivkala @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 8:00pm. SwanNek’s new single launch gig. Pilgrim, formerly Hoochie Coochie.

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

Monday, November 24, 2014

Vasilis Xenopoulos w. Paul Edis Trio & Black Bull Blaydon. November 23

Vasilis Xenopoulos (ten); Paul Edis (pno); Andy Champion (bs); Adam Sinclair (dms) + Zoe Gilby (vcl).
(Review by Lance/photos by Jerry).
In his review of Friday's gig by the same line-up at Darlington, Russell just about covered all the bases. The only thing he got wrong was that they would be queuing round the block for this one. They weren't, but nor were there many empty seats. David Gosling, who presented a concert by Edis and Xenopoulos at Lanercost Priory on Saturday night, described that duo gig as "musically the best ever played there" so the portents for tonight were good. 
The participants didn't disappoint.

I'll Close my Eyes - I did and it was as if I was floating on a cloud of sound - Vasy get's as good a tone on tenor as anyone I've heard since time immemorial, and he has the ideas to match. No hesitancy, just logical progressions. Edis too is in that league - the block chords, the dazzling runs, the sympathetic 'comping, the fluent command of the keyboard - the stuff that many pianists can only dream about (or practice 24/7!) Andy Champion - was a bass player ever more appropriately named? Fullness of sound, dexterity of finger-work, it's all there. Adam Sinclair - light and shade are surely his middle names. The only drummer I know who can cause a musical volcano to erupt without batting an eyelid!
All these elements came together on In Walked Bud. This featured a tenor solo of Dexter Gordon-like propinquity. The effortless flow, the logical, seamless, insertion of quotes that invariably bring a knowing, superior, smile to those who recognise a couple of bars from Tea For Two!
Manteca - with its rhapsodic middle 8 - Mo' Better Blues and Johnny Mandel's A Time For Love which had a virtuoso-like tenor cadenza leading us to Four Brothers.
This is well named as the four guys on stage played like Siamese quads so well did they gel.
Four Brothers is one of the numbers on Vasy's Wind Machine CD - reviewed here in April after a knock-out concert at The Bridge Hotel. If you didn't get it then - get it now!
Blaydon Jazz Club Bossman Roly was smiling. He related how, 5 years back, he walked up the stairs of the Side Café down on the Quayside and heard this fantastic tenor sound - Vasy. (Actually Roly it was May 5, 2008 - see review). Since then, Roly has booked the tenor player to play at Blaydon on several occasions and tonight certainly maintained the standard of previous visits.
Second set and I got back from the bar just in time for Just in Time, followed by the wailingest Parker's Mood, and a Vasy original that showcased Adam Sinclair.
Next up a surprise guest, or perhaps not such a surprise seeing as how her hubby was on bass, Zoë Gilby gave a stunning rendition of It Never Entered My Mind - so stunning I even went to the trouble of putting the diaeresis over the e! The song was a request from evergreen Blaydon supporter Norma.
As the evening drew to a close with a blistering Cherokee and a funky Groove Merchant the uppermost thought was; "when are you coming back?"
Lance.

2 comments :

JC said...

Although I know Blaydon Jazz Club has been running for many years, this gig was my first visit and I quickly realised that I've been missing out on a very good location for jazz. The room is considerably better than many pub venues with a nice big stage and a small bar area so that the emphasis is on the music, which is as it should be. Also, the vast majority of the seats have an excellent view of the stage (however, as befits a 'blow-in' arriving late, I got the one place where I could only see three of the musicians and if I hadn't already known that the unflappable Adam Sinclair was on drums, I would have thought there were at least a couple of guys whipping up a storm). As has been described already by Lance and Russell the music was exceptional with four terrific musicians who work really well together and a nice extra was Zoe Gilby joining in from the audience for one song (not something seen very much nowadays outside jam sessions). The performance was very well received by the attentive audience who were welcoming and engaged me in friendly conversation about the club after the session. All in all an excellent night out and well worth the travel. Now that I've got the spirit of adventure.....next stop, Darlington.
JC

Lance said...

JC - Darlington should be no problem for a Globetrotter such as yourself! Talking about Globes, as we are, If you are in our part of the hemisphere next week, I recommend (highly) Samual Eagles Quartet at the Globe, Newcastle next Wednesday (Dec. 3)

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