Bebop Spoken There

Ludovic Beier (Django Festival Allstars): ''Manouche means 'free man,' and gypsies have been travelers since they migrated west from India to Europe.'' (DownBeat March, 2026)

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

18383 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 247 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Mar. 17 ), 57

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

From This Moment On

March

Mon 30: Gerry Richardson Quartet @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm.
Mon 30: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 31: Bede Trio @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Albert Hills Wright (alto sax); Finn Carter (piano); Michael Dunlop (double bass).

April

Wed 01: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 01: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 01: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 02: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00. Subject: Musicians playing classical & orchestral music.
Thu 02: The Noel Dennis Band @ Prohibition Bar, Albert Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RU. 7:00pm (doors). £10.84. Quartet plus special guest Zoë Gilby. Over 21s only.
Thu 02: Renegade Brass Band @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors).
Thu 02: Shalala @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £7.00. adv..
Thu 02: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Saturday, February 28, 2015

The Lindsay Hannon Plus @ Jazz Café - Feb 27.

Lindsay Hannon (vcl); James Harrison (pno); John Pope (bs); Tom Chapman (dms).
(Review by Lance/photo by Mike Tilley).
A cracking gig! Lindsay sounded good - don't let her tell you otherwise! Drawing mainly from her superb album - The Spy - she displayed the qualities that justify her position as being among the forefront of the select group of illustrious jazz singers around town.
We knew the music from previous gigs and, of course, the CD. 
As it happens, my favourite number from the gig isn't on the CD - Why Try to Change me Now? nor did she sing my favourite number from the CD on the gig - The End of a Love Affair!
Minor quibbles - what she did sing was enthralling, drawing from the contemporary song books of The Doors (The Spy); A Tom Waits' number; a lot of Joni Mitchell; Gassers such as Love Me or Leave Me, So Long Big Time and What a Little Moonlight Can Do; Liz Corney's beautiful Heather Forever and Billy Bragg (The Saturday Boy) 
But I never made the first team,
I just made the first team laugh
And she never came to the phone
She was always in the bath
I had to look in the dictionary
To find out the meaning of unrequited
While she was giving herself for free
At a party to which I was never invited 

Who, in their lifetime, hasn't related to that lyric?!
The Plus were A+ tonight. James, ebullient as ever, John, a tower of strength and Tom merely tremendous.
And Lindsay?
Catch her at Ashington Jazz Club this coming Wednesday (March 4) and find out for yourself!
Lance.

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