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Bebop Spoken There

Béla Fleck: “ And that's the great thing about live performances, you take people on a journey. It doesn't have to be like something else they've heard. It's not supposed to be". DownBeat, April, 2024.

The Things They Say!

Hudson Music: Lance's "Bebop Spoken Here" is one of the heaviest and most influential jazz blogs in the UK.

Rupert Burley (Dynamic Agency): "BSH just goes from strength to strength".

'606' Club: "A toast to Lance Liddle of the terrific jazz blog 'Bebop Spoken Here'"

The Strictly Smokin' Big Band included Be Bop Spoken Here (sic) in their 5 Favourite Jazz Blogs.

Ann Braithwaite (Braithwaite & Katz Communications) You’re the BEST!

Holly Cooper, Mouthpiece Music: "Lance writes pull quotes like no one else!"

Simon Spillett: A lovely review from the dean of jazz bloggers, Lance Liddle...

Josh Weir: I love the writing on bebop spoken here... I think the work you are doing is amazing.

Postage

16287 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 169 of them this year alone and, so far, 41 this month (Mar 18).

From This Moment On ...

March

Thu 28: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 28: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Gateshead Central Library, Gateshead. 2:30pm.
Thu 28: Richard Herdman Quartet @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Thu 28: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Guests: Josh Bentham (alto sax); Alan Marshall (tenor sax); Neil Brodie (trumpet); Adrian Beadnell (bass); Graham Thompson (keys); Steve Hunter (drums).

Fri 29: FILM: Soul @ The Forum Cinema, Hexham. 12:30pm. Jazz-themed film animation.
Fri 29: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 29: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 29: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 29: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 6:00pm. Free. POSTPONED!
Fri 29: Thundercat @ Newcastle City Hall.
Fri 29: John Logan @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 30: Papa G’s Troves @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 30: Pete Tanton’s Cuba Libre @ Whitley Bay Library, York Road, Whitley Bay. 8:00pm.

Sun 31: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay Metro Station. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 31: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, Union Quay, North Shields NE30 1HJ. 3:00pm. Free. Lambert, Alan Law & Paul Grainger.
Sun 31: Sid Jacobs & Tom Remon @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. USA/London jazz guitar duo.
Sun 31: Bellavana @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

April
Mon 01: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 01: Ray Stubbs R&B All Stars @ Billy Bootlegger’s, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 3:00pm. Free.

Tue 02: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Dean Stockdale, Paul Grainger, Abbie Finn.

Wed 03: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 03: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 03: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

CD Review: Jakob Bro – Gefion

Jakob Bro (guitar); Thomas Morgan (double bass); Jon Christensen (drums)
(Review by Hugh).
Jakob Bro first recorded for ECM with Paul Motian in 2004 and subsequently with Tomasz Stanko in 2009.  This recording is Bro's debut as bandleader.  The album is named after the Norse goddess associated with ploughing, prophesy and premonition – although this reviewer was not entirely sure what he was going to hear!
Gefion was recorded in Oslo in November 2013 and produced by Manfred Eicher.  The trio comprises Bro on guitar with US bassist Thomas Morgan and Norwegian drummer Jon Christensen.  This skeletal format allows all three musicians to contribute to the final result on equal terms.
There are eight tracks on the album, commencing with the title track, Gefion.  A quiet beginning of solo guitar is built on by Christensen's subtle and sensitive percussion and finally the trio is completed by Morgan's acoustic bass.   The mood engendered is one of contemplation, with delicate interplay between the three musicians.
Copenhagen takes up the tempo a bit, but still retains the Nordic cool.  We hear a bit more of the bass as melodic instrument here and this continues in And They All Came Marching Out Of The Woods, which is introduced and underpinned throughout by Morgan's repeating theme.
White takes the tempo down again, the long drawn out guitar chords from Bro carefully interspersed by Morgan's bass, and the whole caressed by Christensen's almost intangible brushwork.   Lyskaster is an atmospheric solo guitar piece by Bro.  Airport poem continues   the minimalist approach, but with the return of Bro's trio companions. 
A fuller sound returns in Oktober, the mood is still contemplative and slightly mysterious (as one imagines October in Norway might be).  Ending does what it says on the tin and brings the CD to a close.
This CD is a pleasure to listen to, and one I will probably come back to.  It retains its laid back, contemplative feel throughout.  The musicianship of all three members of the trio is beyond doubt and this comes through in the clarity with which one can make out the individual contributions in the trio format. 
Hugh.
Gefion was released in the UK on 9 February 2015 by ECM (Catalogue Number 470 9139)

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