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.

Thursday, April 23, 2015

I’ll Tick That Jazz Beer (Hic!)

(Ramblings by Russell).
Last week’s annual Newcastle Beer and Cider Festival (the 39th!) was, as ever, a winner. Hundreds of beers to sup, thousands of beer drinkers doing exactly that. A silly hat event, a chill-out lounge, live music and…beer, beer and more beer.
Gentleman’s Nectar (4.2%) the first to be ‘ticked-off’. Brewed by Box Social Brewing in Newburn, the hoppy ‘West Coast’ pale beer comes from the same micro that has brewed Smoove and Turrell Transatlantic Pale Ale (4.2%). S & T and the boys visited the brew- house to sample the trial batch and gave it their seal of approval. The beer will be on sale at the Gateshead Beer Festival (May 1 – 3) and to mark the occasion Smoove and Turrell will be gigging at the event!
The Big Lamp Brewery, just along the road from Box Social in Newburn, is an all-time favourite. Big Lamp’s festival beer – Brit Beer (4.6%) – couldn’t be passed-by. V Good! Corncrake (4.2%) had to be sampled simply because it had travelled a distance (Orkney). It would have been rude to ignore it! At 4.4% Northern Line Stout courtesy of Cameron’s restored a tenuous jazz link to the arduous task of trying several of the many beers on offer. Happily the jazz theme was maintained by Midnight Bell (4.8%), a premium dark mild from Leeds Brewery. Thanks (hic!) to Mr P Hamilton and Ms Z Gilby for providing the flash of inspiration! Time was getting on, the Jazz Genie deserted, try one more. The festival’s Battle of the Beers competition produced a worthy winner in Quayside Porter (5.7%) from the Hop and Cleaver boys down by the Tyne. Time (hic!) to go, there was a beer gig, sorry (hic!), jazz gig to go to!          
Russell.


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