Bebop Spoken There

Ethan Hawke (starring as Lorenz Hart in Blue Moon): ''Larry [Lorenz] Hart would be so happy that his music and his words and his poetry are still alive.'' - The Northern Echo 27 November 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

18000 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 964 of them this year alone and, so far, 73 this month (Nov. 24).

From This Moment On ...

DECEMBER 2025

Sun 07: Ian Bosworth Quintet @ Chapel, Middlesbrough. 1:00pm. Free. Feat. special guest Donna Hewitt (sax, clarinet).
Sun 07: Finn-Keeble Group @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. £10.00.
Sun 07: Sax Choir @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 07: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 07: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 2:30pm. Free. Trio + Ruth Lambert.
Sun 07: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 07: Jason Isaacs Big Band @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 5:15pm (4:00pm doors). £21.50 (inc. bf).
Sun 07: Paul Skerritt @ 3 Stories, High St. West, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 07: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Support set from Play More Jazz! course participants. Note earlier start.

Mon 08: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 09: Jazz Jam Sandwich @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm

Wed 10: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 10: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 10: Jam Session @ The Tannery, Hexham. 7:00pm. Free.
Wed 10: Mike Lindup Jazz Trio @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £26.50 (inc. bf). Lindup, Yolanda Charles (bass), John Sam (drums).
Wed 10: Bold Big Band @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £12.00.

Thu 11: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: West Coast (cool ) / Wordsearch (cool) Cool Jazz or ‘Cold’, ‘Cool’, ‘Hot’, ‘Warm’ in the title or lyrics.
Thu 11: George Robinson @ Prohibition Bar, Albert Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RU. 7:00pm (doors). £5.42 (inc. bf). Vienna’s Voice charity evening featuring ’15 year old singing sensation the ‘Redcar Crooner’ George Robinson’. Over 35s only.
Thu 11: Paul Skerritt @ Chakh Dhoom, Jesmond, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Indian restaurant. Skerritt w. back tapes.
Thu 11: Ransom Van @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm.
Thu 11: Down for the Count Swing Orchestra @ Middlesbrough Town Hall. 7:30pm. £37.70 (inc. bf). ‘Swing into Xmas’.

Fri 12: Pete Tanton’s Chet Set @ Bishop Auckland Methodist Church. 1:00pm. £8.00.
Fri 12: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 12: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 12: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 12: Milne Glendinning Band @ Northumberland Club, Jesmond, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £15.00. ‘Xmas Soiree’.
Fri 12: A Jazzy Xmas @ St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. 7:30pm. £15.00. Paul Edis (MD, piano); Jo Harrop (vocals); Vasilis Xenopoulos (tenor sax, soprano sax); Matthew Forster (alto sax, clarinet); Sue Ferris (flute, piccolo); Graham Hardy (trumpet, flugelhorn); Jason Holcomb (trombone);Emma Fisk (violin); Andy Champion (double bass); Matt MacKellar (drums). SOLD OUT!
Fri 12: Tony Hadley: Xmas Big Band Tour 2025 @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 7:30pm.
Fri 12: Alexia Gardner @ The New Ship Inn, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea. 8:00pm. Gardner, Alan Law, Jude Murphy, Abbie Finn.
Fri 12: Jive Aces: Swingin’ Xmas Show @ The Witham, Barnard Castle. 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

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Be a Jazz Volunteer (in Birmingham)

(Press release)
Calling all music fans – fancy being a volunteer for one of the world’s largest jazz fests right here on your doorstep?
The organisers of the annual Birmingham Jazz and Blues Festival are on the lookout for hands-on volunteers to help distribute programmes for next month’s musical extravaganza that will see 177 live performances in 78 venues – most of them for free.
Now in its 31st year, the 10-day event, which runs from Friday, July 3 to Sunday, July 12, attracts some of the biggest names in the jazz world with musicians from Australia, Czech Republic, France, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Sweden and the USA alongside top UK talent.
Director Jim Simpson said: “Volunteers play a big role in the festival line-up and we are always on the lookout for spare pairs of hands to helps us distribute the programme.
“This year promises to be one of our most exciting festivals to date with a daily average of 36 hours of free jazz and blues across the whole of the 10 days and we’d like to spread that message as wide as possible.
“If anyone would like to volunteer please get in touch with the festival team it’s a fantastic event that brings together jazz superstars from across the globe and we just want everyone to come along and join the fun.”
International acts making their UK debuts include Stockholm Stompers (Sweden), Hot Jazz Alliance (USA/Australia), The Schwings featuring Laura Budreckyte (Lithuania) and Sarah Lenka (France), while domestic newcomers the much-acclaimed Harpers Ferry, Malaya Blue, Blues Engine and emerging songstress Ella Squirrell join the festival line-up. Returning Euro-favourites include Florence Joelle (France), Pepper & The Jellies (Italy) and Saxitude (Luxembourg).
For full programme details visit www.birminghamjazzfestival.com
The jam-packed programme also includes:
• Music in Surprising Places will take in New Street and Snow Hill stations, Selfridges, Gracechurch Centre, a canal boat, libraries and restaurants
• A pop-up dance hall, at Regency Wharf, off Broad Street and The Dark Horse, Moseley
• Free music workshops for youngsters, with eight instrument sessions at Birmingham Music School ranging from Beginner Guitar to An Interactive History of Hip Hop
• A record fair, talks and photographic exhibitions, plus 19 film screenings, including the Midlands premiere of the Amy Winehouse documentary, Amy, at the Electric Cinema.
• Performances by the Chinese Jitterbug Squad at various venues throughout the festival
• Drum masterclass with Peter York, founder member of the Spencer Davis Group
• Three-day Holiday in Birmingham tribute marking the centenary of blues legend Billie Holiday.
Further information available from Festival Director Jim Simpson:
Birmingham Jazz and Blues Festival, Po Box 944, Birmingham, B16 8UT
Tel: 0121 454 7020 - www.bigbearmusic.com - admin@bigbearmusic.com
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