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Bebop Spoken There

Ambrose Akinmusire: “ I am certainly always aware of what the masses are doing. And when I see too many people going one way, I'm going another way - even when I don't know what's over that way". DownBeat, March, 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

Tue 19: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Tim Johnston.

Wed 20: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 20: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 20: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 21: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 21: Castillo Neuvo Trio + Conor Emery & His ‘Bones Band @ The Grove, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:30pm (7:00pm doors). £10.00. (£7.00. student).
Thu 21: Remi Banklyn + Chris Corcoran Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.50. Chicago blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Thu 21: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Ragtime piano.
Thu 21: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 22: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 22: Nauta + Remy CB + Last Orders @ Hoochie Coochie, Newcastle. 8:30pm (7:30pm doors). Free.
Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. £15.00. Opus 4 Jazz Club.
Fri 22: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 23: Jambone @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 6:30pm. Free (ticketed). End of term performance in the Northern Rock Foundation Hall.
Sat 23: Milne-Glendinning Band @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 23: Red Kites Jazz @ Rowlands Gill Community Centre NE39 1JB. 7:00pm. Tickets: £12.00. (gibsidecommunityfarm@gmail.com). A ‘Build a Barn’ fundraiser. BYOB, tea/coffee available.
Sat 23: New Century Ragtime Orchestra @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £20.00. + bf (book in person at venue - no booking fee!). Featuring pianist Martin Litton.
Sat 23: Pete Tanton’s Cuba Libre @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 24: Musicians Unlimited @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 24: Luis Verde @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Verde (alto sax); Joe Steels (guitar); John Pope (double bass); John Hirst (drums). Alto sax brilliance!
Sun 24: Elsie Franklin @ The Globe, Newcastle. 3:00pm. £10.00. Country blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Sun 24: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay Metro Station. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: Las Vegas Live with the Rat Pack @ The Forum, Billingham.
Sun 24: Ian Millar & Dominic Spencer @ Otterburn Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00.
Sun 24: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Note start time - 7:00pm.
Sun 24: Bold Big Band @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 25: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 25: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Sunday, September 27, 2015

CD Review: Matthew Halsall & the Gondwana Orchestra – Into Forever

(Review by Russell)
Trumpeter Matthew Halsall set up his own record label as a means of getting his music heard and with any luck to attract interest from established major companies. That was seven or eight years ago. He has gone on to release five critically acclaimed albums, all on Gondwana Records. Into Forever is Halsall’s latest CD featuring several of his long term collaborators and two new, most welcome, voices.
Buddhism and transcendental meditation are key elements in Matthew Halsall’s life and music. He has travelled widely, visiting and studying in the Far East. His music extends beyond any notional jazz boundaries embracing non-Western forms. Into Forever is the first of Halsall’s albums to feature vocals. Working with lyricists/vocalists has been one of his ambitions and in being introduced to the work of Josephine Oniyama, trumpeter/ composer/ arranger/ label boss Halsall knew the time was right to embark on this project.
Eleven tracks, on which the leader’s trumpet is heard on two tracks only, Into Forever is beautifully recorded; bassist Gavin Barras underpins much of the music, unobtrusive yet anchoring the ensemble, and the Cinematic Orchestra’s drummer Luke Flowers finds the right sound working alongside the album’s string section. Barras’ bass leads off many of the tunes with Flowers right there. As I Walk, one of several numbers featuring Oniyama, includes the lyric: …a world of tranquility. This, perhaps, exemplifies the ethos and vibe. Halsall’s vision isn’t about the grandstanding soloist backed by a rhythm section. All of the tracks coalesce, presenting a broader canvas; contemplation, conversation, stillness. Oniyama’s intoned vocals on Badder Weather suggest a soul voice (of which we should hear more) as pianist Taz Modi takes a solo. The string section – viola and violin, cello, harp and koto – isn’t a bolt-on addition, it is integral to the album’s sound. The title track – Into Forever – is the first of two on which Halsall is heard playing trumpet as a member of the ensemble. The collective triumphs over the individual ego on this new CD. It will be released later this week – Friday October 2 – and Halsall and his accomplished troupe have a number of gigs lined-up starting on October 1 at the Capstone Theatre, Liverpool, on home-town turf at St Peter’s Church, Manchester (23) and a London show at Union Chapel (29) with other dates in between.
Russell
Into Forever  by Matthew Halsall & the GondwanaOrchestra (Gondwana Records CD013) is released on October 1. It will also be available on vinyl and as a download.                       
Matthew Halsall (trumpet), Lisa Mallett (flute), Rachael Gladwin (harp), Keiko Kitamura (koto), Taz Modi (piano), Gavin Barras (double bass), Luke Flowers (drums), Sam Bell (percussion), Chris Cruiks (percussion), Margit Van Der Zwan (cello), Natalie Purton (viola & violin), John Purton (violin), Jote Osahn (violin), Ollie Izod (violin), Josephine Oniyama (vocals) & Bryony Jarman-Pinto (vocals)

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