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Bebop Spoken There

Stan Woodward: ''We're part of the British jazz scene, but we don't play London jazz. We play Newcastle jazz. The Knats album represents many things, but most importantly that Newcastle isn't overlooked". (DownBeat, April 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

17923 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 244 of them this year alone and, so far, 91 this month (March 31).

From This Moment On ...

MARCH 2025.

Wed 02: Lauren Bush: The Jazz Singer’s Toolkit @ The Pele, Corbridge. 1:00-4:00pm. Vocalist Lauren Bush with pianist Jamil Sheriff presents a jazz singing workshop. £40.00. (inc. evening concert, see below). Registration required for workshop: www.laurenbushjazz.com. All ability levels welcome.
Wed 02: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 02: Jason Isaacs @ St. James’ STACK, Newcastle. 2:30-4:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Wed 02: Lauren Bush & Jamil Sheriff @ The Pele, Corbridge. 7:00-9:00pm. £10.00. Concert performance. Tickets: www.laurenbushjazz.com.
Wed 02: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 02: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. CANCELLED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE! See website for updates: www.theglobenewcastle.bar.

Thu 03: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: Women in Jazz.
Thu 03: Eva Fox & the Jazz Guys @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Thu 03: New ’58 Jazz Collective @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Free. A Tees Hot Club promotion. First Thursday in the month.

Fri 04: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 04: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 04: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 04: Ruth Lambert Quartet @ Saltburn Community Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00.
Fri 04: Tom McGuire & the Brassholes @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £20.00.
Fri 04: Nicolas Meier’s Infinity Group + Spirit of Jeff Beck @ The Forum, Darlington. 7:30pm.

Sat 05: Tenement Jazz Band @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00.
Sat 05: Sleep Suppressor @ Head of Steam, Newcastle. 5:30-6:00pm.
Sat 05: King Bees @ Billy Bootlegger’s, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 6:00pm. Free.
Sat 05: Raymond MacDonald & Jer Reid @ Lubber Fiend, Newcastle. 6:00-9:30pm. £7.72., £1.00. (minimum donation). MacDonald & Reid + Objections + Yotuns.
Sat 05: Jeff Hewer Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 05: Kamasi Washington @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 7:30pm. £33.00.
Sat 05: Vermont Big Band @ The Seahorse, Whitley Bay. 7:30pm. Tickets: £10.00 (from the venue).
Sat 05: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.

Sun 06: Smokin’ Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm. £7.50.
Sun 06: Learning & Participation Showcase @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm (1:00pm doors). Free. Featuring participants from Play More Jazz! Play More Folk! Blue Jam Singers & more.
Sun 06: Joe Steels Group @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. £10.00. Ferg Kilsby, Joe Steels, Ben Lawrence, Paul Susans, John Hirst.
Sun 06: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 06: Paul Skerritt @ The Hooch, Quayside, Newcastle. 6:00pm.
Sun 06: Leeway @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 07: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 08: ???

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

Saturday, September 26, 2015

CD Review: Michael Janisch – Paradigm Shift

(Review by Russell)
Does Michael Janisch ever sleep? Is he insomniac? Since arriving in the UK more than a decade ago he’s been a non-stop whirlwind of activity. Gigging far and wide, running his Whirlwind Recordings record label and raising a family, Janisch seemingly never rests. A double CD release – Paradigm Shift – focuses attention on his own musical vision and he wouldn’t be half the man he is if he didn’t take it on the road. He is in the middle of a tour taking him and his band from the metropolis to the provinces to the Shetland Islands.
Michael Janisch toured the UK in 2011 – playing a memorable concert at the Lit and Phil in Newcastle – culminating in this two-CD live recording made at the Soho Pizza Express in London. Disc One – with a running time of little over half an hour – comprises a seven part work written by Janisch. The Paradigm Shift Suite; four movements, an interlude and two bookending pieces (‘intro’ and ‘outro’). The movements, or sections, feature some of the best ‘on-the-bandstand’ jazz improvisations committed to disc in recent times. Janisch assembled a superb band for the project; Americans Jason Palmer (trumpet) and drummer Colin Stranahan, County Durham’s Paul Booth (reeds and percussion), pianist Leonardo Genovese and, the manipulator of electronics, Alex Bonney. The writing reveals Janisch, the American, as someone who has absorbed the musical legacy of his country of birth. A hard bop flame burns brightly in expansive solo improvisations, the bandleader’s electric bass lines reference the Miroslav Vitouš-Joe Zawinul Weather Report era and subtle hip hop rhythms surface at intervals.   
The soloists are exceptionally good – Jason Palmer fiery on Paradigm Shift Dance Party, Paul Booth, on tenor, in incendiary form on Celestial Dictator. Movement III consists of three parts ranging from furious blowing to ethereal soundscapes (Booth, flute). Janisch’s daughters inspired the fourth movement – Liza-Flo – and a solo bass piece closes the first of the CDs.
Disc Two, Mikey’s Mosey – coming in at just over the hour mark – further documents the band in fine form. Janisch showcases compositions from band mates. Argentinian pianist Genovese contributes Chagaraga. Imagine front line horns in unison, a kind of Parisian Thoroughfare for the twenty first century, busy, bustling, bristling with cracking solos. A determined bass line sets in motion Mikey’s Mosey; fun, complex, akin to a Mingus work shop session. The JJ I Knew (Intermission) hears Janisch in reflective mood remembering his late brother Joseph. The elegiac sound of Janisch’s electric bass says it all.
Jason Palmer’s Crash begins slowly. Short energetic bursts punctuate the piece, someone references Milestones then all hell breaks loose with furious, swinging ensemble playing. Audience whoops tell the tale – Michael Janisch’s Paradigm Shift is one monster album!
Michael Janisch’s Paradigm Shift is released on Whirlwind Recordings (WR4676) on Friday 2 October. The band continues its tour of all four corners of the UK. Scarborough Jazz Festival is on the itinerary (Sunday 27 September), the Jazz Bar, Edinburgh (30) and every nook and cranny in the Scottish Highlands and Islands will get to hear Janisch & co before they head south of the border to visit the Pizza Express, London (October 6) and a number of other venues. It should be noted that trumpeter Jason Palmer and pianist Leo Genovese aren’t on the tour. Paul Booth, Alex Bonney and Colin Stranahan are, and they will be joined on some dates by Jason Yarde (reeds), pianist Cédric Henriot and drummer Andrew ‘Faces’ Bain. Recommended – tour and CD. Visit: www.michaeljanisch.com.                 
Russell. 
Michael Janisch (double bass, electric bass, percussion, electronics & effects), Paul Booth (tenor saxophone, flute, bass clarinet, cajon, didgeridoo, percussion & hand claps), Jason Palmer (trumpet), Leonardo Genovese (piano, keyboards, synthesizers, effects), Colin Stranahan (drums) & Alex Bonney (electronics & effects)

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