Total Pageviews

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.

Monday, January 18, 2016

Book Review: 30-Second Jazz - Lead editor: Dave Gelly.

My first thought upon reading the blurb attached to this 150pp tome was the oft-misquoted, apocryphal, anecdote variously attributed to Fats Waller and Louis Armstrong, "Lady, if you've gotta ask, don't mess with it!" This may have been a reasonable reply back in the swing era of the 1930s when jazz, or swing, was relatively straight forward foot-tapping stuff, albeit often at odds with what classical concertgoers had been brought up on.
The position today is more complex. Many older jazz fans often struggle to cope with this ever developing form of music and the younger, pop orientated, musician/listener encountering our music for the first time must be even more confused. After all, the mainstream media gives little or no coverage to jazz and some schools don't even have a music dept. and if they do..! What is sure is that, in the future, Jazz ain't going to have many 'Working Class Heroes".
Edited by saxophonist and award winning writer Dave Gelly MBE, with contributions from Charles Alexander; Kevin LeGendre; Chris Parker; Brian Priestly and Tony Russell, 30-Second Jazz takes the reader through 50 half a minute sections from it's African-American roots through to today's globalisation. Along the way, styles are explained, key figures recognised, ground-breaking albums acknowledged, how the musicians are doing it (improvising), instruments used and, as mentioned in the previous post, the difference between Scat and Vocalese - Ella and Dizzy cited as examples of the former and Annie Ross's Twisted re the latter (I'd have included James Moody's Moody's Mood) and much much more.
Of course 50 x 30 seconds, in this case means a lot more than 25 minutes! Most chapters you will probably want to spend 25 mins on exploring the tributaries - 3 second riffs and 3 minute improvisations.
Even a 'Johnny-Know-All' like myself discovered things I didn't know at all, Like Urzula Dudziak who mingled jazz rock with Polish folk song - I'm going to Google her  later.
There's a lot of impressive photo montages too but it's much more than a 'Coffee Table' book.
Gelly says, "My hope is that readers will have some idea of the vast variety of music which now comes under the label of 'Jazz', in particular, its long history and world-wide spread."
This should be in every reference library and school music dept.
Lance.
30-Second Jazz - Lead editor: Dave Gelly.
Published Ivy Press, February 2016. £14.99.
ISBN: 978-78240-309-8.
The book will be launched at Ronnie Scott's on February 24 and will include an hour long talk and a Q & A session with Dave himself.

1 comment :

Hugh C said...

Thanks Lance - sounds good - it's already on my wishlist!

Blog Archive