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Bebop Spoken There

Branford Marsalis: "As ignorance often forces us to do, you make a generalisation about a musician based on one specific record or one moment in time." - (Jazzwise June 2023).

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!"

Postage

15491 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 512 of them this year alone and, so far, 133 this month (May 31).

From This Moment On ...

June

Sat 03: Newcastle Record Fair @ Northumbria University, Newcastle NE8 8SB. 10:00am-3:00pm. Admission: £2.00.
Sat 03: Pedigree Jazz Band @ St Augustine's Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm.
Sat 03: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. Tutor: Sue Ferris. £25.00. Enrol at: www.jazz.coop.
Sat 03: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 6:00pm. Free.
Sat 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.
Sat 03: Papa G's Troves @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A 'Jar on the Bar' gig.

Sun 04: Smokin' Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm.
Sun 04: Central Bar Quintet @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00-4:00pm. £5.00. The Central Bar Quintet plays Sonny Rollins' Saxophone Colossus. Featuring Lewis Watson.
Sun 04: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm.
Sun 04: Struggle Buggy + Michael Littlefield @ Tyne Bar, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Acoustic blues.
Sun 04: Swinging at the Cotton Club: Harry Strutters' Hot Rhythm Orchestra @ The Fire Station, Sunderland. 7:30pm.
Sun 04: Richard Jones Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.
Sun 04: Jam No. 18 @ Fabio's Bar, Saddler Street, Durham. 8:00pm. Free. All welcome. A Durham University Jazz Society event.

Mon 05: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.

Tue 06: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Hallgarth St., Durham DH1 3AT. 7:00pm. Paul Skerritt's (solo) weekly residency.
Tue 06: Jam session @ Black Swan, Newcastle Arts Centre. 7:30pm. House trio: Stu Collingwood (piano); Paul Grainger (double bass); Sid White (drums).

Wed 07: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Wed 07: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 07: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:00pm.
Wed 07: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 08: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free. CANCELLED! BACK ON JUNE 15.
Thu 08: Easington Colliery Brass Band @ The Lubetkin Theatre, Peterlee. 7:00pm. £10.00.
Thu 08: Faye MacCalman + Blue Dust Archive @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 08: Dilutey Juice + Ceramic @ The Ampitheatre, Sea Road, South Shields. 7:00pm. Free. A South Tyneside Festival event.
Thu 08: Lara Jones w. Vigilance State @ Lubber Fiend, Blandford Square, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 08: Michael Littlefield @ the Harbour View, Roker, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Country blues.
Thu 08: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman's Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 09: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 09: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 09: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm.
Fri 09: Castillo Nuevo @ Revolución de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30-8:30pm.
Fri 09: Emma Rawicz @ Sage Gateshead. 8:00pm.

Saturday, March 19, 2016

And Even More GIJF - Lance talks to Simon Spillett About Tubby Hayes.

Bebop Spoken Here interviewed Simon Spillett ahead of his concert at GIJF.
BSH: You’re playing Gateshead International Jazz Festival this year in a rather special concert.

Yes, it's a double-header featuring the recently released documentary film 'Tubby Hayes – A Man in A Hurry' and my quartet playing a set of Tubby's music.

BSH: Tubby’s music has obviously played a major part in your life, very much influencing your own playing.

His music has been a massive shaping force in my life and has provided the major stylistic compass for my playing.

BSH: Is this going to be, ultimately, an albatross around your neck? I’m thinking of Quinichette and Lester Young, Stitt and Parker who never quite broke free of their inspiration.

Sounds like critic-speak to me! Frankly, I don't care whether anyone thinks it's an albatross or not. I like that style of playing and it's given me something positive to focus on. Playing Tubby's music (and that type of jazz generally) seems a worthwhile endeavour to me and I'm too busy enjoying it to think about whether it's holding me back or not!

BSH: You’ve also written what will surely come to be regarded as the definitive biography despite, because he died so young, never having met him or even heard him live other than on record. This must surely be one of your biggest regrets?

I was born a year after Tubby died so I envy anyone who got to hear him live. All I have to go on are the recordings and, as we all know, a record can only tell you so much.

BSH: The film preceding the concert, were you involved with that too?

Yes, I was interviewed for the film and helped act as a consultant to the film's production team, Mark Baxter and Lee Cogswell.

BSH: One of the links between Tubbs and yourself is the drummer in your quartet – Spike Wells.  Spike was a member of the Tubby Hayes Quartet for a considerable time. Did this influence you when you were looking for a drummer?

Of course. When somebody of that stature likes playing with you, you don't say no! One thing that is particularly key here: although we play some of the music Spike played with Tubby's band, we also play things he didn't play, including material from earlier line-ups such as The Jazz Couriers and the Tubby Hayes Quintet. Spike isn't simply there to do a “tribute” act or an impression of his younger self – he's there to bring what he does to the music right now – which he does beautifully. He's one of the great jazz drummers, one of the most creative people I've ever met, and a musician from whom I've learned so much.

BSH: The title of your book - The Long Shadow of the Little Giant. Can you elaborate further?

Tubby was widely known as The Little Giant, a nickname acknowledging the fact that his short frame housed a gigantic musical talent. The title of the book came from me thinking how this Little Giant who died over forty years ago continues to cast such an imposing shadow over British jazz. The length of the shadow implies that the sun is setting on that era, making this the ideal time to celebrate Tubby's genius.

BSH: Thank you – I’m looking forward to the concert.
Lance.

The Simon Spillett Quartet Play the Music of Tubby Hayes as part of the Gateshead International Jazz Festival on Sunday, April 17. The evening begins with a screening of the new film Tubby Hayes – A Man in a Hurry. The concert will be followed by a short Q&A session with Simon.

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