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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 ...

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.

Sat 10: Front Porch Three @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. Americana, blues, jazz etc.
Sat 10: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A 'Jar on the Bar' gig.

Sun 11: WORKSHOP: Tim Richards' Jazz Piano Workshop @ JG Windows, Newcastle. Time TBC. Further details tel. 0191 232 1356.
Sun 11: Am Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 11: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm.
Sun 11: Groovetrain @ Innisfree Sports & Social Club, Longbenton NE12 8TY. Doors 6:30pm. £15.00 (£7.00. under 16).
Sun 11: Jeffrey Hewer Collective @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 12: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.

Monday, June 13, 2016

Ruth Lambert Trio/Sue Ferris Quartet @ Bridge Hotel, Newcastle. June 12.

Ruth Lambert Trio: Ruth Lambert (vcl); Mick Shoulder (bs); Giles Strong (gtr).
Sue Ferris Quartet: Sue Ferris (ten/fl); Paul Edis (pno); Tony Abell (bs); Rob Walker (dms).
(Review by Lance/Photos courtesy of Ken Drew).
Part of Jazz North-East's admirable Women Make Music series although, in actual fact, only two of the seven musicians involved were of the 'fairer sex'. However, as Lambert and Ferris were the leaders of their respective bands, the WMM  nomenclature was fully justified and, after you'd heard them sing/play, gender went out of the window!
The Ruth Lambert Trio played the first set. A well-balanced mix of original compositions by all three, some Cole Porter and a more contemporary number - Oscar Brown, Jr.'s The Snake.
The audience may have been thin on the ground, although you wouldn't have known it by the volume of applause at the end of each number. Such was the gossamer-like nature of the music that applause after solos would, on this occasion, have destroyed the ambience irrespective of how deserving.
Strong alternated between classical guitar and an Ibanez Jazz as and when the number demanded it. He soloed and comped well on  both. He also composed one of the songs - Everything Was Beautiful. Shoulder was, as ever, melodic and swinging. He too provided some material. The opener, How Can I? and a collaboration with Ms Lambert, Lullaby. Ruth herself wrote A Love That Never Dies and also put her stamp on You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To;Love for Sale and Devil May Care.
Encased in a sheath that wouldn't have been out of place on the aforementioned snake, the lady herself was, as ever, in good voice bringing her own take to each number. Subtle nuances, a slight variation in the meter, a change of direction, all combining for a class performance.
A short interval before the second band took to the stage led by Sue Ferris.
Sue, who'd earlier in the evening guested with the trio on You'd Be So Nice etc.,blows tenor, not like a woman, more like a jazz musician of any gender. Hard-blowing, straight down the middle, saxophone playing of the first order. Just Squeeze Me; Jerry Bergonzi's Red's Blues; Bill Evan's Peris Scope; I Thought About You; Paul Edis' cleverly titled McCoyn a Phrase (ref McCoy Tyner) all blown on tenor with a really wailing chorus on the latter number.
A switch to flute for a piece by the Durham-based, vastly underrated, composer Will Todd and another clever title - I Thought About Who? More flute on All or Nothing at All. A samba beat and some superb hand-drumming from Walker took us down to Rio and not a sign of any Zika symptoms!
Back to tenor and the last number - Clifford Brown's Sandu.
The solos on this set were acknowledged - choruses for courses!
Special mention of Tony Abell who stepped in at short notice for Neil Harland - he cut the mustard. Paul Edis was, simply, Paul Edis, and I can praise him unequivocally as I'm not his dad!
And Rob Walker also played great - for a man!
The prompt finish meant I had no problems catching the number 27 as it stops close by!
Lance.

1 comment :

Steven T. said...

Number one son always suggests that, when the Early Birds support one of Pauls' groups, I arrange with his dad that he does EBs and I do Paul.
This is why I always big-up Paul (and not cos he's brilliant), hoping his dad will reciprocate re Francis.

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