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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.

Tuesday, November 08, 2016

Mike Durham’s Classic Jazz Party @ The Village Hotel. Nov 4, evening

(Review by Russell/photo courtesy of Patti Durham & Emrah Erken)
After dinner, Hot Strings guitarists Martin Wheatley and Spats Langham entertained the audience with their typically understated, largely unamplified, duo set. Diners returned to the concert hall, claimed their allocated table for the evening, and readied themselves for Keith Nichols’ command: Stomp off, Let’s go! The American big guns sat alongside the European reeds section; Bix’s man, Andy Schumm and Duke Heitger, trumpets, with Jim Fryer, trombone, making his debut at the Village Hotel, added lustre to the occasion. The reeds – the versatile Robert Fowler, the excellent Richard Exall and the impressive young Norwegian Lars Frank – demonstrated that the music of 20s Chicago has long-since been assimilated by musicians this side of the Atlantic. A busy Spats Langham returned to the engine room to knock out the rhythm (guitar and banjo) with sousaphone master Mr Phil Rutherford and the amazing Nick Ball, percussion. Nichols, in good humour, cracked his usual quota of one-liners in between directing from the Kawai piano, finding time to take a swipe at Earl Hines, no less! It was, of course, self-deprecating, jocular fun, cursing the piano great for leaving a difficult legacy to uphold. It should be noted Mr Keith Nichols acquitted himself admirably. Later vocalist Mellow Baku (pictured) joined the orchestra. More of Ms Baku later.
Annette Hanshaw sang for half an hour in the company of piano accompanist Mr Martin Litton. Our vocalist was, of course, Ms Janice Day. A small combo setting of Emma Fisk, Martin Wheatley, bassist Malcolm Sked and urbane reedsman Jean-Francois Bonnel gave Hanshaw/Day the opportunity to shine, singing You’re the Cream in My Coffee (of which Day informed the full house that Marlene Deitrich sang the number screen testing for The Blue Angel), Button Up Tour Overcoat and Am I Blue?

The New Orleans Wanderers arrived on North Tyneside without Louis Armstrong. Bent Persson, cornet, took the part of Louis’ dep George Mitchell (contractual arrangements in 1926 excluded Armstrong from a studio recording date) in what was, effectively, the Hot Five. The participation of Thomas Winteler, reeds, underscored the historical accuracy of the Chicago session of ninety years ago. Bent Persson’s set drew on the arranger’s talents of Claus Jacobi and Graham Hughes' passable take on Kid Ory in playing a great set with tunes including Gatemouth and a hot Too Tough.

Friday’s closing set presented The Music of Alex Hill. Pianist, composer and arranger, in 2016 Hill is an almost forgotten figure. Leonard Feather described Alex Hill thus: One of the better and less recognized arrangers of the early swing era. Menno Daams’ one hour review of Hill’s all-too-short career (Hill was dead at thirty) featured Rico Tomasso and Duke Heitger, trumpets, Frenchmen Jean-François Bonnel and Henri Lemaire, the larger than life Richard Pite, drums and the most impressive David Boeddinghaus (piano). I’m Crazy About My Baby set the bar high, yet greater heights were achieved tune after tune.      
A superb end to events in the concert hall. A jam session followed into the small hours in the adjoining Victory pub. 
Russell.                

2 comments :

Anonymous said...

Another fab day and evening - jazz heaven!
The photo credit should read Emrah Erken, by the way.

Lance said...

Apologies - now corrected.

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