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Bebop Spoken There

Spasmo Brown: “Jazz is an ice cream sandwich! It's the Fourth of July! It's a girl with a waterbed!”. (Syncopated Times, July, 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

17421 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 695 of them this year alone and, so far, 100 this month (Sept. 30).

From This Moment On ...

October

Wed 09: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free. Wed 09: Jason Isaacs @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 5:00-7:00pm. Free.
Wed 09: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 09: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 09: The Tannery Jam Session @ The Tannery, Gilesgate, Hexham. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. A ‘second Wednesday in the month’ jam session.
Wed 09: Shunya, Dudù Kouate & Seb Rochford @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 8:30pm (7:30pm doors). £21.00.

Thu 10: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 10: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. ‘Collaborations - it happened all the time’.
Thu 10: Indigo Jazz Voices w. the Little Big Band @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:45pm. £5.00.
Thu 10: Side Cafe Orkestar @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
The 10: Classic Swing @ Carlisle Rugby Club, Warwick Rd., Carlisle. 8:30pm. £9.
Thu 10: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesborough. 8:30pm. With guests Donna Hewitt (sax); Bill Watson (trumpet); Graham Thompson (keys); Ron Smith (bass). Free.

Fri 11: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 11: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 11: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 11: Dulcie May Moreno @ The Old Library, Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland. 1:00pm. £8.00.
Fri 11: The Jazz Quartet + Stratosphonic @ Tynedale Rugby Club, Corbridge. 7:00pm. £15.00. A Rotary Club of Hexham event. The Jazz Quartet (Jude Murphy & co), Stratosphonic (blues/rock). CANCELLED!
Fri 11: Joe Steels Trio @ The Pele, Market Place, Corbridge NE45 5AW. 7:30pm. Free.
Fri 11: Crooners @ Tyne Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm.
Fri 11: Mo Scott Band @ Blues Underground, Nelson St., Newcastle. 9:00pm. Free.

Sat 12: Milne-Glendinning Band @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 12: Michael Woods @ Victoria Tunnel, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £12.00. (£10.00. adv.). Country blues guitar & vocals.
Sat 12: Nauta @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £13.28, £11.16, £9.04. A two-track recording launch gig.
Sat 12: Stuart Turner @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Rockabilly, rhythm & blues etc. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 12: Lapwing Jazz Trio @ The Ship Inn, Low Newton. 8:00pm. Free. New trio: Paula Whitty, Richard Herdman, Jude Murphy.

Sun 13: Am Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 13: Emma Wilson @ Tyne Bar, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Blues.
Sun 13: Catfish Keith @ The Cluny. 7:00pm. Country blues.
Sun 13: Cath Stephens & Paul Grainger @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Stephens & Grainger, one third of a triple bill.
Sun 13: Dulcie May Moreno Quartet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 14: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 14: Black is the Color of My Voice @ Hippodrome, Darlington. 7:30pm. Apphia Campbell’s one-woman show inspired by Nina Simone, performed by Nicholle Cherrie.

Tue 15: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Alan Law (piano), Paul Grainger (double bass), Bailey Rudd (drums).

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

Friday, December 16, 2016

The Gala Big Band @ Durham Town Hall - December 15

(Review/photos by Jerry - Apologies: I do not have a full list of the musicians )
The Town Hall, with its mullioned windows, giant portraits and armorial crests was host to a sizeable crowd (well over 60 – they had to wheel in extra chairs) listening to the ever-improving Gala Big Band. It’s not a Christmas concert but the brass instruments winked and shone like fairy-lights, the trumpet section sported their customary glittery bowlers and the MD took to the stage for the second set wearing a Christmas tee-shirt which his wife, had she been there, might have counseled him against. So, not a Christmas concert but, like the opening number, In the Mood.
An Edis’ original, inspired by Neal Hefti, entitled Hefty Boots featured piano and guitar solos and was followed by a tune of Hefti’s own, Flight of the Foo Birds. Both featured some energetic drumming from Alex Kennedy (new to me) and muted trumpets caught the ear on the latter. Trumpet and sax were to the fore on a swinging version of They Can’t Take That Away from Me then Edis, himself on his shiny new sax, fronted the next number, When Sunny Gets Blue. I googled this number, to check the spelling and learnt, in passing, that Jack Segal (who wrote or co-wrote the song) was something of a polymath: political science graduate, mastered in social research “and also studied creative writing” before starting his musical career at Paramount. Can’t help but envy such talented folk!
Next up was smiles all round with Sweet Georgia Brown then two closing numbers for the set which could not have been more contrasting: all ears for a beautiful solo piano arrangement of In the Bleak Midwinter then all feet a-tapping for Hancock’s Watermelon Man with some great crescendos and infectious rhythms throughout, aided by extra percussion from Alan Redhead.
The second half started, appropriately, with Strike up the Band then hit the rails with Take the A Train followed by Night Train – trumpets and trombone featured prominently on both. Things slowed and calmed thereafter with When a Child is Born - Ben Lawrence, on piano tonight, providing the intro, some gentle brushwork from the drummer, a fine trumpet solo and the smooth contribution of a flute among the saxophones (another first, I think?). In We Three Kings (a brassy, upbeat arrangeme
nt by the MD) the flute literally took centre stage in front of the band in a sustained contribution which was trilling and thrilling in equal measure. Apologies for not naming the flautist (who had also soloed on sax earlier) as well as numerous other band members – I just could not catch all the names.
It was full-circle back to Neal Hefti then with Splanky – impressively “good fun” with a sax solo (from Amber?) and a special mention from the MD for the drummer and percussionist who had driven it along.
The Power of Love was, by way of a brief reprise, both closing number and encore. An excellent evening – much more of this and even I, a confirmed Christmas denier and the personification of “Bah Humbug!”, might mellow a bit before December 25!
Jerry

2 comments :

Anonymous said...

The flautist was Robert(Rab) McBlane

JERRY said...

Thanks for that: just need about another 20 names now!

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