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Bebop Spoken There

Art Blakey: "You [Bobby Watson] don't want to play too long, because you don't know they're clapping because they're glad you finished!" - (JazzTimes, Nov. 2019)..

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

15867 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 874 of them this year alone and, so far, 72 this month (Sept. 25).

From This Moment On ...

September

Wed 27: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Wed 27: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 27: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 28: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 28: Alice Grace Quartet @ King's Hall, Newcastle University. 1:15pm. Free.
Thu 28: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Gateshead Central Library, Gateshead. 2:30pm. All welcome.
Thu 28: Faye MacCalman + Snape/Sankey @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 28: Zoe Rahman @ Jesmond United Reformed Church, Jesmond, Newcastle. 7:30pm. A Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music event.
Thu 28: '58 Jazz Collective @ Hops & Cheese, Hartlepool. 7:30pm.
Thu 28: Speakeasy @ Queen's Hall, Hexham. 7:30pm. £15.00. A Southpaw Dance Company presentation. Dance, audio-visuals, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, swing dancers etc.
Thu 28: Mick Cantwell Band @ Harbour View, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Ace blues band.
Thu 28: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman's Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 29: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 29: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 29: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm.

Sat 30: John Pope Quintet + Late Girl + Shapeshifters @ Bobik's, Jesmond, Newcastle.
Sat 30: Papa G's Troves @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A 'Jar on the Bar' gig.

OCTOBER

Sun 01: Smokin' Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm.
Sun 01: Dulcie May Moreno sings Portrait of Sheila @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. £10.00. Moreno sings Sheila Jordan with Giles Strong, Mick Shoulder & John Bradford.
Sun 01: Middlesbrough Jazz & Blues Orchestra @ Saltburn Community Hall. 2:00pm.
Sun 01: The Easy Rollers @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £13.70., £11.55.
Sun 01: Brand/Roberts/Champion/Sanders @ Blank Studios, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music event.
Sun 01: Papa G's Troves @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 02: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Mon 02: FILM: Wattstax; 50th Anniversary @ Forum Cinema, Hexham. 8:00pm.

Tue 03: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Hallgarth St., Durham DH1 3AT. 7:00pm. Paul Skerritt's (solo) weekly residency.
Tue 03: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. House trio: Michael Young (piano); Paul Grainger (double bass); Paul Wight (drums).

Saturday, May 06, 2017

Paul Edis Sextet @ the Jazz Café - May 5

Paul Edis (piano); Graeme Wilson (tenor/flute); Graham Hardy (trumpet/flugel); Chris Hibbard (trombone); Mick Shoulder (bass); Adam Sinclair (drums).
(Review by Lance).
A Paul Edis gig is never without interest. Whether it be solo piano, duo, trio, sextet or big band there's always something there. It may be a group of youngsters taking their first tentative steps into Planet Jazz or a seasoned bunch of grizzly veterans who've got a wardrobe full of t-shirts; whatever, like Ellington, Edis maps out the charts to fit the crew.
Tonight's crew, A-listers all, did the music proud both individually and collectively. Most of the compositions were originals by the leader, although Graeme and Graham also contributed a couple of their own, to make for two well balanced sets.
The main things I like about the sextet are:
a): Everybody doesn't solo on every number.
b): The soloists don't do marathons.
c): Every number doesn't finish with a meaningless round of fours.
d): Bass solos and drum solos are kept at a minimum which is no reflection on Mick Shoulder and Adam Sinclair who are two of the finest on their respective instruments and appreciated all the more when they do get the nod whilst, at the same time, holding it all together like Gorilla Glue. Strong and stable was Edis' description - strong and stable indeed!
The music.
Sharp 9/8 - a bit of a Take 5 feel to it (give or take a couple of beats) particularly the piano/drum interaction at the end.
I Wish I Was a Monk - Quirky head as befits the title and the inspiration behind it.
Dorian Gray - Nothing to do with Oscar Wilde but a piece incorporating the Dorian Mode or, to be more precise, a minor scale with a major sixth (thank you Google). Hardy blew fine flugel and Wilson's tenor completed the portrait.
It's Been, It's Gone, It's Happened - Could have been written by Billy Taylor! Hardy, plunger perfect, and Hibbard reminding us that we don't hear enough of him these days.
Madeira - Brought the first set to a close. Wilson on flute.
The Pounce - During the intermission, one or two of the J-cops thought the first set had been a bit subdued. They changed their minds when this boppy opus by Graham Hardy hit the deck. Trumpet in full flight driven on by Sinclair, the applause was of the vocal variety!
Muddle Through - Trumpet, Tenor, piano and bass featured. They did much more than muddle through.
Cluster Flusters - Trombone to the fore.
Lost and Brand New Mountain brought my participation to a close as I prepared to catch my flight home (number 27) so didn't make any notes.
Here's to the next sextet session.
Lance.
Photos.

3 comments :

Russell said...

You're right - limited solo features, brevity the key to it all. A class act.

stevebfc said...

It appears the main things you like about the sextet are the things they don't do rather than the things they do do. If brevity is the key to it all think how much could be unlocked if they didn't play at all?

Lance said...

Less is more...

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