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Bebop Spoken There

Trevor Mires: ''My mum is a Dean Martin fan: I'm not, so I would grab my skateboard and get out of the house whenever I heard "Everybody Loves Somebody, Sometime." ". (Jazzwise, April 2025).

The Things They Say!

This is a good opportunity to say thanks to BSH for their support of the jazz scene in the North East (and beyond) - it's no exaggeration to say that if it wasn't for them many, many fine musicians, bands and projects across a huge cross section of jazz wouldn't be getting reviewed at all, because we're in the "desolate"(!) North. (M & SSBB on F/book 23/12/24)

Postage

17985(and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 306 of them this year alone and, so far, 62 this month (April 26).

From This Moment On ...

April 2025.

Sun 27: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 27: Andrea Vicari Trio @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. Vicari (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); John Bradford (drums).
Sun 27: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 27: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Xenopoulos, Edis, Paul Susans, Russ Morgan.
Sun 27: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 27: JustKing Jones @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £17.50. JustKing Jones (alto sax, soprano sax); Jordan Williams (piano); Jason Clotter (bass); Malcolm Charles (drums). Ace NYC outfit!
Sun 27: Jazz Jam Sandwich! @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 27: Swing Manouche @ Warkworth Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £15.00. Tickets from 01665 711388.
Sun 27: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Xenopoulos, Edis, Ken Marley, Russ Morgan.

Mon 28: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 29: ???

Wed 30: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 30: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 30: International Jazz Day @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £16.00.; £14.00. adv.. Feat. Guido Spannocchi, John Pope & Steve Hanley + Take it to the Bridge participants + Open Mic Night participants.

MAY 2025

Thu 01: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: Member’s Contribution.
Thu 01: Alabaster de Plume @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm.
Thu 01: Living in Shadows + OUTRI @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.
Thu 01: The Shayo Experiment @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Shayo Oshodi & Liam Oliver.
Thu 01: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Free.

Fri 02: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 02: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 02: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 02: Anna Reay & Deon Krishnan @ STACK, Seaburn. 4:30-6:15pm. Free.
Fri 02: Nauta @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 7:00pm. £7.50. A ‘Nauta’s House’ gig featuring Nauta & guests Shayo Oshodi & David Gray.
Fri 02: Spilt Milk @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Fri 02: Dom Pipkin @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). Solo piano.
Fri 02: Abbie Finn Trio @ Saltburn Community Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00. + bf.

Sat 03: Hot Fingers @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00.
Sat 03: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £25.00. Tutor: Steve Glendinning. Summer Samba Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 03: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 4:00-6:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Sat 03: Edison Herbert Trio @ The Vault, Darlington 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 03: Postmodern Jukebox @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 7:30pm.
Sat 03: NUJO Jazz Jam @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 8:00pm (7:00pm doors). £3.00. + bf.
Sat 03: Eva Fox & the Jazz Guys @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.
Sat 03: Ray Stubbs R&B All Stars @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:30pm. Free.

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

Monday, June 19, 2017

De’Sean Jones & Knomadik @ Dacre Hall, Lanercost – June 16

De’Sean Jones (tenor); Jamie Murray (drums); Mikele Montoli (bass); Russell Gelman-Sheehan (guitar); Chase Jackson (vibes) + Jack Moore (alto).
(Review by David Gosling)
Detroit’s young saxophone titan swept into Cumbria, via three London gigs and a night at Preston’s New Continental, to play a storming gig in rural Lanercost.
Lanercost had secured the appearance of De’Sean Jones and his Knomadik band via a previous appearance De’Sean made in 2014 whilst touring the northwest with pianist Greg Spero.                      
“I remembered this charismatic ancient venue and felt that it would be good to come back and play it with my own band this time”, said Jones.
How to describe De’Sean Jones and his music is tricky but Jazz fusion, in the normal understanding of the genre, it is not. It’s certainly jazz, and if you add in funk, urban and a dash of hip-hop then maybe you are getting closer to the mark. At least that’s what I was hearing.
Knomadik (although De’Seans baseball cap spells it KNMDK) seems a fitting title as young musicians encountered by De’Sean, as he tours the world, are then incorporated into the as and when a location suits. For the Dacre Hall gig we had De’Sean Jones tenor sax, Jamie Murray from London on drums, Mikele Montolli from Italy on bass, Russell Gelman-Sheehan from Philadelphia on guitar, and on vibraphone. from Los Angeles, Chase Jackson.
Counting in the first number with a semi beatbox/rap introduction De’Sean and the band launched into a funked up version of Miles Davis’ Tutu which must have lasted at least 10 minutes as it moved seamlessly from one phase to another. The excellent Chase Jackson on vibraphone gently underpinning the rhythms in a style that would be blown away in the following numbers as his exuberant percussive playing came to the fore.
The ensuing tunes were all taken from De’Sean’s 2015 album Knomadik Reverence (Detroit Music Factory DMF2007) with the one exception being when, in true pied piper/nomadic style, the tenor sax man recalled playing with a young man in 2014, who he had spotted in the audience, and invited him up onto the stage to play what he termed ‘some Detroit Funk’. Up stepped 15-year-old Jack Moore from Cockermouth, who had so impressed everyone when Greg Spero had called him up to the bandstand at the same venue in 2014, to perform alongside De’Sean on alto sax. After a 10 second conversation between the two the band launched into a scorching number that allowed both saxophones ample room to show their improvisational skills. Hard blowing pyrotechnics were the order of the day with young Jack more than holding his own against the Detroit Lion. A performance that shows promise of much greater things to come from young Jack Moore.
As for De’Sean Jones, I had described him as ‘a force of nature’ in the pre-concert publicity but on this showing, I had clearly underestimated him.

The evening opened with local sax-girl Roz Sluman, who also played with De’Sean and the Greg Spero Quartet in 2014, and her Ol’ Bones band playing a jazz fusion set covering tunes by Chic Corea, David Sanbourn, Dave Grusin and Spyra Gyra to name but a few. Alongside Roz was Paul Maclachlan on bass, Kenny Reed on drums, Brian Melville on keyboards and Johnny Miller on guitar and their lively set proved the perfect introduction for what was to come.
David Gosling

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