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Bebop Spoken There

Sullivan Fortner: ''I always judge it by the bass player: If the bass player is happy, it's going to be a good night". (DownBeat, February 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

17805 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 126 of them this year alone and, so far, 51 this month (Feb.16).

From This Moment On ...

February 2025

Sun 23: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 23: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: Mark Williams Trio @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm.
Sun 23: Ruth Lambert Trio @ The Juke Shed, Union Quay, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 23: Jazz Jam Sandwich! @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 23: Mississippi MacDonald @ Georgian Theatre, Stockton. 3:00pm. Blues.
Sun 23: Mu Quintet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. CANCELLED!
Sun 23: Jazz Jam @ Fabio’s, Saddler St., Durham. 8:00pm. Free. A Durham University Jazz Society promotion. All welcome.

Mon 24: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 24: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Tue 25: ?

Wed 26: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 26: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 26: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 27: Jamie McCredie @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Fri 28: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free. THIS WEEK ONLY JAMES BIRKETT (guitar)!
Fri 28: Luis Verde Quartet @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 28: Spilt Milk @ St. James’ STACK, Newcastle. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Fri 28: Castillo Nuevo Orquesta @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £8.00.
Fri 28: Knats @ Lubber Fiend, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £11.50. (inc bf.). Album launch gig. Support act TBC.
Fri 28: Black is the Color of My Voice @ The Gala, Durham. 7:30pm. Apphia Campbell’s one-woman show inspired by the life of Nina Simone, performed by Florence Odumosu.
Fri 28: Great North Big Band Jazz Festival: Musicians Unlimited @ Park View Community Centre, Chester-le-Street. 8:00pm. £10.00. (Weekend ticket £20.00., available on the door). Day 1/3. Musicians Unlimited in concert.
Fri 28: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

MARCH 2025

Sat 01: Great North Big Band Jazz Festival @ Park View Community Centre, Chester-le-Street. 11:00am. £15.00. Day 2/3.
Sat 01: TJ Johnson Band @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00.
Sat 01: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £25.00. Tutor: Steve Glendinning. Get your funk on! Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 01: Shunyata Improvisation Group @ The Watch House, Cullercoats. 2:00-3:30pm. Free.
Sat 01: Ray Stubbs R&B All Stars @ Billy Bootleggers. Ouseburn, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free.
Sat 01: Struggle Buggy @ The Peacock, Sunderland. 6:00pm. Blues band.
Sat 01: Edison Herbert Trio @ The Vault, Darlington 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 01: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.
Sat 01: Jack & Jay’s Vintage Songbook @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

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

Sunday, August 27, 2017

Proms 2017: Swing No End - Radio 3, August 27

Whilst nothing was ever going to quite follow Thursday's Mingus Prom this afternoon's Swing No End made a pretty decent fist of it.
Hosted by Clare Teal with the big bands of Guy Barker and Winston Rollins as well as several guests it was an enjoyable mix of old and not [quite] so old war horses that, thanks to the adapted arrangements, were saved from the knackers yard and looked to be good for another 100 years.
I'm not going to give a blow by blow commentary - the material is too familiar for that - instead, I'll just add an occasional observation.
Milenberg Joys - both bands.
Stuff Like That There - Teal w. WRBB. Clare in great voice.
East St. Louis Toodle oo - GBBB.
Serenade in Blue - Mads Mathias w. Accent Choir. The Great Dane has the edge on Ray Eberle!*
Whatcha Know Joe - Georgina Jackson w. Accent Choir.
Singin' the Blues - GBBB. Alan Barnes, fresh from playing with the Buck Clayton Legacy Band at Ushaw the previous evening, stepped into Frankie Trumbauer's shoes for this Bix classic.
Tribute to Mary Lou Williams.
Blue Skies (Trumpet no End) - WRBB w. Hiromi on piano and the trumpets blowing where the air is rarified just like Duke's boys did on Mary Lou's original arrangement for the Ellington Band.
What's Your Story Morning Glory? - Hiromi plays a stunning piano solo and Mads handles the vocal with aplomb.
I Got Rhythm - Hiromi certainly has!
Roll 'Em - Mary Lou scored and composed this for the Goodman Band. Alan Barnes plays clarinet and Hiromi rounds off this mini tribute to the legendary Ms. Williams with another fine solo. The WRBB in support.
They Can't Take That Away From me - Vanessa Haynes w. WRBB pays tribute to Lady Day.
This just about completes the first half - not quite but, as the show is being shown on BBC 4 next Friday (Sept. 1) seems like it will be a good idea for me to save the rest until then!
In the meantime, you can catch-up on the BBC website over the next 29 days.
Lance.
(Incidentally, during the intermission, Geoffrey Smith talked about and introduced readings from some books with jazz inspired scenes i.e. a Langston Hughes' poem, J.Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, James Baldwin's Sonny's Blues and Jack Kerouac's On The Road.)


Guy Barker Big Band (Guy Barker MD/conductor/trumpet)
Saxophones: Graeme Blevins, Alan Barnes, Karen Sharp Paul Booth, Jessamy Holder
Trumpets: Nathan Bray, Tom Rees -Roberts, Chris Storr, Georgina Jackson/Guy Barker
Trombones: Nichol Thomson, Alastair White, Harry Brown, Mark Frost
Rhythm: Al Cherry, Mike Gorman, Tim Thornton, Ed Richardson

Winston Rollins Big Band (Winston Rollins conductor/trombone)
Saxophones: Howard McGill, Alex Garnett, Rob Fowler, Chelsea Carmichael, Gemma Moore
Trumpets: Mike Lovatt, Pat White, Freddie Gavita, Annette Brown
Trombones: Barnaby Dickinson, Callum Au, Carol Jarvis, Barry Clements
Rhythm: David Archer, Joe Webb, Alec Dankworth, Shane Forbes
*Ray Eberle, vocalist on the original Glenn Miller recording.

2 comments :

Liz said...

I shall be watching it on BBC4 on Friday.

Sid White (on F/b) said...

I was listening to this on the way to a gig sounded awesome .

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