Total Pageviews

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.

Sunday, September 03, 2017

AMBLESIDE DAYS – A celebration of world class contemporary music Thursday August 31 to Sunday September 3, 2017












(An appreciation by Hugh C/Photos - apart from final one - courtesy of Nadja von Massow https://nad.works/

Nestling below Fairfield, where West Coast meets East Coast at the Northern end of Windermere, lies Ambleside, perhaps an unexpected location for a venue boasting world class musicians in the line-up. 
Some thirty-seven years ago, Derek Hook, one-time rock drummer and butcher, first opened Zeffirellis, a compact complex of cinema, vegetarian restaurant and jazz bar.  Over the years Hook has managed to attract a host of jazz luminaries to perform at Zeffirellis, many of whom were represented at the festival.  In 2016 Gwilym Simcock, Mike Walker and Iain Dixon played at Zeffirellis as part of the Lake District Summer Music Festival.  It was following this event that Derek Hook had the idea for a celebration of the best in contemporary music.
The festival was dedicated to the late John Taylor (piano) who had been a long-time supporter of the venue and in 1992 had composed and recorded (with John Surman) a suite of music, Ambleside Days, a commission by Zeffirellis with the assistance of Northern Arts.

The festival ran over four consecutive days, taking place on the small stage in the main cinema.  Each evening performance consisted of two sets, a 60-minute set, followed by a long interval (to permit rearrangement of the stage) and a second 90-minute set.  The only permanent fixture on the stage was the Steinway B, chosen by Derek Hook with John Taylor in the early days of Zeffirellis to replace an old Bluthner grand piano.
Each set over the course of the festival involved a different mixture of musicians, all of whom had an association with Zeffirellis and a connection with John Taylor - either having played with him, been taught by him or just revered his work.

Thursday evening commenced with Crème Anglaise, a five-piece band led by John Helliwell (of former Supertramp fame) on tenor sax.  Mike Walker featured on guitar (as he did on many of the sets).  The band set the bar high for those following, a particularly poignant rendition of Georgia sticks in my mind.  The second set featured the appropriately named Ambleside Days Quintet (Simcock, Holland, Walker, Sirkis, Sulzmann).  Fine solos were interspersed by sensitive ensemble playing.  Naturally, Ambleside Days featured as one of the pieces played.

Friday commenced with (yes, you guessed it) the Ambleside Days Trio (Simcock, Holland, Walker) on a crowded stage already filled by vibraphone and drums in readiness for the second set.  The trio gave us Simple Goodbye in memory of John Taylor.  This piece was composed by Gwilym Simcock and Mike Walker before John Taylor's death and then named It Could Have Been a Simple Goodbye.  During and after this piece there was not a dry eye in the house or on the stage.  The second set featured New York vibes maestro Joe Locke with his quartet comprising Simcock, Sirkis, double bass player Darryl Hall (all the way from the South of France) and joined by special guest, saxophonist Tim Garland, sporting a vibrant silver and black jacket.  The memory of fellow vibes player Bobby Hutcherson, inspiration and mentor to Joe Locke, was celebrated by Locke's Make Me Feel Like It's Raining – based on a response by Bobby Hutcherson to an interviewer who asked what he (Hutcherson) wanted  a new, unfamiliar piece of music to do for him.

Saturday featured a trio of Simcock, Locke and Garland in the first set.  The second set featuring The Printmakers (Norma Winstone, Nikki Iles, Mark Lockheart, Mike Walker, Steve Watts and James Maddren), whose CD Westerly was actually recorded in Derek Hooks' other venue: Yewfield  - a vegetarian guest house conveniently located just outside Ambleside and concurrently providing accommodation to the musicians involved in the festival.

Sunday's offering was An Evening with Dave Holland, Holland playing unaccompanied double bass in the first set and joining with Norma Winstone, Gwilym Simcock and Mike Walker for the second set, with other musicians joining later in the evening.

The musicians spoke eloquently of the feeling of “family” associated with the event itself and Zeffirellis.  Indeed, many of the musicians not playing in a particular set were present in the audience with other family members.  The family feeling was extended to the audience, who were mingling freely with artists in the small bar area before, in the intervals and after the gigs.  The intimacy of the venue (and comfort of the cinema seats!) lent itself to what one might consider the “chamber jazz” featuring on stage.

I was not able to be present for the whole festival (despite the tempting reduction on a festival pass).  The two days I was there, however, were very special.  Other BSH regulars may be able to add a comment regarding the gigs I missed. 
I understand from conversations at the festival that this sort of event may be repeated in the future – I certainly hope so!  Furthermore, the concerts were recorded for promotional purposes – perhaps consideration could be made to making selected recorded material available in the future.

The original CD by John Taylor and John Surman, Ambleside Days, is sadly out of print – but used copies can be obtained from the usual fluvial sources priced from £95 upwards!
Hugh C. 
Photos.
Personnel:
Dave Holland  - double bass
Norma Winstone – voice
Nikki Iles – piano
Mike Walker – guitar
Stan Sulzmann – saxophone
Gwilym Simcock – piano
Joe Locke – vibraphone
John Helliwell – saxophone
Mark Lockheart – saxophone
Tim Garland – saxophone
Steve Watts – double bass
James Maddren – drums
Asaf Sirkis – drums
Darryl Hall – double bass

6 comments :

debra said...

You've summed it up perfectly Hugh. We were at the Saturday night gig with Locke/Garland/Simcock trio and The Printmakers. The trio were stunning - Joe Locke on vibes & his interplay with Gwilym Simcock's piano was extraordinary. The Printmakers managed to follow it up with a compelling, entirely different set. Gig of the year.

Russell said...

Enjoyed reading your review, Hugh. It made me think I should have been there.

Lance said...

From the Twitter photo it looks like "A Great Day in Ambleside"

Hugh said...

Fantastic venue, fantastic atmosphere, and yes the weather was pretty good too.

Made me feel like it was raining...

but when we went outside, it wasn't!

Hugh said...

I am reliably informed there WILL be a repeat next year.

Watch this space!

Hugh said...

Tickets now available here: http://www.amblesidedays.co.uk/

Blog Archive