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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

17346 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 630 of them this year alone and, so far, 35 this month (Sept. 11).

From This Moment On ...

September

Thu 12: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 12: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:30pm. £4.00. ‘A Great Day in Harlem’.
Thu 12: The Cuban Heels @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Pete Tanton & co.
Thu 12: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesborough. 8:30pm. Free. THC with guests Donna Hewitt, Bill Watson, Dave Archbold, Adrian Beadnell, Mark Hawkins.

Fri 13: Jeff Barnhart & Neville Dickie @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Two pianos, two pianists! SOLD OUT!
Fri 13: Noel Dennis Quartet @ The Old Library, Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland. 1:00pm. £8.00.
Fri 13: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 13: Dilutey Juice @ Old Coal Yard, Byker, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £11.00. adv..
Fri 13: Ray Stubbs R & B All-stars @ The Forum, Darlington. 7:30pm. Classic blues.

Sat 14: Jeff Barnhart’s Silent Film Fest @ St Augustine's Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. Darlington New Orleans Jazz Club.
Sat 14: Customs House Big Band w. Ruth Lambert @ St Paul’s Centre, St Paul’s Gardens, Spennymoor DL16 7LR. 7:00pm (6:45pm doors). Tickets £10.00. from the venue or tel: 01388 813404. A ‘BYOB’ event.
Sat 14: Emma Wilson @ Claypath Deli, Durham. 7:00pm. £12.00. Acoustic blues.
Sat 14: Rat Pack - Swingin’ at the Sands @ Billingham Forum. 7:30pm.

Sun 15: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 15: Jude Murphy, Steve Chambers & Sid White @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 15: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Barrels Ale House, Berwick-upon-Tweed. 7:00pm. Free.
Sun 15: Panharmonia @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 16: Swing Manouche @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm. £9.00.
Mon 16: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 16: John Hallam with the James Birkett Trio @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00. A Blaydon Jazz Club 40th anniversary concert!

Tue 17: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Victoria & Albert Inn, Seaton Delaval. 12:30pm. £13.00. Tel: 0191 237 3697. ‘Indian Summer Afternoon Tea’.
Tue 17: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Joe Steels (guitar); Paul Grainger (double bass); Abbie Finn (drums).

Wed 18: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 18: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 18: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 18: Hot Club of Heaton @ Elder Beer, Heaton, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘third Wednesday in the month’ session.

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

The Julian Costello Quartet @ The Globe: October 7

Julian Costello (ten, sop saxes); Maciek Pysz (guitar); Michele Tacchi (bass guitar);  Adam Teixeira (drums).
(Review by Ann Alex/Photo courtesy of Dave Parker)
I didn’t know what to expect, as the sax player and guitarist had taken an excellent workshop at the Sage in the afternoon, mostly based on Miles Davis’s Flamenco Sketches, with us doing melodies based on modes, heady stuff. What we got in the evening is what I’d describe as ‘International Jazz’.
Tunes with influences from Poland, the East, martial drum beats, J S Bach-like guitar melodies, and titles such as Panettone, Walking Through The Jungle, Halloumi (Julian is addicted to this, or so he said).This was all thoroughly enjoyable, played to an appreciative audience, and I can’t wait for the band’s next visit.
The first set consisted of one long composite tune(s) and a shorter number - Walking Through The Jungle. It all began with a blast on the tenor, ambient sounds from the others, mallets on drums, electronics from the 7 small different coloured boxes lying beside the guitar, then a tune arose from the sound, a Latin beat, a groove, tenor solo, quick change to soprano, a drone from somewhere, then behold!, we were led in clapping the rhythm by the band. I’ve maybe made it all sound chaotic, but it all hung together beautifully. So readers will have gathered that this was no ‘play the head, solos all round, head again to finish’ job, but an interesting performance with quite a bit of humour as well, such as when the drummer blew up a balloon, Julian danced enthusiastically on the spot whilst playing, and Maciek and Julian had a mock fight, pretending to hit each other. There were many false endings to keep the audience guessing, such fun. The second tune sounded a bit more conventional, although it featured the drums especially, solos all round, and a rather sudden ending to contrast with the false endings that we were getting used to.

The second set comprised five tunes, and the first was a totally unspellable Polish tune, tenor led, drumsticks on cymbals, and the two guitars complementing each other, with hints of J S Bach. Indeed I think Bach would have enjoyed the whole gig. Panettone included martial drums, and Julian told us how another band member, who comes from Moscow, had complained about Putin. Putin had his revenge for that story as there was crackling on the guitar during the tune. Fruity was lively, boppy, with elements of rock music. Halloumi sounded Spanish, then became Eastern, as if the sax was charming snakes.  The final tune, The Cost Of Living, was cooler, calmer, a tune far lovelier than the title would seem to indicate.
What a satisfying evening of Jazz!
Ann Alex

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