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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

17972 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 293 of them this year alone and, so far, 49 this month (April 22).

From This Moment On ...

April 2025.

Wed 23: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 23: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 23: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. CANCELLED!

Thu 24: Mary Coughlan @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £33.80. Blues, jazz etc.
Thu 24: Darlington Big Band @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Fri 25: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT! Duo performance.
Fri 25: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 25: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 25: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 25: Andrea Vicari Trio @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. Vicari (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); Russ Morgan (drums).
Fri 25: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 4:00-6:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Fri 25: Red Kites Jazz @ Land of Oak & Iron, Winlaton Mill. 6:00-9:00pm. Free.
Fri 25: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 7:30pm. £15.00. at the door; £14.35. (inc £0.35 bf) online, in advance.
Fri 25: Struggle Buggy @ The White Room, Stanley. 7:45pm. Rhythm & blues.
Fri 25: Paul Skerritt Big Band @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £20.30., £18.00. All-star big band.
Fri 25: Andrea Vicari Trio @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. Vicari (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); Russ Morgan (drums). An Opus 4 Jazz Club event.

Sat 26: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 26: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ Elvet Methodist Church, Durham. 7:30pm. Tickets: £12.00. + bf. Duo performance.
Sat 26: Neil Cowley Trio @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £22.50.
Sat 26: Pete Tanton & the Cuban Heels @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

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: ???

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

Thursday, December 28, 2017

Tees Valley Jazzmen @ No.1 Market Place, Bishop Auckland - Dec 28

Gavin Lee (soprano sax), Don Fairley (trombone), Keith Belton (piano & vocals), Gavin Belton (banjo), Tom Derbyshire (double bass) & Mike Humble (drums) + Alf Langthorne (piano), Brian Wilkins (banjo), Kate Bulman (vocals) & Jimmy Robinson (vocals)
(Review by Russell).
Lunchtime, last Thursday of the month, the Tees Valley Jazzmen set up in the window of No.1 Market Place in Bishop Auckland to play some Dixieland tunes. Part coffee shop, part bar, its close proximity to Auckland Castle (presently closed for major redevelopment works), the Town Hall (closed until January!) and the Stanley Jefferson (a Wetherspoon's public house named in honour of Stan Laurel - the great man went to school nearby), attracts plenty of passers-by, a few stop in their tracks...yes, that is a jazz band playing to a full house!
In a couple of years the Tess Valley Jazzmen will clock up their 50th year playing gigs across the northeast, and, indeed, in their time they have performed nationally and internationally. Founding member Keith Belton is still at the helm, brother Gavin is a fixture, and the present front line - Gavin Lee and Don Fairley - is as good as any working the Dixieland circuit. 

Everbody Loves My Baby with Lee on soprano sax, the session was underway. Kate Bulman sang Route 66 and would return periodically during the afternoon. Keith Belton vacated the piano stool in favour of Alf Langthorne, in so doing taking the opportunity to sing Carry Me Back to Old Virginny. 

Raffle tickets were sold during the first set with gig-goers accepting the offer of a complimentary chocolate or toffee from a large tin, the sort piled high in supermarkets in the run-up to Christmas. With pint in hand MC Gavin Lee said the band would take a short break, returning presently.

Nobody's Sweetheart opened the second set followed by a US Civil War tune which heard the band Marching Through Georgia. Vocalist Bulman sang Careless Love, Lee featured on Louis' Hot Five classic Struttin' with some Barbecue, and, said our soprano sax ace, the Tees Valley would play something a bit modern - ie early 30s!. And so they played Darkness on the Delta (a hit for Mildred Bailey). Keith Belton sang Ice Cream (with audience participation) and friend of the TVJ, Mr Jimmy Robinson joined the band to Rock Around the Clock. An enjoyable afternoon drew to a close with Belton singing Goin' Home
Russell.  

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