Bebop Spoken There

Joe Alterman: ''All I wanted to do growing up was to sound like Erroll Garner playing "Poor Butterfly." I thought that was the coolest sound I'd ever heard.'' (DownBeat November, 2026)

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

19,086 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 950 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Nov. 7) 20.

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

From This Moment On

November

Sun 08: Mike Durham’s International Classic Jazz Party @ Village Hotel, West Allotment. 12 noon. Day 3/3.
Sun 08: ’58 Jazz Collective @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 08: Am Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 08: Greg Abate w. Dean Stockdale Trio @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm.
Sun 08: Kaberry Big Band @ Forest Hall Social Club. 3:00pm. £7.00 (inc. tea & cake). Charity event for the Poppy Appeal.
Sun 08: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 08: Greg Abate w. Dean Stockdale Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 09: Bechet-Spanier Quartet @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm. £9.00.; £5.00. Muggsy Spanier was born 125 years ago today (9 November 1901). This afternoon’s all-star quartet - from London, Lewis Taylor (cornet) & Michael McQuaid (reeds), from Paris, Félix Hunot (guitar), from London, Harry Evans (string bass) - salutes Muggsy!
Mon 09: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 09: Bechet-Spanier Quartet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00. Muggsy Spanier was born 125 years ago today (9 November 1901). This evening’s all-star quartet - from London, Lewis Taylor (cornet), from London, Michael McQuaid (reeds), from Paris, Félix Hunot (guitar), from London, Harry Evans (string bass) - salutes Muggsy!

Tue 10: Alan Law @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 2:00pm. Free. Alan Law (piano) w. Becky Tuck (vocals).
Tue 10: Jazz Jam Sandwich @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Wed 11: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 11: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 11: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 11: Plague Doctors Cure All + Noonward @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 8:00pm. JNE.

Thu 12: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 12: JANE @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 12: MoonMot + Jack Banjo’s Snackwall @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 12: Ratio: Swingin’ Through the Decades @ The Forum, Darlington. 8:00pm (7:30pm doors). £10.00. A charity fundraiser.
Thu 12: Look Left @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £8.00.
Thu 12: Michael Woods @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free (donations). Acoustic blues.

Fri 13: Giles Strong Quartet @ Bishop Auckland Methodist Church. 1:00pm. £9.00. Giles Strong (guitar); Dean Stockdale (piano); Mick Shoulder (double bass); John Bradford (drums).
Fri 13: Lapwing Trio @ Jesmond Library, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £5.00. Richard Herdman, Jude Murphy, Paula Whitty.
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: Northern Monkey Brass Band @ Hexham Lantern Parade, Bandstand, Sele, Hexham. 6:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: Sharp Collective @ Dry Water Arts, Amble. 7:00pm.
Fri 13: East Coast Swing Band @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:30pm.
Fri 13: Guisborough Big Band @ Saltburn Golf Club. 7:30pm. Tickets: £15.00 (inc. pie & peas

Sat 14: Lianne Carroll: Jazz Vocal Weekend Workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 9:30am-5:00pm. £95.00. Day 1/2. SOLD OUT!
Sat 14: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal.
Sat 14: Pete Tanton’s Chet Set @ Claypath Deli, Durham. 7:00pm (6:30pm doors). £13.20 (inc. bf); £11.00 concs (inc. bf).
Sat 14: Red Kites Jazz @ Staiths Café, Gateshead. 7:00pm.
Sat 14: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Tweed Gallery, Berwick. 7:30pm. Free.

Friday, May 18, 2018

Dom Pipkin @ The Forum, Darlington - May 17

Dom Pipkin (piano/vocal)
(Review by Lance)
The choices were multiple: Alan Barnes with the Paul Edis Trio in Fenham; the Alex Hitchcock Quintet at the Jazz Café; Dom Pipkin playing solo piano in Darlo and a few others. Tough calls all around. Alan Barnes is my favourite alto player and the Edis Trio are guaranteed to provide the perfect backdrop and much more, whilst the recent release by the Alex Hitchcock Quintet indicated that they are a band on the up and up and one to get in on the ground floor (albeit, the first floor at JC) saying "I was there!"
In the end, I opted for a drive down the A1(M)/A167 to Darlington.
Why? Well, as an indication of how frequent a visitor Alan Barnes is to the area - one of BSH's worthy constituents refers to him as "Barnsey!" (How familiar can you get?!) and I knew there would be plenty more opportunities.
I also knew that BSH would have representation at The Caff so, as I'd been mega impressed by Pipkin and his Ikos when they played Hoochie, I drove my Chevy to the Darlo Levee or, to be more precise, The Forum.
It was a wise decision.
A history of New Orleans' piano legends by a man who, if he'd been born in the French Quarter maybe 100 years earlier would have been one himself and, after tonight's showing,  he's still got time.
Jelly Roll Morton, Professor Longhair, James Booker, Fats Domino and Doctor John provided the staple fayre with Pipkin displaying his own prodigious piano technique topped with blues-drenched vocals and inter-round summaries in between pieces.
All done in an entertaining style that had the audience demanding more.
And they got it, although possibly not quite what they were expecting!
I'll be Seeing You as played by Liberace, as interpreted by James Booker, and performed by the InDOMinitable Pipkin.
It's no surprise he sold a lot of Smokin' Boogie CDs. I've heard it and reviewed it, listened to it again and loved it.
Music:
Iko Iko; Basin St. Blues; The Crave (Morton); Farewell to Storyville (from the film New Orleans); Louisiana (Percy Mayfield); Mardi Gras in New Orleans (Longhair); Whole Lotta Lovin' (Longhair/Domino); Love Affair With New Orleans (Pipkin); Blue Monday (Domino); Pixie (Booker); Junco Partner Blues (Booker); Such a Night (Dr. John); Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans? (film New Orleans); Those Old Cotton Fields Back Home and I'll be Seeing You.
Lance.
PS: During the interval, I chatted with David Pipkin who informed he was a founding member of the Safe Sextet (2018 version is at The Fox in Hexham next Tuesday, May 22) and I took some pics of Dom.
Where are they? I hear you ask.
Life's never perfect, is it? Taking my jacket off when I got home, camera fell out of my pocket and landed on the hard floor. The camera survived but the photos didn't!
Now I'm the one singin' the blues...
Sorry Dom.

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