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Bebop Spoken There

Abbie Finn: "Even though there's a lot of great work being done to promote women in jazz, I still come up against some attitudes! I pulled up at a recording session with my drums in the car and the studio owner said, 'I'm sorry, this space is reserved for the drummer!'" - (Jazzwise April 2023).

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!"

Postage

15245 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 264 of them this year alone and, so far, 77 this month (March 25).

From This Moment On ...

March

Sun 26: Musicians Unlimited @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. 1:00pm.
Sun 26: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm.
Mar 26: Pop Jazz @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. 'Jazzified' tunes by the likes of Sylvester, Bowie, the Monkees etc., feat. Alan Law, David Gray, Richard Herdman & Jude Murphy.
Sun 26: Outlines @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. JNE promotion (upstairs).

Mon 27: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.

Tue 28: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Hallgarth St., Durham DH1 3AT. 7:00pm. Paul Skerritt's (solo) weekly residency.
Tue 28: Sanaz Lavasani Trio @ Black Swan, Newcastle Arts Centre. 8:00pm. £12.00 (£10.00. adv).

Wed 29: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Wed 29: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 29: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:00pm.
Wed 29: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 30: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Gateshead Central Library. 2:30-4:30pm. £2.00. All welcome.
Thu 30: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. Back to 1:00pm stomp off. Free.
Thu 30: '58 Jazz Collective @ Hops & Cheese, Hartlepool. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 30: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Harbour View, Sunderland. 8:00pm.
Thu 30: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman's Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 31: Lewis Watson Quartet @ Bishop Auckland Town Hall. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT!
Fri 31: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 31: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 31: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm. CANCELLED! Back next week (April 7).
Fri 31: Jasmine Myra + Waclaw Zimpel @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Fri 31: The Revolutionaires @ The Shack, Boldon Colliery. 7:30pm. £10.00. The Revolutionaires' big band (horn section) line-up.
Fri 31: Andrew McCormack @ Maltings, Berwick. 8:00pm. £20.00.

April
Sat 01: The Big Easy @ St Augustine's Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm.
Sat 01: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. Tutor: Steve Glendinning - In a Minor Key. £25.00. Enrol at: www.jazz.coop.
Sat 01: Hot Club du Nord @ Pleased to Meet You, Bridge St., Morpeth. 8:00pm. £79.00. A charity fundraising event.
Sat 01: Boys of Brass @ Stack, Seaburn. 7:00-9:00pm.
Sat 01: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00. RESCHEDULED to next week (Sat 08).

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

CD Review: One O'Clock Lab Band - Lab 2018: The Rhythm of the Road.

The North Texas One O 'Clock Lab Band was perhaps the first American college big band to make a worldwide impact on the jazz scene. Although the University of North Texas' music department can be traced back to the 1920's, maybe even earlier, it was in 1940, at the height of the big band era, that it first came to the notice of a wider public other than friends, parents and fellow students. Just as most American Universities cossetted their track and field stars, North Texas, I guess, nurtured their instrumental students. I recall hearing the band on Willis Conover's VOA shows some years later and being knocked out thinking this was maybe Kenton or Herman.
Fast forward to today and blindfold test someone with a Kenton or a Herman record and they'd probably say, "North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band".
School, college, university bands have multiplied in numbers and ability but I doubt if any have surpassed this current intake. They know how to swing, to solo and to put the boot in.
Wow!
Tremendous solos, Nathman and Newman, who are also the two youngest members set the benchmark on the opening Hey, It's me You're Talkin' to.
They blow up a storm. Giving these two the first solos is like giving Man City a 2 goal start.

Having said that, the other soloists are far from being Huddersfield Town!* Woodbury's trombone on the title track is blistering without blasting, Kazunori Tanaka's plunger solo on Blues for Kazu is worthy of Cootie/Bubber or any of the other Ellington plumbers, dare I say it, even better?

A Flower is a Lovesome Thing, imaginatively arranged by Kyle Gordon and winsomely sung by Marion Powers. It also has some effective piano by Paul Lees.
I could wax eloquent about all the soloists but, you've probably got the message by now that this Train (track 3) don't carry no passengers least of all Powers whose voice is once again woven into the tapestry. Arranged by Moore, he also plays a very lyrical tenor solo on the tune composed by Chris Potter.

Birds of a Feather has Bellaire sizzling on soprano; Without a Doubt, a tricky arrangement but, without a doubt, Sam Cousineau on alto and Brett Lamel sail through it individually before having a four-bar joust to the death.

Villa-Lobos' Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 was arranged by Woodbury but he unselfishly cues in the trombone solo for section-mate DJ Rice. Bass player Reyes is also prominent.
After the Rain, by 'Trane, arranged by Moore, features Wilkins on flute drawing a comment from MD Blaylock - "In almost 25 years in front of big bands I've never heard a flute sound as gorgeous as Brendon's". He could have said the same about Newman's flugelhorn solo.

A rhythm section that sparkles and an arranging team that provides charts that only the very best can handle make this one of the best big band albums around.
Lance.

Available from Sept. 26 via the usual suspects.
Alan Blaylock (MD); Kyle Bellaire, Sam Cousineau, Brandon Moore, Will Nathman, Brendon Wilkins (reeds); Nick Owsik, Adam Horne, Huang-Hsiang Chang, Kazunori Tanaka, Gregory Newman (trumpets); Brian Woodbury, DJ Rice, Brett Lamel, Tommy Barttels, Kenny Davis (trombones); Paul Lees (piano/keys); Daniel Pinilla (guitar); Raul Reyes (bass); John Sturino (drums); Marion Powers (voice).
*Manchester City had just beaten Huddersfield Town 6-1 at the time of writing.

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