Bebop Spoken There

Ludovic Beier (Django Festival Allstars): ''Manouche means 'free man,' and gypsies have been travelers since they migrated west from India to Europe.'' (DownBeat March, 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

18383 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 247 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Mar. 17 ), 57

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

March

Mon 30: Gerry Richardson Quartet @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm.
Mon 30: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 31: Bede Trio @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Albert Hills Wright (alto sax); Finn Carter (piano); Michael Dunlop (double bass).

April

Wed 01: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 01: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 01: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 02: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00. Subject: Musicians playing classical & orchestral music.
Thu 02: The Noel Dennis Band @ Prohibition Bar, Albert Road, Middlesbrough TS1 2RU. 7:00pm (doors). £10.84. Quartet plus special guest Zoë Gilby. Over 21s only.
Thu 02: Renegade Brass Band @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors).
Thu 02: Shalala @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £7.00. adv..
Thu 02: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

CD Review: Sarah Reich - New Change.

Tap dancing is generally regarded as 80%visual and 20% aural maybe less. Tap dancing, like drum solos, is one of those things that bring the house down on the night but, in the cold light of morning, when heard on record, often loses the excitement. As indeed do so many things, come the dawn...
Seeing a drummer hitting everything in sight at a phenomenal speed is terrific. the sticks a blur, the body language, it's one of those things - nobody ever left a Buddy Rich concert raving about the trumpets or the saxes, good as they were.
Likewise with tap dancers. They execute with their feet what drummers do with their sticks. Again, it's not the same on record - or is it?
Enter Sarah Reich.
Sarah, performer, choreographer, instructor, composer, and a regular with Postmodern Jukebox could change all that. The way she integrates her pedal extremities into the ensembles is magic - every band should have a Sarah Reich!
An assortment of A-list accompanists and vocalists provide the support that makes this something more than a novelty. Sax solos, trumpet blasts, boppish arrangements, drums and taps exchanging fours, and inter-track summaries by fellow tap enthusiasts make this all rather special. Sarah wants to be the first tap dancer to win a Grammy Award. 
Don't bet against it!
Lance.

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