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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

15229 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 248 of them this year alone and, so far, 61 this month (March 20).

From This Moment On ...

March

Sat 25: Vermont Big Band @ Walker Community Centre, Walker, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Fundraiser for Benfield Juniours Football Club. Hot food available, BYOB.
Sat 25: John Logan & Friends @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Rat Pack, Motown etc. 8:00pm. Free (donations).

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.

Monday, September 10, 2018

The Niffi Osiyemi Trio @ The Globe – September 8

Nifemi Osiyemi (vocals); Alan Law (piano); Paul Grainger (drums)
(Review by Ann Alex/Photo courtesy of Sheila Herrick)
I’d wanted to hear Niffi ever since I recently caught the tail end of one of her songs at a Jazz Cafe jam session, where she’d gone down a storm. Saturday night was my chance, and thank goodness I was there, as this gig was a real humdinger. Niffi’s voice is rich and sultry, the delivery skilled and enthusiastic, and her friendly personality shone throughout. The material included some numbers that you don’t hear very often nowadays, such as Darktown Strutters’ Ball.
But no drummer?
No problem! This gave lots more space for soloing on piano, and especially for the bass to really show what he could do. Paul had long, rich, solos, fooling the audience (and possibly Niffi and Alan!) with pretend endings, encouraging and clapping along for some tunes, unusual variations, and even knocking on the instrument’s belly during Hallelujah I Love Him So to illustrate the boy next door calling on his girlfriend. And the audience, mostly younger people, was with the band all the way.
Almost Like Being In Love, began Niffi, and I believe the audience fell in love with her voice. The instrumentalists had solos during most songs, an advantage of being a trio. I Love Being Here With You, she sang, surely a message to the audience. Then came a slow, slinky Undecided (First you say you will and then you won’t); a bluesy Why Don’t You Do Right? very expressive, with some wordless vocals.
The audience needed some swing, in the form of This Can’t Be Love. Then came one of my personal favourite songs, not heard often enough, so thank you Niffi from me, for I Keep Going Back To Joe’s. As Niffi said, this song conveys perfectly the atmosphere of a smoky, lonely bar. Hallelujah I Love Him So had Alan doing great blocks of sound on piano, Paul with his false endings and knocking the body of the bass, all stops out. Darktown Strutters’ Ball rounded off the first half with scat singing.

The second half was even livelier: Sweet Georgia Brown was slow then faster; Get Happy had a beautiful melodic piano introduction, fast bass, audience clap-a-long, then Niffi  holding one of the longest notes I’ve heard this year, I wish I had her lungs! A surprise, Radiohead’s Creep, a rather dark rock number, which I wish had lasted longer as it’s a very satisfying song to sing. (I know, I’ve tried it). Bill Bailey Won’t You Please Come Home? had some original words as the singer sang that she was sick of the words usually sung! After Drown In My Own Tears and I’ll Put A Spell On You, we had I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free, which was sung with feeling as it was the first song that Niffi did in public; the final song was Let The Good Times Roll, with fearless, wild, high, scat, and an improvising mention of all people, old, young, from wherever, Darlington, Newcastle...

A fitting finale to an exuberant evening.

Ann Alex    

1 comment :

Robin Bosanquet said...

Completely agree that this was a great evening. What a great Trio and Niffi's voice is very special.

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