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Bebop Spoken There

Béla Fleck: “ And that's the great thing about live performances, you take people on a journey. It doesn't have to be like something else they've heard. It's not supposed to be". DownBeat, April, 2024.

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!"

Simon Spillett: A lovely review from the dean of jazz bloggers, Lance Liddle...

Josh Weir: I love the writing on bebop spoken here... I think the work you are doing is amazing.

Postage

16287 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 169 of them this year alone and, so far, 41 this month (Mar 18).

From This Moment On ...

March

Thu 28: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 28: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Gateshead Central Library, Gateshead. 2:30pm.
Thu 28: Richard Herdman Quartet @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Thu 28: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Guests: Josh Bentham (alto sax); Alan Marshall (tenor sax); Neil Brodie (trumpet); Adrian Beadnell (bass); Graham Thompson (keys); Steve Hunter (drums).

Fri 29: FILM: Soul @ The Forum Cinema, Hexham. 12:30pm. Jazz-themed film animation.
Fri 29: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 29: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 29: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 29: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 6:00pm. Free. POSTPONED!
Fri 29: Thundercat @ Newcastle City Hall.
Fri 29: John Logan @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 30: Papa G’s Troves @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 30: Pete Tanton’s Cuba Libre @ Whitley Bay Library, York Road, Whitley Bay. 8:00pm.

Sun 31: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay Metro Station. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 31: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, Union Quay, North Shields NE30 1HJ. 3:00pm. Free. Lambert, Alan Law & Paul Grainger.
Sun 31: Sid Jacobs & Tom Remon @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. USA/London jazz guitar duo.
Sun 31: Bellavana @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

April
Mon 01: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 02: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Dean Stockdale, Paul Grainger, Abbie Finn.

Wed 03: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 03: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 03: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Tuesday, March 05, 2019

Joy Ellis Quartet @ The Globe - March 2

Joy Ellis (voice, piano); James Kitchman (guitar); Henrik Jensen (bass); Adam Osmianski (drums)
(Review by Ann Alex/Photo courtesy of Sheila Herrick).

I’d seen this band at the Globe last year and some of us had been to the afternoon workshop at the Sage where we learned about Brazilian Samba and jazz with Joy and Adam, so I was really looking forward to this gig. I wasn’t disappointed and neither was the rest of the audience.

No Brazilian music tonight, but original songs in a contemporary vein, very atmospheric songs about London and cities in general, a song to welcome a new baby, a piece about a conspiracy theory, one about an icy, snowy day, even a song illustrating a jam session. Not the usual whole song then solos all round, but complex arrangements, often led by voice/piano or guitar.


It began with tuneful piano, quite folk-like, a feeling of landscape produced by cymbals, joined by guitar, Daffodils, written to welcome a friend’s new baby into the world. Then came a boppy influenced song, From Dusk Till Dawn (I think, sorry, I didn’t catch all the titles); Then came Life On Land, from the band’s debut album, long piano chords and slow cymbals to open, then speeding up. Biding My Time had been written in response to Joy hearing about a conspiracy theory connected to the American Apollo 11 project, an interesting set of lyrics, ‘You once called me Pollyanna’. City was from an album in preparation, an atmospheric, descriptive piece, effective lyrics mentioning traffic, the rain, the young executive, and traffic-type sounds from the band, and the whole piece went along at exactly my brisk walking pace, how did Joy know? 

The second set began with In The Quiet, a slow song with wisps of sound, a bowed bass, then the tune gradually became more firm.  The Jazz Man was fun, lively and satirical, about the rivalry of jam sessions, with typical solos from piano and guitar. A song which Joy said was a work in progress was followed by Ice On The River, with scraped cymbals for the ice and a ‘cold ‘sound on guitar. We thought that was it, but a man in the audience had other ideas. He asked Joy to sing something from the GASbook, perhaps not realising that this was a different sort of gig. After another of the band’s originals, a ‘city’ song, Joy obliged by singing In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning, in a subtly different vocal style, to suit the song.

A truly enjoyable evening.

Ann Alex.
(Editor's note - James Kitchman first came to our notice circa 2009/10 when he was a regular sitter-in at the Take it to the Bridge sessions when they were held in The Chillingham. Good to see his career has well and truly taken hold.)

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