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Bebop Spoken There

Steve Coleman: ''If you don't keep learning, your mind slows down. Use it or lose it''. (DownBeat, January 2025).

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

17733 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 53 of them this year alone and, so far, 53 this month (Jan. 20).

From This Moment On ...

January 2025

Wed 22: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 22: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 22: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 22: Pasadena Roof Orchestra @ Fire Station, Sunderland. 7:30pm.

Thu 23: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, Holystone. 1:00pm. Free. Fortnightly.
Thu 23: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: Obituaries 2024.
Thu 23: Jason Isaacs @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 4:30-6:30pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Thu 23: Pedal Point Trio @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Fri 24: Zoë Gilby Quartet @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT!
Fri 24: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 24: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 24: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 24: Creakin’ Bones & the Sunday Dinners @ Lindisfarne Social Club, Wallsend. 9:00pm. Admission: TBC. Jazz, blues , jump jive, rock ‘n’ roll.

Sat 25: Boys of Brass @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 3:30-5:30pm. Free.
Sat 25: New '58 Jazz Collective @ Jackson's Wharf, Hartlepool. 6:30pm (doors). Free. A Burns' Night event. Jazz, swing, funk, soul, blues etc.
Sat 25: Edison Herbert Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 25: Red Kites Jazz @ Parish Hall, St Barnabas’ Church, Rowlands Gill. 7:30pm. £10.00. BYOB (tea & coffee available), raffle. Proceeds to St Barnabas’ Church. Performance feat. Shayo (vocals).
Sat 25: Jack & Jay’s Songbook @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 26: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Graham Hardy Eclectic Quartet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm.
Sun 26: Ruth Lambert Trio @ The Juke Shed, Union Quay, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Jazz Jam Sandwich! @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 26: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Barrels Ale House, Berwick-upon-Tweed. 7:30pm. Free.
Sun 26: Gratkowski, Tramontana, Beresford, Affifi @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00. JNE.
Sun 26: Jazz Jam @ Fabio’s, Saddler St., Durham. 8:00pm. Free. A Durham University Jazz Society promotion. All welcome.

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

Tue 28: ???

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

Thu 30: Matters Unknown (aka Jonathan Enser, Nubiyan Twist) + support TBA @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 8:00pm (7:00pm doors). £12.22 (gig & food); £9:04 (gig only).
Thu 30: Soznak @ The Mill Tavern, Hebburn. 8:00pm. Free.
Thu 30: Struggle Buggy @ Harbour View, Roker, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Rhythm & blues.

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

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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