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Bebop Spoken There

Ambrose Akinmusire: “ I am certainly always aware of what the masses are doing. And when I see too many people going one way, I'm going another way - even when I don't know what's over that way". DownBeat, March, 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

Tue 19: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Tim Johnston.

Wed 20: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 20: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 20: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 21: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 21: Castillo Neuvo Trio + Conor Emery & His ‘Bones Band @ The Grove, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:30pm (7:00pm doors). £10.00. (£7.00. student).
Thu 21: Remi Banklyn + Chris Corcoran Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.50. Chicago blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Thu 21: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Ragtime piano.
Thu 21: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 22: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 22: Nauta + Remy CB + Last Orders @ Hoochie Coochie, Newcastle. 8:30pm (7:30pm doors). Free.
Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. £15.00. Opus 4 Jazz Club.
Fri 22: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 23: Jambone @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 6:30pm. Free (ticketed). End of term performance in the Northern Rock Foundation Hall.
Sat 23: Milne-Glendinning Band @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 23: Red Kites Jazz @ Rowlands Gill Community Centre NE39 1JB. 7:00pm. Tickets: £12.00. (gibsidecommunityfarm@gmail.com). A ‘Build a Barn’ fundraiser. BYOB, tea/coffee available.
Sat 23: New Century Ragtime Orchestra @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £20.00. + bf (book in person at venue - no booking fee!). Featuring pianist Martin Litton.
Sat 23: Pete Tanton’s Cuba Libre @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 24: Musicians Unlimited @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 24: Luis Verde @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Verde (alto sax); Joe Steels (guitar); John Pope (double bass); John Hirst (drums). Alto sax brilliance!
Sun 24: Elsie Franklin @ The Globe, Newcastle. 3:00pm. £10.00. Country blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Sun 24: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay Metro Station. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: Las Vegas Live with the Rat Pack @ The Forum, Billingham.
Sun 24: Ian Millar & Dominic Spencer @ Otterburn Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00.
Sun 24: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Note start time - 7:00pm.
Sun 24: Bold Big Band @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 25: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 25: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Sunday, April 07, 2019

Bill Laurance @ Sage Gateshead - April 6

(Review by Chris Kilsby)

A packed Sage 2 (including Level 2) for the fifth appearance at Sage Gateshead of the now well established "jazz maestro" pianist Bill Laurance.  This time solo, with one of Sage's Steinways augmented by various boxes of tricks to reproduce live the multi-effects on his new solo album Cables.  I had seen him twice before at the Sage, but with excellent bands, including colleagues from Snarky Puppy, the international jazz/funk collective phenomenon he co-founded.  I approached this gig with interest, to see if he could match the levels of composition and playing of those superb outings on his own. 

The first four numbers were on "clean" piano, starting with an old familiar favourite, December in New York, from his 2015 album, Swift. This gorgeous tune went down well, as ever, although I missed the deluxe rhythm section on the recording and previous outings.   A similar treatment of the second number, Chia, from Flint, 2014, and then onto the first new number, Ebb Tide.  Laurance's classically founded style in full flow here, with arpeggiated and repeated block chords, interspersed with long, meandering right hand runs and slides, varied and stretched to the maximum effect, wringing out the last drop of emotional highs and lows, much to the appreciation of the audience (and some of my party...)

Laurance is an assured performer nowadays, his easy rapport enhanced through lengthy, personal chats between songs. He addressed the issue of solo touring, saying how much he relished the simplicity and independence, and not waiting for the drummer to get out of bed for "lobby call". Now, I know some drummers, ironically, aren't good at being on time, but by now I was thinking a drummer (and bass player) of the calibre he is used to would be well worth waiting for!

The next number was one of only two mainly improvised pieces, based around House of the Rising Sun, perhaps an unspoken homage to our local Animals?  He then announced a change of mood, closing the first set with Kinsman, ramping up to the second "party set" by unleashing some of the synths, prepared sounds, loops and (lots of) reverb: moving away from Go Go Penguin and Einaudi territory, into Vangelis (!).
The second set opened with The Keeper introducing the drum machine, matching the "moral of this song, if there is one" which was "the significance of persistence". The idea was "try, try again", but I reckoned the tedium of the machine came through, and Laurance followed up, admitting he missed the chemistry of a drummer when faced with the "on-off" nature of the machine.  His introduction to the title track expounded the album concept as the "connected" nature of modern life and humanity, with the advent of AI and the machine. This was inspired by The Transcendent Man, a documentary film of Ray Kurzweil and his predictions of androids by 2029. 

The feel of the second set was rather more DJ than the album, including a session with vocoder before the final song, Cassini, inspired by the trajectory of the space mission to Saturn.  This held my attention well, with variety and structure, and a welcome dose of the melodic invention that catapulted him to fame.   Enthusiastic applause delivered a contrasting encore:  improvised clean piano for a change, showing real jazz chops around what my son's sensitive ears detected as the classic Caravan, but I guess the Michel Petrucciani version rather than that of Duke.

Overall, a well appreciated evening, but for me not reaching the heady heights of his previous ensemble efforts.  Too often, the playing fell back on the formulaic pseudo-classical, tending towards cheesy film-music at times, but obviously very popular with the paying public. The synth elements are more effective on the recorded work and detracted from Laurance's undoubted melodic inventiveness.   If the moral for this concert was to be "the significance of persistence", then please Bill, give the drummer (and the other fabulous musicians) another try!

Chris.

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