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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

17680 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 23 of them this year alone and, so far, 23 this month (Jan. 9).

From This Moment On ...

January 2025

Mon 13: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 13: Raymond MacDonald & Andy Champion @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 14: Zoë Gilby Quintet @ Newcastle House Hotel, Rothbury. 7:30pm.

Wed 15: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 15: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 15: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 15: Hot Club of Heaton @ Elder Beer, Heaton, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘third Wednesday in the month’ session. TBC.

Thu 16: Pete Tanton & the Cuban Heels @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Fri 17: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT!
Fri 17: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 17: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 17: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 17: Joe Steels Trio w. Graham Hardy @ The Pele, Corbridge. 7:00pm. £10.00. (inc. a welcome drink & table reservation). Book at: www.drinks@thepele.co.uk. A ‘Jazz at the Pele’ promotion.
Fri 17: Russ Morgan Quartet @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. Opus 4 Jazz Club.
Fri 17: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 18: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 18: Alter Ego + Jamie Toms/Graham Don Duo @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 7:30pm. £15.00. at the door; £14.35. (inc £0.35 bf) online, in advance.
Sat 18: Delta Prophets @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 19: Glenn Miller Orchestra UK @ Glasshouse, Gateshead. 3:00pm. ‘Glenn Miller & the Rat Pack Era’.
Sun 19: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 19: Spilt Milk @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 5:15-7:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Sun 19: Tenement Jazz Band @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 19: Nick Ross Orchestra @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 7:30pm.
Sun 19: Freight Train (Tobin/Noble/Clarvis) @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

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

Sunday, September 08, 2019

Artephis @ The Globe Jazz Bar, Newcastle – September 7. A joint venture by Jazz North East and the Jazz Co-op in connection with Jazz North 'Northern Line'

Aaron Wood (trumpet, flugelhorn, electronics); James Girling (guitar); Ali Roocroft (keyboard); Alasdair Simpson (bass guitar); Matt Brown (drums)
(Review by Ann Alex/ Photos courtesy of Ken Drew).
Well, what a brilliant evening of music is all I can say, and I'm sure the full house Globe audience would agree! This was listed as 'contemporary progressive jazz' so I was unsure if I'd latch onto it, but by the second piece I was hooked. See the quotation currently shown in the Bebop Spoken There box above, something about harming musicians by categorising them, how true in this case. This was simply (but not simple) great music, describe it how you will.
Mostly original pieces and the first tune Feroz (composed by Aaron Wood) took a while to bed down in my brain; it began with grooves and a trumpet line, then a keys one, a slowing down into snatches, guitar and trumpet call and response, trumpet leads, then all play to a sudden stop, the kind of sudden stop you get from many rock bands nowadays.

Tabula Rasa (comp. Girling) began with a beautiful cool, calm 'landscape' type of feeling tune on keys, building up to a heavier, louder sound as the whole band joined the theme, with steady drumbeats towards the ending.

I hope these descriptions give readers some 'feel' for the music played. The next piece was Chagrin; Know Her (comp. Girling) and was mainly drums led. The first set concluded differently and more traditionally with a boppy number Inner Urge (Joe Henderson), which could have been sung by the likes of Sheila Jordan, and with solos all round.

I was kindly supplied with the set list during the interval and my informant declared that he would announce the tunes in the second set, which he did in an amiable manner, so full marks for communication as well as music. So he first announced Glow (comp. Aaron Wood) a slow build-up of layers of sound with a skilled guitar prog rock type solo which took me back to 1970's evenings of music and wine.

 Treading Water was influenced by a musical partita (sounds more like an Italian meal) and ended with an interesting gruff-sounding guitar. Herbie Hancock's Eye Of The Hurricane ended with a superb drum solo; February (comp Girling) was loud and wild like that month's weather and Quinoa (comp. Girling) started with rumbles, then a strong tune and 'growling' guitar. That tune came about when Girling visited a quinoa-growing region of the world and realised the problems that the farmers had to deal with.

We all demanded an encore, which was the band's take on Caravan, over a strong Latin beat.
Then we all went home, very musically satisfied.
Ann Alex

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