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Bebop Spoken There

Billy Boy Arnold: “As long as you don't think old you're good.” - DownBeat, December, 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!"

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

Postage

16034 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 1041 of them this year alone and, so far, 73 this month (Nov. 27).

From This Moment On ...

December

Mon 04: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Mon 04: Northern Monkey Brass Band @ People’s Kitchen, Bath Lane, Newcastle. From 5:30pm. On-street gig supporting the work of the People’s Kitchen charity. Wrap up warm! Donate!
Mon 04: Michael Young Trio w Lindsay Hannon @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 7:00pm. Free.
Mon 04: James Birkett Trio @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £8.00.
Mon 04: Durham University Jazz Orchestra + Durham University Big Band @ Durham Castle DH1 3RW. 8:30pm. £6.00.; £5.00. concs; £4.00. DSM. ‘Jazzy Christmas’.

Tue 05: Customs House Big Band @ All Saints Church, Cleadon. 7:00pm. Concert in the church hall. BYOB.
Tue 05: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Sid White. The best free show in town!

Wed 06: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 06: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 8:00pm. Free. Note later start time, concert performance (open to the public).
Wed 06: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 07: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free CANCELLED!
Thu 07: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Spanish City, Whitley Bay, Newcastle. 12 noon - 4:00pm. £26.00 (inc 3-course meal in in St Mary's Lighthouse Suite). SOLD OUT!
Thu 07: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Gateshead Central Library, Gateshead. 2:30pm. All welcome.
Thu 07: Thursday Night Prayer Meeting @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.Donations. Feat. Mark Sanders. CANCELLED!
Thu 07: Indigo Jazz Voices @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:45pm. £5.00. Downstairs.
Thu 07: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 08: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 08: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 08: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm.
Fri 08: Hayley's Little Big Band @ Woodland Village Hall, Bishop Auckland. 7:00pm. £12.00.
Fri 08: Sleep Suppressor + Redwell @ Head of Steam, Neville St., Newcastle. 8:00pm. £10.00. (£8.00. adv); £5.00. student.
Fri 08: Hot Club du Nord @ St Cuthbert's Church, Shadforth, Co. Durham.
Fri 08: Têtes de Pois + Nauta @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00., £8.00.

Sat 09: Castillo Nuevo Trio @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30pm. Free.
Sat 09: Hayley's Little Big Band @ Middleton & Todridge Village Hall, Morpeth. 7:30pm. £12.00., £6.00.
Sat 09: Paul Skerritt @ Slaley Hall, Hexham NE47 0BX. 7:30pm. From £42.00.

Sun 10: Musicians Unlimited’s Xmas Party with Zoe Gilby Quartet @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. MU 1:00-3:00pm; Zoë Gilby Quartet 4:00-6:00pm. Tickets: £7.50.
Sun 10: Am Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00-4:00pm. Free.
Sun 10: Funk Soul Sista @ Stack, Seaburn. 5:00-7:00pm. Free.
Sun 10: Beth Clarke @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 10: Hayley's Little Big Band @ Whittingham Memorial Institute, Alnwick. 7:30pm. £12.00., £10.00.
Sun 10: Tele-Port @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Line-up inc. Zhenya Strigalev.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

CD Review: Playing the Room - Avishai Cohen, Yonathan Avishai


Avishai Cohen  (trumpet),  Yonathan Avishai   (piano)
(Review by Chris Kilsby)

The first of two outstanding ECM releases this month - both led by trumpet players - this one a duo with piano.  The horn here is that of New York based Israeli Avishai Cohen, not to be confused with the virtuoso bass player of the same name who has been on the scene rather longer.  This Avishai mostly follows a cool and detached jazz dialect here, by contrast to his compatriot namesake’s famously strong Middle Eastern groove. Until digesting this release, I had the trumpeter down as the lesser of the two Cohens, but now I’m not so sure, especially after the bass player’s recent lapse into popular vocals! 


The album is recorded with customary ECM clarity in the Auditorio Stelio Molo RSI in Lugano, resulting in, as claimed in the notes, a resonant, chamber music quality. It is an enthralling, relaxed and subtle statement across the thoughtful end of modern jazz, but built on material for the standards lovers to enjoy.   
Cohen deploys a remarkable range of technique and effects across a variety of material and styles. That’s not to say this is a show off “master class” – the album oozes musical integrity and taste, mostly through under-stated and winding melodic lines, with breathy or blasting interjections, and upper register pyrotechnics tastefully deployed where needed.  

My resident trumpet student was mighty impressed, raving over the echoes of Kenny Wheeler, muted Miles and more.   Such up front  technique and inclusion of so many covers raises the suspicion that Cohen is still looking for a voice of his own, but this is dispelled by the expressive and sensitive tracks here.

Only the first two tracks are originals, the rest being “original” interpretations of classics ranging in time from Duke Ellington to Ornette Coleman.  The first, Opening, by Cohen, sets the tone for the album with thoughtful and lyrical exchanges both solo and duo. Cohen plays sumptuous lines, with a distinctive modern edge, and wastes few notes.  The second, Two Lines, by the pianist, stretches further, with piercing trumpet anchored by complex and subtle harmony and pulse from piano – no drummer needed here!

For the remaining covers, in date order,  Azalea by Duke is lovingly caressed with muted horn and subtle block chords, while Coltrane’s Crescent is a spacious and even more languid rendition than the 1964 original, with soaring but sensitive top end.  The hornless MJQ’s modal 1955 Ralph’s New Blues finally gets a horn part, and both players seem to enjoy exchanging the lead and toying with time.  

Sir Duke is a departure from the other more or less conventional interpretations – this is a very stripped back and restrained version of Stevie Wonder’s jaunty full band and vocals 1976 tribute to Ellington. 

Abdullah Ibrahim’s Kofifi Blue is more upbeat, and a worthy version of the solo piano 1996 original. Here the trumpet sketches lyrically over restrained Cape style piano, and although the trumpet will take the plaudits for most listeners, Yonathan Avishai’s playing and soloing is sensitive and compelling throughout the album. Their long partnership reaches a rare level of intuition, with free soloing by both alongside conventional interlocking combinations and occasional precise doubling.

Ornette Coleman’s Dee Dee is given a more relaxed and sparse, but still engaging, treatment than the 2001 original. The album closes with my favourite,  Shir Eres, a delicate and exquisitely played traditional lullaby.

Overall, not a landmark due to the preponderance of covers, but a strongly recommended listen for students of trumpet (and piano!). Already a repeat listening favourite – the reflective and calm mood a good antidote for the strident chaos of recent weeks’ current affairs.
Touring all over Europe, but not in the UK as far as I can see. Seems in keeping with the times...

Chris K
Release date: 06.09.2019 ECM 2641 Format CD LP    Recorded September 2018

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