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Bebop Spoken There

Branford Marsalis: "As ignorance often forces us to do, you make a generalisation about a musician based on one specific record or one moment in time." - (Jazzwise June 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!"

Postage

15491 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 15 years ago. 512 of them this year alone and, so far, 133 this month (May 31).

From This Moment On ...

June

Sat 03: Newcastle Record Fair @ Northumbria University, Newcastle NE8 8SB. 10:00am-3:00pm. Admission: £2.00.
Sat 03: Pedigree Jazz Band @ St Augustine's Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm.
Sat 03: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. Tutor: Sue Ferris. £25.00. Enrol at: www.jazz.coop.
Sat 03: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 6:00pm. Free.
Sat 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.
Sat 03: Papa G's Troves @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A 'Jar on the Bar' gig.

Sun 04: Smokin' Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm.
Sun 04: Central Bar Quintet @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00-4:00pm. £5.00. The Central Bar Quintet plays Sonny Rollins' Saxophone Colossus. Featuring Lewis Watson.
Sun 04: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 3:00pm.
Sun 04: Struggle Buggy + Michael Littlefield @ Tyne Bar, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Acoustic blues.
Sun 04: Swinging at the Cotton Club: Harry Strutters' Hot Rhythm Orchestra @ The Fire Station, Sunderland. 7:30pm.
Sun 04: Richard Jones Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.
Sun 04: Jam No. 18 @ Fabio's Bar, Saddler Street, Durham. 8:00pm. Free. All welcome. A Durham University Jazz Society event.

Mon 05: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.

Tue 06: Paul Skerritt @ The Rabbit Hole, Hallgarth St., Durham DH1 3AT. 7:00pm. Paul Skerritt's (solo) weekly residency.
Tue 06: Jam session @ Black Swan, Newcastle Arts Centre. 7:30pm. House trio: Stu Collingwood (piano); Paul Grainger (double bass); Sid White (drums).

Wed 07: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Wed 07: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 07: 4B @ The Exchange, North Shields. 7:00pm.
Wed 07: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm.

Thu 08: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free. CANCELLED! BACK ON JUNE 15.
Thu 08: Easington Colliery Brass Band @ The Lubetkin Theatre, Peterlee. 7:00pm. £10.00.
Thu 08: Faye MacCalman + Blue Dust Archive @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 08: Dilutey Juice + Ceramic @ The Ampitheatre, Sea Road, South Shields. 7:00pm. Free. A South Tyneside Festival event.
Thu 08: Lara Jones w. Vigilance State @ Lubber Fiend, Blandford Square, Newcastle. 7:00pm.
Thu 08: Michael Littlefield @ the Harbour View, Roker, Sunderland. 8:00pm. Free. Country blues.
Thu 08: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman's Club, Middlesbrough. 9:00pm.

Fri 09: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm.
Fri 09: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 09: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms, Monkseaton. 1:00pm.
Fri 09: Castillo Nuevo @ Revolución de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30-8:30pm.
Fri 09: Emma Rawicz @ Sage Gateshead. 8:00pm.

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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