Bebop Spoken There

Gary Bartz: ''Music is nature's gift to man. It's the only religion. We're living in a terrible era, but what a beautiful thing music is. Look how it brings us together like religion is supposed to; and with no language barriers.'' (Jazzwise September, 2026)

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

18897 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 761 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Sept. 11.) 40.

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

From This Moment On

September.

Mon 14: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 15: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Ben Lawrence, Paul Grainger, Bailey Rudd.

Wed 16: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 16: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 16: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 17: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 17: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 17: Front Porch Blues @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 17: Miles 100 @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00., £10.00., £7.00. Jack Courtney (trumpet); Sue Ferris (tenor sax); Tom Atkinson (guitar); Alan Law (piano); Deon Krishnan (bass); Jeff Armstrong (drums). A night of Miles Davis.
Thu 17: Amphitrio @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £7.00. Andrei Petrache (piano); Mike Alex (double bass); Philip Goron (drums).

Fri 18: Danny Lownes’ Hot Club @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 18: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 18: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 18: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 18: Mark Williams Trio @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm. Old Black Cat Jazz Club.
Fri 18: Emma Fisk’s Hot Club du Nord @ St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. 7:30pm. £10.00., £5.00. student.
Fri 18: Rivkala + Beccy Sloan @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £10.00.

Sat 19: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. All welcome.
Sat 19: Sing Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00-5:00pm. £27.50. Tutor: Alexia Gardner: Nina Simone. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 19: Ray Stubbs’ R&B All Stars @ Billy Bootleggers, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free.

Sat 19: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. All welcome.

Sun 20: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 20: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 20: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.

Tuesday, October 01, 2019

CD Review: ARQ - Short Stories

Diane McLoughlin (tenor/saxes); Steve Lodder (piano); Deirdre Cartwright (guitar); Alison Rayner (bass); Buster Birch (drums).
(Review by Lance).

ARQ [Alison Rayner Quintet] played a knockout gig at the Globe Jazz Bar, in Newcastle last year (Nov. 22) - as they would riding high, as they were, upon their triumph at the Parliamentary Jazz Awards earlier. I marked that one down as one of my Gigs of the Year and this, their latest album, I'm pleased to report is as exciting as their two previous albums - maybe more so.

Eight tracks: 5 by leader Rayner and 1 each by McLoughlin, Cartwright and Lodder. Birch doesn't get to show his compositional skills but McLoughlin's Buster Breaks a Beat was composed as a feature for the drummer who rises to the occasion experimenting with, I quote, broken beats, funk and retro dance music. It's a delightful piece that captivated me from the start. Despite the title, it's not your normal hit everything in sight drum solo but rather an exploration in unusual rhythms all held together by outstanding solos from guitar, tenor and piano underlined by Rayner paving the way for Buster to break beats.

Two of Rayner's 5 are pieces composed and inspired by the loss of close friends: There is a Crack in Everything (for her niece Pippa Handley) and A Braw Boy (for Craig Handley, a young Scottish  photographer who died aged 23). The emotion and feeling of loss is poignantly expressed by the music.

Cartwright's Life Lived Wide is also a piece of remembrance. Debbie Dickinson, described by Deirdre as 'the seventh member of  the Guest Stars' - the band Cartwright and Rayner played in back in the 1980s - is given a less solemn tribute the music reflecting the fun that was so much a part of the band's performances.

Lodder's Seeing Around Corners is, for the most part, a jaunty jazz waltz that segues into a slower section with McLoughlin's lyrical, probing soprano perhaps suggesting that you take care before you turn into that alley. Rayner's dark bass solo adding to the step into the unknown.

Five outstanding musicians and eight evocative compositions make for an enjoyable listening experience whether you opt for CD, digital or vinyl.
Lance.
Available Oct. 27 on Blow The Fuse Records.
at

No comments :

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments ( Atom )

Blog Archive