Bebop Spoken There

Christian McBride: ''I believe we are living in a historically embarrassing moment in American history.'' - Downbeat December 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

18061 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 1025 of them this year alone and, so far, 39 this month (Dec. 14).

From This Moment On ...

DECEMBER 2025

Fri 19: Fraser Urquhart @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT! .
Fri 19: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free..
Fri 19: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free..
Fri 19: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00..
Fri 19: Castillo Nuevo @ Hotel Gotham, Newcastle. 5:00pm. Free. .
Fri 19: Alexia Gardner @ FIKA Art Gallery, Morpeth. 6:30pm. Gardner, Alan Law, Jude Murphy..
Fri 19: Paul Skerritt @ Middlesbrough Town Hall. 7:00pm. Skerritt w. backing tapes. .
Fri 19: Giles Strong Quartet @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm. Old Black Cat Jazz Club..
Fri 19: Creakin’ Bones & the Xmas Dinners @ The White Room, Stanley. 7:45pm. £13.01 (inc. bf)..
Fri 19: Mark Toomey Quintet @ The Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. Opus 4 Jazz Club.

Sat 20: Jazz Attack @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 11:00am. Free.
Sat 20: Alexia Gardner @ FIKA Art Gallery, Morpeth. 6:30pm. Gardner, Alan Law, Jude Murphy. SOLD OUT!
Sat 20: Joseph Carville Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. CANCELLED!
Sat 20: Ray Stubbs R&B All Stars @ Billy Bootleggers, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 20: Hoodoo Blues @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:15pm (doors). £14.25, £11.55. Dance class, social dancing, live music & Xmas Party. Live music from 9:00pm - Ruth Lambert, Giles Strong, Ian Paterson & John Bradford (jazz and blues).
Sat 20: John Pope Quintet @ Blank Studios, Newcastle. 7:30-8:30pm. £7.70 (inc. bf). Album recording session.

Sun 21: New ’58 Jazz Collective @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 21: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. ‘Xmas Swingalong’. Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 21: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, Union Quay, North Shields. 3:00-5:00pm. Free.
Sun 21: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 21: Strictly Smokin’ Big Band @ o2 City Hall, Newcastle. 6:00pm. £35.80., £33.25., £31.00.
Sun 21: The Globe Xmas Party @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. Live music.
Sun 21: Tweed River Jazz Band @ The Barrels Ale House, Berwick. 7:30pm. Free.

Mon 22: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 23: Paul Skerritt @ Chakh Dhoom, Jesmond, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Indian restaurant. Skerritt w. backing tapes.

Wed 24: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 24: Alexia Gardner @ The Townhouse, Bridge St., Morpeth. 1:30-4:30pm. ‘The A Capella Sessions’. Gardner, Paula Gardner, Alexia Hope Gardner Diamany.
Wed 24: Paul Skerritt @ Mambo Wine & Dine, South Shields. 1:30pm. Skerritt w. backing tapes.

Thu 25: Alexia Gardner @ The Townhouse, Bridge St., Morpeth. 1:30-4:00pm. ‘All About the Bass Sessions’. Alexia Gardner, Paula Gardner, Jude Murphy.

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

Wednesday, December 04, 2019

Congratulations to Zoë Gilby on APPJAG Award

(Report by Lance/Photo from Zoë Gilby's Facebook page)

As announced in the previous post  Zoë Gilby aced the Jazz Vocal category in this year's All Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group (APPJAG) 2019 awards.

At the ceremony, held in the Pizza Express Jazz Club, Holborn, London, Zoë held off strong competion to win the prestigious award. This was a fitting milestone in her still developing career who knows what the future holds in store for her?

It was back in April 2008 when Zoë was first mentioned on BSH after a gig at the Side Café in Newcastle and it became obvious then that this was a girl going places - helped along the way by several key figures not least of which was her father.

The late Mike Gilby, an outstanding trumpet player, arranger, bandleader and all-round musician provided his daughter with support and inspiration to embark upon her own career that saw her singing with Mike's big band and various small groups of her own..

Bass player and future husband Andy Champion (pictured) provided further impetus to her developement. Andy, now achieving national recognition himself, encouraged Zoë to add lyric-writing to her skills and the pair combined to write several original pieces as well as performing as a bass and voice duo.

The duo gigs came about after Zoë attended a masterclass by the legendary American jazz singer Sheila Jordan who also played an important role in her career.

The above people provided the ingredients but it was the singer herself who put them all together and made her what she is today.

Well done!

Full details of the awards can be found on London Jazz News.
Lance

8 comments :

David Gosling (on F/b). said...

Well done Zoe - thoroughly deserved and the first of many no doubt.

Pam Young (on F/b) said...

So we'll deserved 🏆 Zoe is not only a hugely talented performer and writer, she is a generous promoter of other musicians. 💖

Ernie Jackson (on F/b). said...

Great . Well done ZOE xx

Gordon Solomon. said...

Well done Zoe. We've never met but I knew your dad well,- he used to dep for the River City Band both on trumpet and electric bass, a great musician. He would have been proud!
Cheers,
Gordon Solomon.

Ben Turnbull (on F/b) said...

Years of nose to the grindstone strength in depth craft-learning and spreading of wings reults in well-deserved recognition... who'd have thought? You look really happy, but I say that every time... well done...

Mo Scott (on F/b) said...

Congratulations Zoe xxx

Roz Sluman (on F/b) said...

Wow, well done Zoe, fantastic!!! X

David Blackwell (on F/b). said...

Well deserved.

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