Bebop Spoken There

Melissa Aldana: ''Having to play a ballads album, which is something very revealing for a saxophone player, would help me to question some new aspects of how to go deeper into sound." (DownBeat May, 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

18621 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 485 of them this year alone and, so far this month (June 14) 37

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

June

Wed 24: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 24: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 24: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 25: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 25: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00. Subject: Forgotten Ones & Any Quintets.
Thu 25: Edgar Ho Trio @ Newcastle Arts Centre. 7:30pm. Free. Brilliant alto sax, piano & double bass trio. Unmissable!
Thu 25: Paul Skerritt @ Angels' Share, St George's Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle NE2 2SX. 8:00pm. Free. Booking advised (0191 200 1975). Skerritt w. backing tapes.

Fri 26: Finn-Keeble Group @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £9:00.
Fri 26: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 26: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 26: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 26: Clark Tracey @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Newcastle Jazz Festival. £26.00. Day 1/2.

Sat 27: OUTRI @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £13.01. 1:00-1:45pm. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2.
Sat 27: Tees Bay Swing Band @ Richardson & Westgarth Sport & Social Club, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. Note change of venue.
Sat 27: House of the Black Gardenia + Magpies of Swing @ The Cumberland Arms, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sat 27: Mark Toomey Quartet @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 2:15-3:15pm. £13.01. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2.
Sat 27: Alexia Gardner Quintet @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 3:45-4:45pm. £13.01. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2.
Sat 27: Rory Ingham @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 5:30-6:30pm. £19.51. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2. Ingham w. Dean Stockdale, Ian Paterson, Dave McKeague.
Sat 27: Castillo Nuevo Trio @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 5:30pm. Free.
Sat 27: Laura Jurd @ Live Theatre, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £26.00. Newcastle Jazz Festival. Day 2/2. Sat 27: Brass Fiesta @ Revoluçion de Cuba, Newcastle. 10:30pm. Free.

Sun 28: Musicians Unlimited: Big Band Blast @ West Hartlepool RFC. 1:00-3:00pm . Free.
Sun 28: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 28: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Table reservations (0191 261 8000). Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 28: Tim Kliphuis Trio @ St Mary’s Church, Wooler. 3:00pm. £18.00., £6.00. A Wooler Arts Summer Concerts event. Tim Kliphuis (violin); Nigel Clark (guitar); Roy Percy (double bass).
Sun 28: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 28: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 28: An Evening of Jazz @ St James’ Church, Copper Chare, Morpeth. 7:30pm. Tickets: £10.00 from 01670 788869 or 01670 519923. Mid Northumberland Chorus (MD Robin Forbes, Emma Straughan, piano) w. jazz trio featuring Edgar Ho, Oscar Ho & Dave McKeague & special guest Emily Masser. Performance inc. Bob Chilcott’s A Little Jazz Mass + George Shearing’s Songs & Sonnets.
Sun 28: Led Bib @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £15.00., £12.00. JNE.

Mon 29: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 30: Alan Law Trio @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 2:00pm. Free.
Tue 30: Eva Fox & the Sound Hounds @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Saturday, April 03, 2021

Alan Barnes @ the 606 Club - April 3

(Screen collage by Lance)
Alan Barnes (alto & baritone sax/clarinet); Robin Aspland (piano); Andrew Cleyndert (bass); Alfonso Vitale (drums).

To go for almost two years without seeing Alan Barnes live is like going for a day without seeing the PM on TV - ah well, you win some, you lose some. Tonight, at least, we won handsomely hearing Alan Barnes livestreaming from the 606. Other than the sport, I didn't watch the news today - did Chelsea really lose to WBA? Still, there were more important things happening in Chelsea and this was one, if not the only one.

It was a delight to hear our premier saxophonist again and, if at times I got the feeling that his lip wasn't quite in he still sounded better than any ten others whose lips were in.

A good set with three of the finest alongside him.

Tavares: An original by Alan dedicated to Horace Ward Martin Tavares Silver. Being christened with a name like that puts an entirely new meaning behind Silver's Song For My Father - I know how he must have felt! Me and a boy named Sue!

Los Caracoles: Spanish for snails. Alan pointed out that it was was in the key of D major which, if my memory serves me right, puts the alto sax in 5 sharps - only 2 short of a full house! When you can play with such fluency in keys like that you know you're in with a chance.

Little Willie Leaps: A Miles Davis number that soared and I use the word advisedly. Tempo-di-lick, a.k.a as presto in classical circles, was written for Bird and tonight's representation didn't let the legend down. The phrases just flowed. If I'd have actually been at the 606 I'd have been painting Bird Lives on the wall outside!

Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most: A beautiful ballad beautifully played.

Somebody Loves Me: Robin took this away as per the original Bud Powell version on Roost (Vogue over here). It's one of the all-time classic jazz piano solos and Robin did it beautifully before, eventually, setting it up for Alan.

A Felicidade and an Italian song, the title of which escaped me, had our man switching to clarinet.

I'll be Seeing You: A switch to baritone and some gutsy blowing.

(Screenshot by Lance)
Tonight I Shall Sleep: A Strayhorn/Ellington composition for Johnny Hodges that also sounded good on baritone.

One For Moll: Back to alto for this dedication to his daughter Molly. A nice blues to finish off with.

Needless to say, Robin, Andrew and Alfonso were equally outstanding - "What a rhythm section!" as Frank Sinatra once said, albeit in a totally different context (was it Kim Novak he was referring to?)

Next week it's Paul Moran's Smokin' B3 with vocals by Jo Harrop.

Lance.

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1 comment :

Alan Barnes said...

Thanks for this! Started practising again today so lip strengthening in progress

Monday, April 05, 2021 11:14:00 pm

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