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Bebop Spoken There

Trevor Mires: ''My mum is a Dean Martin fan: I'm not, so I would grab my skateboard and get out of the house whenever I heard "Everybody Loves Somebody, Sometime." ". (Jazzwise, April 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

17972 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 293 of them this year alone and, so far, 49 this month (April 22).

From This Moment On ...

April 2025.

Sat 26: Durham Alumni Big Band @ Number One Bar, Darlington. 12 noon. Free (donations).
Sat 26: Abbie Finn Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 26: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ Elvet Methodist Church, Durham. 7:30pm. Tickets: £12.00. + bf. Duo performance.
Sat 26: Neil Cowley Trio @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £22.50.
Sat 26: Pete Tanton & the Cuban Heels @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 27: Musicians Unlimited @ Jackson’s Wharf, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 27: Andrea Vicari Trio @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. Vicari (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); John Bradford (drums).
Sun 27: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Vocalist Skerritt working with backing tapes.
Sun 27: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Xenopoulos, Edis, Paul Susans, Russ Morgan.
Sun 27: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 27: JustKing Jones @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £17.50. JustKing Jones (alto sax, soprano sax); Jordan Williams (piano); Jason Clotter (bass); Malcolm Charles (drums). Ace NYC outfit!
Sun 27: Jazz Jam Sandwich! @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 27: Swing Manouche @ Warkworth Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £15.00. Tickets from 01665 711388.
Sun 27: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Xenopoulos, Edis, Ken Marley, Russ Morgan.

Mon 28: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 29: ???

Wed 30: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 30: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 30: International Jazz Day @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £16.00.; £14.00. adv.. Feat. Guido Spannocchi, John Pope & Steve Hanley + Take it to the Bridge participants + Open Mic Night participants.

MAY 2025

Thu 01: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. Subject: Member’s Contribution.
Thu 01: Alabaster de Plume @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm.
Thu 01: Living in Shadows + OUTRI @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.
Thu 01: The Shayo Experiment @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Shayo Oshodi & Liam Oliver.
Thu 01: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Free.

Fri 02: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 02: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 02: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 02: Anna Reay & Deon Krishnan @ STACK, Seaburn. 4:30-6:15pm. Free.
Fri 02: Nauta @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 7:00pm. £7.50. A ‘Nauta’s House’ gig featuring Nauta & guests Shayo Oshodi & David Gray.
Fri 02: Spilt Milk @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Fri 02: Dom Pipkin @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). Solo piano.
Fri 02: Abbie Finn Trio @ Saltburn Community Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00. + bf.

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

Tuesday, August 10, 2021

The art of gentle lyricism – August 9

(Screenshot by Russell)
Rossano Sportiello (piano); Dan Barrett (trombone); Rebecca Kilgore (vocals)

Take a very nice domestic music/library room, insert a beautiful Bösendorfer piano, bring along three fine musicians and what do you get? Answer - some absolutely lovely music. And whilst streamed concerts with no audience present have limitations because of that very reason, in the right setting there can be an intimacy that is very engaging as was the case here.

I received a text from roving reporter Russell that one of my favourite singers, Rebecca Kilgore, was performing with pianist Rossano Sportiello and trombonist Dan Barrett ‘right now’ in this setting and so I immediately logged in but it was already half way through the concert.

Rossano Sportiello was a new name to me – what a great player. He has absorbed stride and walking bass styles of piano playing into a masterful entity, slipping effortlessly from one to another while embellishing beautifully with his right hand. A virtuoso pianist.

Dan Barrett has been a major contributor to the, dare I say the word, ‘mainstream’ of jazz for such a long time now. A fluent trombonist with a gorgeous sound and a natural lyricism in all settings. And a top notch bandleader and arranger too.

I first heard Rebecca Kilgore many years ago with Bobby Gordon’s Trio – a CD Remembering Maxine. What a gem that is. Over subsequent years I acquired quite a few of her albums. Her recorded output is phenomenal. You can understand why. A gentle, effortless vocal style with clear diction and innate jazz feel that draws you in. And she seems to know every song. Special!

I’ll not go into detail on the set list. Needless to say all beautifully played. The tunes I caught were - Christopher Columbus, East of the Sun, Russian Lullaby (piano/trombone duo), What Will I Tell my Heart? (trombone ballad feature), My Ideal, Them There Eyes and finishing with Sultry Serenade - a melody composed by Tyree Glenn but with lyrics added later and a new title  How Could You Do a Thing Like That to Me?  

High class indeed. Roly

2 comments :

Lance said...

Truly an inspiring session by 3 present day greats. For the record, the other tunes were: Blues my Naughty Sweetie Gives to me (piano solo); Keepin' Out of Mischief Now (trombone feature) and vocals: I Can't Believe That You're in Love With me; Comes Love and Opus One. The latter number based on the Anita O'Day version with the Gene Krupa Band.

Patti said...

Wasn't it marvellous! A real jazz treat. I've seen Rossano and Dan play at the Cleveland Jazz Party in the US - and I'm fairly certain that Rossano came to the Whitley Bay International Jazz Festival about 18 years ago, as a young piano maestro, with the Milano Hot Jazz Gang/Orchestra. This was before he moved to the US, and he now lives in New York City. Next week he'll be back home in NYC, and doing the livestream from his Greenwich Flat - it'll be open for anyone - you don't need to be on Facebook yourself. Just google Live at the Greenwich Flat.

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