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Bebop Spoken There

George Porter Jr.: ''To me, syncopation is like jazz. It wasn't meant for the masses. It was meant just for a hip few". (DownBeat, May 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

17985(and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 306 of them this year alone and, so far, 62 this month (April 26).

From This Moment On ...

April 2025.

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 + SH#RP Collective with Lindsay Hannon - open rehearsal.

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.

Sat 03: Hot Fingers @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00.
Sat 03: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £25.00. Tutor: Steve Glendinning. Summer Samba Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 03: Jason Isaacs @ STACK, Exchange Sq., Middlesbrough. 4:00-6:00pm. Free. Vocalist Isaacs working with backing tapes.
Sat 03: Struggle Buggy @ Billy Bootleggers, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Blues.
Sat 03: Edison Herbert Trio @ The Vault, Darlington 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 03: Postmodern Jukebox @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 7:30pm.
Sat 03: NUJO Jazz Jam @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 8:00pm (7:00pm doors). £3.00. + bf.
Sat 03: Eva Fox & the Jazz Guys @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.
Sat 03: Ray Stubbs R&B All Stars @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:30pm. Free.

Sun 04: Smokin’ Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm. £7.50.
Sun 04: Sax Choir @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 04: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 04: Spilt Milk @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 3:00-5:00pm. Free. Nolan Brothers (vocal harmonies).
Sun 04: Rivkala @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 04: Boys of Brass @ Billy Bootleggers, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free.
Sun 04: Ben Crosland Quartet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 05: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 05: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Tue 06: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Victoria & Albert Inn, Seaton Delaval. 12:30pm. £14.00. Tel: 0191 237 3697. ‘Victory in Europe Afternoon Tea’ (VE Day 80th anniversary).
Tue 06: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Alan Law, Paul Grainger, John Hirst.
Tue 06: Customs House Big Band @ The Masonic Hall, North St., Ferryhill DL17 8HX. 7:30pm. Free.
Tue 06: FILM: Whiplash @ Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle. 8:15pm.

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

Thursday, December 23, 2021

A Jazzy Christmas @ Sage Gateshead - Dec 22

It's become something of a tradition. Paul Edis invites a group of friends over to play some seasonal songs. The venue just happens to be Sage Two, that's Sage Gateshead's intimate cockpit-like space, and, here's the thing, several hundred people turn up to listen. All three tiers sold out some time ago, and with Covid-secure measures in place, everyone set about enjoying themselves. 

At eight o'clock, to a rapturous reception, Edis and company took to the stage. O Come, All Ye Faithful opened the show, and what a show it would be! Edis' hand-picked ensemble hit the ground running, our MD marshalling proceedings with his customary light touch and good humour. The first of two consecutive Jule Styne/Sammy Cahn numbers - Let it Snow - introduced the fabulous Jo Harrop. Intimate duo performance or swanky 'big do' gig, Harrop is the singer for this kind of gig. And this 'do' was somewhere in between - an intimate arena teeming with a 100% mask-wearing audience. Oh, yes, Let it Snow, an excellent arrangement featuring Matt MacKellar's infectious Big Easy drum pattern. 

Harrop momentarily departed the stage as the ensemble struck up Carol of the Bells. It isn't every day a jazz gig features a piccolo solo yet here in Gateshead we got just that. Megan Robinson set up a riff and set about improvising on it. Piccolo jazz! Cue thunderous applause. Santa Baby had to be in the set list, and it was. Excellent. A marvellous first set drew to a close with Sleigh Ride, Graham Hardy, trumpet, and Matt Anderson, tenor sax, stepping out of the horn section to bring down the metaphorical curtain. 

The interval: 'Hello' to Jo and Paul (they were out front signing 'merch'), your correspondent first in the queue at the bar, a chat with several of the usual suspects, teasing Steve T about his Christmas jumper. Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells...

Second set: No one had left, despite being subjected to Paul Edis' terrible Christmas cracker jokes. Chris Rea's Driving Home for Christmas resonates with a Tyneside audience, given that the composer is from 'up north' (Teesside). Frank Loesser's What Are You Doing New Year's Eve? found favour with all present ('Bah! Humbug! suspended momentarily), Harrop sensational, Matt Anderson having a blast. 

A solo piano piece. Joy to the World. Edis somehow incorporating the history of jazz piano into his performance, from Fats Waller stride to swing to bop by way of Oscar P, to the modernists. Cue deafening applause. Emma Fisk brought in O Tannenbaum with a few bars of Vaughan William's The Lark Ascending. Outstanding, but no surprise there, violinist Fisk is a true virtuoso. It was almost time to go, but not before a sing-a-long farewell. From 1934, Winter Wonderland. A tune for all ages, a tune for kids to big kids. Where's that Santa hat? And that was it. Not quite. A foot-stomping, cheering (not easy behind a mask!) crowd won an encore. The Christmas Song. Perfect. Same time next year? You can bet on it.                                       
Paul Edis (MD, piano); Jo Harrop (vocals); Matt Anderson (tenor sax, soprano sax); Faye Thompson (alto sax, clarinet); Megan Robinson (flute, piccolo); Graham Hardy (trumpet, flugelhorn); Jason Holcomb (trombone); Emma Fisk (violin); Francis Tulip (guitar); Andy Champion (double bass); Matthew MacKellar (drums)

Set list: O Come, All Ye FaithfulLet it SnowThe Christmas WaltzWhite ChristmasRockin' Around the Christmas TreeCarol of the BellsSanta BabySleigh RideDriving Home for ChristmasO Holy NightWhat Are You Doing New Year's Eve?Joy to the WorldO TannenbaumWinter WonderlandThe Christmas Song

A Jazzy Christmas will be performed a second time at Hampstead Parish Church this evening (7:30pm, Thursday 23 December) with an all-star London-based line-up (Paul and Jo will reprise their roles). See: www.pauledis.co.ukRussell

4 comments :

JERRY said...

And the missing cracker joke was:

What do you call a group of Grandmasters boasting about their games in a hotel lobby? Chess nuts boasting in an open foyer!

Shame Paul forgot it as it would have fed beautifully into the encore!

JERRY

Lance said...

Checkmate!

EmmaFiskJazzVio said...

That one may have been censored for being too funny😂

Russell said...

Emma, you're right, it's a good one!

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