Total Pageviews

Bebop Spoken There

George Colligan: ''I think to be a successful musician, you must be versatile to make a living — until you find your niche''. (DownBeat, July 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

17,596 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 560 of them this year alone and, so far, 38 this month (July 13).

From This Moment On ...

JULY 2025

Thu 17: Brass Bash @ Trimdon Community College, Co. Durham. 6:00-9:00pm. Free. Various bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Thu 17: Brass Bash @ Blackhill & Consett Park, Co. Durham. 6:00-8:00pm. Free. Various bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Thu 17: NONUNONU @ Elder Beer, Heaton, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £11:55 (inc bf).

Fri 18: Greg Abate w. Dean Stockdale Trio @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. 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: Brass Bash @ Town Park, Newton Aycliffe, Co. Durham. 6:00-9:00pm. Free. Various bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Fri 18: Brass Bash @ North Terrace, Seaham, Co. Durham. 6:00-9:00pm. Free. Various bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Fri 18: Zoë Gilby Quartet @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm.
Fri 18: Knats: Masterclass & jam session @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 7:30pm. £15.00.
Fri 18: Rat Pack - Live in Concert @ Tyne Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm.
Fri 18: Greg Abate w. Dean Stockdale Trio @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. £15.00.
Fri 18: Front Porch Three @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. A Hoodoo Blues dance class & social. Social & Front Porch Three only from 8:30pm. £5.00.

Sat 19: Streets of Brass @ Durham City. From 10:00am. Free. Various street bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sat 19: Mr Wilson’s Second Liners: BRASS Boat Cruise @ Elvet Bridge jetty (by the boat club & Tomahawk Steak), Durham City. 12 noon. £12.00.; £10.00.; £5.00. 60 mins cruise, 2 x sets. SOLD OUT! A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sat 19: Bollywood Brass Band @ Monument Metro Station & Haymarket Metro Station, Newcastle. 2:00pm & 3:00pm & 4:00pm (3 x 30 mins). Free. A Gem Arts Masala Festival event.
Sat 19: Diddy Sweg: BRASS Boat Cruise @ Elvet Bridge jetty (by the boat club & Tomahawk Steak), Durham City. 2:00pm. £12.00.; £10.00.; £5.00. 60 mins cruise, 2 x sets. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sat 19: Brazen Brass Band: BRASS Boat Cruise @ Elvet Bridge jetty (by the boat club & Tomahawk Steak), Durham City. 12 noon. £12.00.; £10.00.; £5.00. 60 mins cruise, 2 x sets. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sat 19: Party in the Park @ Wharton Park, Durham. 5:00-9:00pm. Free. Ten street brass bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sat 19: Jeff Hewer Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 19: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sat 19: Tyne Valley Big Band @ Chopwell Community Centre. 8:00pm.

Sun 20: Streets of Brass @ Durham City. From 11:00am. Free. Various street bands. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sun 20: Always Drinking Marching Band: BRASS Boat Cruise @ Elvet Bridge jetty (by the boat club & Tomahawk Steak), Durham City. 11:00am. £12.00.; £10.00.; £5.00. 60 mins cruise, 2 x sets. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sun 20: New York Brass Band: BRASS Boat Cruise @ Elvet Bridge jetty (by the boat club & Tomahawk Steak), Durham City. 1:00pm. £12.00.; £10.00.; £5.00. 60 mins cruise, 2 x sets. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sun 20: Das Brass: BRASS Boat Cruise @ Elvet Bridge jetty (by the boat club & Tomahawk Steak), Durham City. 3:00pm. £12.00.; £10.00.; £5.00. 60 mins cruise, 2 x sets. A Durham Brass Festival event.
Sun 20: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 20: Pope/Garner/Byrne/Alderson @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. JNE.

Mon 21: Gerry Richardson Quartet @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm. £9.00. at the door; £8.20. (inc £0.20 bf) online, in advance.
Mon 21: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club (1:00pm). Free.
Mon 21: New Century Syncopated Seven @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 22: Lewis Watson Quartet @ Newcastle House Hotel, Rothbury. 7:30pm.

Wed 23: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 23: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 23: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 23: Isobel Pearce Quartet @ Dept. of Music, Palace Green, Durham University. 8:15pm. £10.00. & £7.00. First night of two. A Durham Fringe Festival event.

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, August 25, 2022

BSH interviews Mike Farmer (part one)

BSH: Mike, your reports on jazz in the northwest and the Railway in Stockport have drawn a lot of interest regarding the scene over there. However, before you tell us more about what’s going on in your neck of the woods, tell us about how you got into jazz. In other words, how it all began.

Mike: This would be when I was about fourteen and used to attend Moseley Hall Grammar School Cheadle and met two brothers John and Richard Rushton who were jazz fans but were also very good pianists who liked Bud Powell in particular. Bill Birch also went to Moseley Hall about the same time but I only found that out years later during one of our meetings to discuss his forthcoming book. I left school at fifteen as I found most of the lessons extremely boring and started a job right away at the Royal Automobile Club in Manchester. On the same bus to work every day were Alan Hare the well known big band leader and John Mayall who at the time was an art student. 

When I heard Earl Bostic on the radio playing his big hit Flamingo I felt a strong urge to get a saxophone so I walked into Stock and Chapmans on Oxford Street, Manchester, and paid a pound deposit and a pound monthly. This made me the owner of a silver alto saxophone which had Universal on the bell. As I knew next to nothing about how to play the thing I paid to have lessons from Nat Whitworth who was a fantastic teacher and worked in many big bands and also the Hallé Orchestra.


The first band I joined was the Paul Bromley Sextet. On piano in this band was my former school friend Richard Rushton who wrote out some great tunes which included Basie’s Hollywood Jump and Powell’s Bouncing with Bud. We rehearsed at Paul’s parents house in Woodford which had a full sized grand piano in the front room. One day John Mayall, who lived in a tree house in a field opposite popped in to listen and on hearing my solo on Over The Rainbow said to me "What happened to the middle eight?" I was so dumb in those days I thought you just blew whatever came into your head!   Always been grateful that he put me right about that. Things were going well in that group but just when we were creating a bit of interest locally I had to leave to do the dreaded National Service for two years. Dave Mott took my place in the group and as far as I know he is still active in this area.


BSH: From your reviews I gather that you’ve travelled the world and, from your comments, visited many clubs and festivals in a variety of places. Tell me about some of those experiences such as your favourite places as well as any that, shall we say, proved disappointing.


Mike: I have great memories of trips to New York City and visits to the many jazz clubs there.  My favourite jazz venue if I had to choose one would be the Village Vanguard which I visited about a dozen times. Other places I liked were the Half Note, Village Gate, Studio Rivbea, Metropole, Jazz City, the Jazz Gallery, Lincoln Center and of course there were events in Central Park at the Bandshell and the Woolman area. 


In 1973 George Wein staged the Newport In New York festival and he organised concerts all over the city in theatres and parks. I went to a couple of midnight jam sessions that he put on in Radio City. Carnegie Hall was another place he utilised for his shows. I was in NYC for three weeks and I heard many amazing musicians including some unknown ones that later became famous worldwide.


I also went to many jazz festivals in other countries and they used to be very good value and I shall always remember the first time I visited the North Sea Jazz Festival when it was located in The Hague, Netherlands. Great place to see the jazz legends but a bit of an endurance test. 


Went to the Nice Jazz Festival twice driving there in a 1963 Volkswagen Camper and also took in the Antibes Festival which was close by. One of the best festivals was the Malta Jazz Festival which takes place by the harbour in a very scenic setting. Another festival that I liked was the Berlin Jazz Festival. I went on three of the trips after I'd read about them in the Melody Maker and the concerts all took place in a superb modern theatre in the middle of a bombed out area. The only disappointing thing that happened was that on the third trip a day was lost due to the flight being diverted to another airport and then due to the delay the air corridor was closed and the plane could not take off 'til morning. 


In the UK I’ve attended jazz festivals in Newcastle, Brackley, Wigan, Glossop, Middlesbrough, Llandudno, Pengley, Appleby, Liverpool, Buxton, Brighton, and, most recently, Swanage.

No comments :

Blog Archive