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Bebop Spoken There

Spasmo Brown: “Jazz is an ice cream sandwich! It's the Fourth of July! It's a girl with a waterbed!”. (Syncopated Times, July, 2024).

The Things They Say!

Hudson Music: Lance's "Bebop Spoken Here" is one of the heaviest and most influential jazz blogs in the UK.

Rupert Burley (Dynamic Agency): "BSH just goes from strength to strength".

'606' Club: "A toast to Lance Liddle of the terrific jazz blog 'Bebop Spoken Here'"

The Strictly Smokin' Big Band included Be Bop Spoken Here (sic) in their 5 Favourite Jazz Blogs.

Ann Braithwaite (Braithwaite & Katz Communications) You’re the BEST!

Holly Cooper, Mouthpiece Music: "Lance writes pull quotes like no one else!"

Simon Spillett: A lovely review from the dean of jazz bloggers, Lance Liddle...

Josh Weir: I love the writing on bebop spoken here... I think the work you are doing is amazing.

Postage

17372 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 656 of them this year alone and, so far, 61 this month (Sept. 17).

From This Moment On ...

September

Fri 20: Lindsay Hannon’s Tom Waits for No Man @ Gala Theatre, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 20: Rob Hall & Chick Lyall @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free (donations). SOLD OUT!
Fri 20: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 20: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 20: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 20: Leeway @ 1719, Hendon, Sunderland. 7:30pm. The Old Black Cat Jazz Club. CANCELLED!
Fri 20: Gaz Hughes Trio @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. Opus 4 Jazz Club.

Sat 21: Jason Isaacs @ Seaburn STACK, Seaburn. 1:00-2:45pm. Free.
Sat 21: Vieux Carré Hot Four @ The Beehive, Hartley Lane, Earsdon Whitley Bay NE25 0SZ. 4:30pm-6:30pm.
Sat 21: Baghdaddies @ Two by Two, Albion Row, Byker, Newcastle NE6 1RQ. 6:00pm.
Sat 21: Milne-Glendinning Band @ The Northumberland Club, Jesmond, Newcastle. 7:00pm. SOLD OUT!
Sat 21: Jude Murphy & Alan Law @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 22: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 22: Jason Isaacs @ St James’ STACK, Newcastle. 2:30-4:30pm. Free.
Sun 22: Dulcie May Moreno Quartet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm.
Sun 22: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 22: Richard Herdman @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Sun 22: Remy CB Band @ Blues Underground, Nelson St., Newcastle. 8:30pm. Free. Remi, 2024 Newcastle Uni graduate, superb soul/blues voice!

Mon 23: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 23: Paul Booth with the Paul Edis Trio @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00. A Blaydon Jazz Club 40th anniversary concert! SOLD OUT!

Tue 24: Dulcie May Moreno Quartet @ Newcastle House Hotel, Rothbury. 7:30pm. £12.00. (£10.00. adv. from Tully’s of Rothbury). Coquetdale Jazz.
Tue 24: Sarah Gillespie @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £16.50. Duo performance with Chris Montague.

Wed 25: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 25: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 25: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 25: Moonlight Serenade Orchestra UK: Glenn Miller & Big Band Spectacular @ Middlesbrough Theatre. 7:30pm.

Thu 26: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 26: Gateshead Jazz Appreciation Society @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £4.00. ‘Contemporary Jazz & the Piano’.
Thu 26: The New 58 Jazz Collective @ Hops & Cheese, Hartlepool. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 26: Jo Harrop & Friends @ Hexham Abbey. 8:00pm. ‘An Evening with Jo Harrop & Friends’. A Hexham Abbey Festival of Music & Arts event. £20.00., £5.00. child/student.
Thu 26: Neil Yates & Tom Remon @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Thu 26: Loco House Band @ Bar Loco, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free.
Thu 26: Tees Hot Club @ Dorma’s Club, Middlesborough. 8:30pm. Free. Mark Toomey, Neil Brodie, Graham Thompson, Adrian Beadnell.

Thursday, October 13, 2022

Zach Okonkwo's Hypothetical: Works inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement @ King's Hall, Newcastle University - Oct. 13

Zach Okonkwo (drums); Jimmy Jefford (tenor sax); Daniel Vildósola (guitar); Will Hobson (piano); Harry Gould (bass guitar)

It was a homecoming of sorts for two of the quintet performing in King's Hall this afternoon: bandleader Zach Okonkwo and tenor saxophonist Jimmy Jefford are alumni of Newcastle University. Drummer Okonkwo remarked that it seemed like a long time ago when he and Jefford graduated way back in 2018. Guitarist Daniel Vildósola, pianist Will Hobson and five-string bassist Harry Gould were the unknown quantities. The set, all-too-brief at thirty minutes, would feature two of Okonkwo's compositions and two modern jazz standards. 

Okonkwo's Ndubisi is named after his father (Mr Ndubisi was present in King's Hall) and tells of their father and son relationship. Okonkwo led from the front, his band mates reading their charts. An all round solid opening, one sensed there was more to come. The two standards in the set - Herbie Hancock's Maiden Voyage and Joshua Redman's Hide and Seek - encouraged the quintet to stretch out a little. Okonkwo's arrangement of Hancock's familiar tune was given, as indicated by the band leader, a 'modern twist'. Jefford stepped up on the Redman number, Okonkwo's programme notes stating the one-time Bold Big Band leader would replicate 'the unique extended techniques of Joshua Redman while still making the tune his own'. Jefford's tenor playing reminded the Newcastle audience, if anyone had forgotten, just what he could do. Excellent.

To conclude the performance, Okonkwo spoke eloquently of his disbelief at the unfolding events of January 6, 2021 (the failed insurrection in Washington DC). His response was to compose Hypothetical, in so doing incorporating elements relating to the murder of George Floyd. As the quintet dug into the material (Jefford, Vildósola, Hobson and Gould making decisive contributions) segments of Dave Chappelle's '8:46' powerful speech detailing the death of George Floyd were introduced into the sound mix, and for a moment, Okonkwo took the handbrake off. Sometimes music speaks louder than words. Russell
                     
Set list: NdubisiMaiden VoyageHide and SeekHypothetical.

1 comment :

Unknown said...

Thank you for coming, it’s a shame I didn’t catch you before you left! Also a shame that I clearly can’t tell the time as 30 minutes is very brief you are right! It was my first outing as a band leader/playing my own material and it was a pleasure to do it in front of such a caring audience. As a ‘hired gun’ of sorts I under estimated how exposed you are when playing your own music but as I said it was a pleasure to do it in a safe environment. I hope to return and do it again...just a bit longer the next time!

All the best
Zach Okonkwo

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