Bebop Spoken There

Gary Bartz: ''Music is nature's gift to man. It's the only religion. We're living in a terrible era, but what a beautiful thing music is. Look how it brings us together like religion is supposed to; and with no language barriers.'' (Jazzwise September, 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

18897 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 761 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Sept. 11.) 40.

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

September.

Wed 16: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 16: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 16: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 17: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 17: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 17: Front Porch Blues @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 17: Amphitrio @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £7.00. Andrei Petrache (piano); Mike Alex (double bass); Philip Goron (drums).
Thu 17: Miles 100 @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00., £10.00., £7.00. Jack Courtney (trumpet); Sue Ferris (tenor sax); Tom Atkinson (guitar); Alan Law (piano); Deon Krishnan (bass); Jeff Armstrong (drums). A night of Miles Davis.
Thu 24: 58 Jazz Collective @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Stranton, Hartlepool. 8:00pm. Free. .

Fri 18: Danny Lownes’ Hot Club @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £8.00. 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: Mark Williams Trio @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm. Old Black Cat Jazz Club.
Fri 18: Emma Fisk’s Hot Club du Nord @ St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. 7:30pm. £10.00., £5.00. student.
Fri 18: Rivkala + Beccy Sloan @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £10.00.

Sat 19: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. All welcome.
Sat 19: Sing Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00-5:00pm. £27.50. Tutor: Alexia Gardner: Nina Simone. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 19: Ray Stubbs’ R&B All Stars @ Billy Bootleggers, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free.

Sat 19: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal. All welcome.

Sun 20: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 20: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 20: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.

Mon 21: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 21: Lewis Watson Quartet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. Coltrane centenary.

Tue 22: ???

Wed 23: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ 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: Lewis Watson Quartet @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 7:30pm. A John Coltrane Centenary Concert (b. 23. 09. 1926). SOLD OUT!
Wed 23: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thursday, January 26, 2023

Album Review: Mary Foster Conklin – These Precious Days

Mary Foster Conklin (vocals); John Di Martino (piano, arrangements); Sara Caswell(violin); Ed Howard (bass); Vince Cherico (drums); Guilherme Monteiro (guitar); Samuel Torres (percussion)

These Precious Days is the latest album by New York-based jazz vocalist and radio host Mary Foster Conklin. The CD has the distinctive feature of comprising lesser-known jazz and pop songs which have been mostly written by women, and the mix is so interesting that I've listed the song writers beside the song names (see below).

Ms Conklin had been playing music by women writers on her radio show since 2016. In 2021, Along with Martino and Caswell, Ms Conklin performed a set of new songs at the Soapbox Gallery in Brooklyn, which was later developed into material for this CD, with extra musicians.

Ms Conklin's voice is low-pitched and expressive and the instrumentalists are well up to the job, with solos mostly from piano and also violin, the latter making a refreshing change from the more usual saxophone or trumpet.

Leonard Cohen's Summertime ends with a short Klezmer-type chorus; Some Cats Know is sung in a deliciously sensuous fashion, with violin comments and cat-like singing tones; Scars has Landesman's wonderful lyrics about dealing with life experience; Just For Now is a love song done to Latin percussion; A Little White Ship is a rather dark song with a sinister sound.  The CD is satisfyingly rounded off with two of the more familiar tunes. An album which is well worth listening to.

Ms Conklin hails from New Jersey and she started out as an actor then switched to jazz singing. This is her fifth album and she has performed at most of the major jazz venues in New York and on the West Coast.

The CD will be released on February 24th 2023 on Mock Turtle Music, available everywhere.

See www.maryfosterconklin.com

Summertime (not that one but Leonard Cohen/Sharon Robinson); Some Cats Know (Leiber/Stoller); Just a Little Lovin' (Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil); Come in From the Rain (Melissa Manchester/Carole Bayer Sager); Scars (Simon Wallace/Fran Landesman); Just For Now (Andre and Dory Previn); A Little White Ship (Leiber/Stoller); Heart's Desire (Alan Broadbent/Dave Frishberg); Rainbow (Melba Liston/Abbey Lincoln); Until It's Time For You To Go (Buffy Sainte-Marie); September Song (Kurt Weill/Maxwell Anderson). Ann Alex

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