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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

Thu 19: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 19: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Ragtime piano. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.
Thu 19: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesborough. 8:30pm. Free. THC with guests Kevin Eland, Dan Johnson, Jeremy McMurray, Ron Smith.

Fri 20: Lindsay Hannon’s Tom Waits for No Man @ Gala Theatre, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00.
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.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Album review: Zoe Rahman – Colour of Sound (Manushi Records)

Zoe Rahman (piano); Alec Dankworth (double bass) Gene Calderazzo (drums); Idris Rahman (tenor/alto sax, clarinet); Rowland Sutherland (flutes); Rosie Turton (trombone) + Alex Ridout (trumpet/flugelhorn on 3 tracks); Byron Wallen (trumpet on 1 track).

Zoe Rahman has mainly recorded solo, duo and trio albums thus far in her career, occasionally augmenting the line-up, but this, from what I can see is her first album with a group as large as this sextet (plus occasional extras). Hopefully, most of these folks will be joining her on stage when she plays the Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music at the Jesmond United Reformed Church   on Sept. 28. She is, thankfully, a frequent visitor to the North East, not being one of that fancy London crowd who may have heard of us, but seem incapable of finding us on the map.

To the music, then. It’s a lovely album underpinned by Rahman’s heavy duty, rolling solid Tyner-ish piano and she has premier league support from jazzers old and new. It’s that combination you always hope for with an album like this of top drawer ensemble arrangements and impressive soloing. None of the tunes feels like it outstays its welcome, though I’d rather some did and hopefully the band will be able to stretch out more when the album is played live.

If there are any weaknesses it’s in the fact that Messrs Ridout and Wallen appear on trumpet and/or flugelhorn on only 4 of 8 tracks. That said, the high points of the second track, For Love, (which does include Alex Ridout), are the solos from the Rahman siblings, Idris’ squealing, argumentative sax first and then a solid, weighty, rolling solo from Zoe.  Those solos rose out of the group arrangements; by contrast stripped back support allows solos from Idris on clarinet, Alec Dankworth on bass and some lyricism from Zoe to feature front and centre on Little Ones.

My favourite is probably Go With the Flow which is built on a very solid foundation by Zoe on piano. A strong fluid melody breaks down for a piano solo from the leader in which she intermingles those heavy chords again intercut with more fluid runs. Dankworth follows on, showing that for a nepo baby he’s still one of the best bass players in the country.

If you want unadorned Zoe Rahman, she gives us this, firstly, on Roots. Solo and as part of a piano/bass/drums trio her playing is simply stunning, melodies cast behind her like discarded explosives. It’s energetic, complex, involving and wonderful by whatever measure you use. She gives us a more lyrical, contemplative version of her playing on Peace Garden to close out the album.

This is another album that will slot onto the right hand of the shelf where the album of the year contenders sit in our house, though I suspect it will get a lot of spins before the list is compiled. This is an exceptionally good album. It has already bagged the coveted number one slot on the Jazzwise magazine office chart and undoubtedly there will be an article and review to follow next month.

Colour of Sound is released on July 7 in CD and download formats and is available to order HERE on Bandcamp and through all the usual outlets. Tickets for her Festival gig are available HERE but they are selling quickly so don’t hang about! Dave Sayer

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