Bebop Spoken There

Jools Holland (on his 2026 spring/summer tour): ''With the mighty [R&B] Orchestra, our wonderful boogie woogie singers, and the brilliant Joe Webb opening the shows [including Darlington Hippodrome, June 19], we're in for some very special evenings of music.'' The Northern Echo February 5, 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

18263 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 117 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Feb. 6), 17

From This Moment On ...

February

Sat 07: The Big Easy @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00. Darlington New Orleans Jazz Club.
Sat 07: Tees Bay Swing Band @ The Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30-3:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal.
Sat 07: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £27.50. Tutor: Steve Glendinning. St Thomas & Bésame Mucho. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 07: Side Cafe Oᴙkestar @ Café Under the Spire, Gateshead. 6:30pm. Table reservations: 0191 477 3970.
Sat 07: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.

Sun 08: Swing Tyne @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12 noon (doors). Donations. Swing dance taster class (12:30pm) + Hot Club de Heaton (live performance). Non dancers welcome.
Sun 08: Am Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 08: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 08: Gerry Richardson’s Big Idea @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 09: Mark Williams Trio @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 1:00pm.
Mon 09: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Tue 10: Jazz Jam Sandwich @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Wed 11: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 11: Jam Session @ The Tannery, Hexham. 7:00pm. Free.
Wed 11: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington.. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 11: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 12: Indigo Jazz Voices @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:45pm. £5.00.

Fri 13: Noel Dennis Quartet @ Bishop Auckland Methodist Church. 1:00pm . £9.00. Dennis (trumpet, flugelhorn); Rick Laughlin (piano); Mick Shoulder (double bass); Tim Johnston (drums).
Fri 13: Joe Steels @ Jesmond Library, Newcastle. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 13: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 13: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 13: Castillo Nuevo Trio @ Hotel Gotham, Newcastle. 5:30pm. Free.
Fri 13: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Arc, Stockton. 8:00pm.
Fri 13: Tom Remon & John Moriarty @ The Ship Isis, Silksworth Row, Sunderland SR1 3QJ. 7:00pm. £10.00 + £1.00 bf.

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

Tuesday, July 25, 2023

Album review: Johnathan Blake's Pentad - Passage

Johnathan Blake (drums); Immanuel Wilkins (alto sax); Joel Ross (vibes); David Virelles (piano);  Dezron Douglas (bass)

Drummer/composer Blake's Pentad follow up their previous Blue Note album, Homeward Bound, with Passage, an album dedicated to the life and legacy of Johnathan Blake's father, jazz violinist John Blake Jr.

An album of well-constructed heads played by five musicians working as one. 

Wilkins, who has just hit the top spot in the alto sax section of the DB Critics Poll*, wails in the best  contemporary Blue Note tradition. Fast-fingered flights of fantasy contrasting with melancholic emotion on slower numbers such as Tears I Cannot Hide, a tune composed by drummer Ralph Peterson Jr. Blake's mentor.

Joel Ross, one of today's front runners on vibes stays ahead of that particular pack with fine solos built upon the legacy of Milt Jackson. Douglas composed and soloed on the introduction to A Slight Taste. Ross and Wilkins also have a not so slight taste on this one.

Virelles forté seems to be Latin jazz so I'm guessing he composed Tiempos (the press release is somewhat vague as to who composed what).

As for Blake, by a process of elimination I've worked out that he was responsible for: Lament For Lo; Muna and Johna's Playtime; Groundhog Day; Out of Sight, Out of Mind and  West Berkely St. All fine compositions solidly and sympathetically backed up by Blake's drumming.

From day one, all those years ago, Blue Note stood for quality. Changes of ownership, new directions, notwithstanding, it still does. Lance

Available August 11.

(Note from press release): Passage presents the quintet at an elevated level of consciousness and artistry. A celebration of life and longing, the album pays tribute to those who have touched Blake’s life and shaped his music. And the best way for Blake to honor their spirits and preserve their legacy is to cultivate an interconnectedness among listeners and his fellow artists: “This record really shows the level of trust we’ve achieved together. Pentad is a brotherhood — five entities coming together to form one sound.

*Wilkins also won in the Rising Star Jazz Group and Composer categories. 

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