Bebop Spoken There

John McLaughlin: ''It was then that Coltrane came along and single-handedly brought this dimension of spirituality into jazz. It was a pivotal experience to me.'' (DownBeat 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

19,012 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 876 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Oct. 16) 55.

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

October.

Sat 17: SunOrbitUs @ Culture House, Sunderland. 11:00am - 5:00pm. Closing event in a year-long piece of music. 11:00am-1:00pm Improvisation workshop w. Faye MacCalman; 2:00-5:00pm Collective Improvised Performance by Sunderland residents. SOLD OUT!
Sat 17: Tees Bay Swing Band @ Blacksmith’s Arms, Hartlepool. 1:30pm. Free. Open rehearsal.
Sat 17: Martin Taylor @ Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle. 7:30pm. £48.72; £43.37. Solo guitar. SOLD OUT!

Sun 18: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 18: Creakin’ Bones & the Sunday Dinners @ Tyne Bar, Newcastle. 4:00pm. Free. Jump jive.
Sun 18: Guisborough Big Band @ Redcar Rugby Club. 5:00-8:00pm. ‘Charity Big Band Birthday Bash’ in aid of Parkinson’s UK & Young Sounds UK. Free (donations on the door).
Sun 18: Martin Taylor @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £23.30. Solo guitar.
Sun 18: Ben Crosland Quartet with Steve Waterman @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 19: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 19: Sue Ferris Quintet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 20: Alan Law @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 2:00pm. Free. Alan Law (piano) w. Pete Tanton (trumpet, flugelhorn).
Tue 20: Graham Hardy’s Eclectic Quartet @ Queen’s Head, Rothbury. 7:30pm. £11.00. Tickets from Tully’s, Rothbury. Coquetdale Jazz. Note change of venue.
Tue 20: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Alan Law, Paul Grainger, Scotty Adair.

Wed 21: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 21: FILM: Blue Moon @ Washington Arts Centre. 1:00pm. £4.50 (inc. bf). Biopic of lyricist Lorenz Hart.
Wed 21: De'Sean Jones’ Urban Art Orchestra @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £10.00.; £5.00. student, unwaged; free to Mercury Awards ticket holders. De'Sean Jones (tenor sax, EWI); Tjoe Man Cheung (guitar); Mikele Montolli (double bass) + others TBA.
Wed 21: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 21: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Wed 21: Roby Glod-Steve Sewell Quartet @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 8:00pm.

Thu 22: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 22: Mercury Prize @ Utility Arena Newcastle. 8:00pm. £60.25.; £48.75. Line-up inc. Knats.
Thu 22: Dean Stockdale Trio @ Bandstand!, Exhibition Park, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Tickets: £10.20 (inc. bf) via Instagram. Dean Stockdale (piano); Mick Shoulder (double bass); John Bradford (drums).
Thu 22: Olly Styles Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £7.75.

Fri 23: Sara Oschlag w. Arnie Somogyi Trio @ The Lit & Phil. 1:00pm. Sara Oschlag (vocals); Ben Lawrence (piano); Arnie Somogyi (double bass); John Hirst (drums). SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: Emma Fisk’s Hot Club du Nord @ Gala Theatre, Durham. 1:00pm. Durham Jazz Festival. SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 23: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 23: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 23: Maja Bugge & Dave Evans @ Claypath Deli, Durham. 7:00pm. Durham Jazz Festival.
Fri 23: Knats @ King Street Social Club, North Shields. 7:00pm. £17.00., £14.70., £11.30., £5.50. SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: King Bees @ Billy Bootleggers, Newcastle. 7:00pm. Free. Superb Chicago blues band.
Fri 23: Sara Oschlag & Arnie Somogyi w. Ben Lawrence @ Ship Isis, Sunderland. 7:30pm. Sara Oschlag (vocals); Ben Lawrence (keyboards); Arnie Somogyi (double bass).
Fri 23: Ronnie Scott’s Soho Songbook @ Redhills, Durham. 8:00pm. James Pearson (piano); Sam Burgess (double bass); Chris Higginbottom (drums); Alex Garnett (sax); Polly Gibbons (vocals). Durham Jazz Festival. SOLD OUT!
Fri 23: SwanNek + Jacob Egglestone @ Fabio’s Bar, Durham. 9:00pm. Durham Jazz Festival.

Monday, January 15, 2024

Roly Veitch recalls his early inspirations: Spencer Davies Group (with Steve Winwood) - Georgia on my mind (1967) - v...


Here’s how I became a jazz lover. I was born in 1946 so my teenage/young adult years were across the ‘swinging sixties’. I had liked The Shadows (learned some of their material on guitar) also Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly. But when the Stones emerged I was drawn to their earthy R&B based early album songs. This led me to the original artists they were influenced by, such as Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley.

When I started my Newcastle office job I discovered a colleague could play good blues and boogie woogie piano (Honky Tonk Train Blues, etc.). I loved that. His name was Bobby Hogg.

Also I went to Club A’Gogo in Percy Street and was knocked out by Steve Winwood with Spencer Davis Group and also I liked Alex Harvey Soul Band.

My work pal then played me Oscar Peterson’s ‘Night Train’ album and that was the eureka moment. I bought some Peterson vinyl albums (at JG Windows of course) and started going to jazz gigs, the New Orleans Club for example. I had stopped playing guitar but wanted to learn jazz piano. I went to Newlands Furniture Store in Northumberland Street where they had rows and rows of old pianos in the basement. Most were rubbish but I found a decent one, a Squire and my grandmother was kind enough to let me keep it at her house. I set about trying to learn blues piano but made limited progress. Eventually when I heard guitarist George Barnes (with Ruby Braff) I loved his playing, went out and bought a cheap guitar (at Barratt’s on Newgate Street) and brought it home and started playing along with the Barnes/Braff albums.

I still think back to those Club A'Gogo days. Steve Winwood was amazing. For anyone not familiar I recommend listen to him playing Georgia on my Mind aged about 17 I think (see YouTube clip above). You could hear a pin drop when he sang that. Roly
at

2 comments :

Maurice Summerfield said...

Interesting to read Roly's early inspiration was Spencer Davis. Spencer was a big fan of Barney Kessel. In 1971, whilst in Hollywood, he asked his producer Jay Spenter to ask Barney if he would play on a new recording with him and Peter Jameson The result was the LP release -Spencer-Davis-And-Peter-Jameson-'Its-Been-So-Long'United Artists Records – UAS 29177. Barney was a leading member of Phil Spector's 'Wrecking Crew' and played on many #1 popular hits by the likes of Tina Turner, Sonny and Cher, Tha Righteous Brothers, The Ronettes, the Crystals, The Beach Boy and more.

Monday, January 15, 2024 5:08:00 pm
Russell said...

Some years after Spencer Davis, Steve Winwood appeared at Newcastle City Hall. Great voice, all night long playing piano until nearing the end of the concert, Winwood picked up a guitar (Gibson SG?).Nothing flashy, simply superb guitar playing. There is, of course, something of a connection with Blaydon Jazz Club (this year celebrating its 40th anniversary) in as much as one of Winwood's long-serving band members appeared at the Black Bull in his early teens - local hero Paul Booth.

Tuesday, January 16, 2024 12:28:00 pm

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