Bebop Spoken There

Gary Bartz: ''Charlie Parker was my introduction to the religion of music. And so he's always with me .'' - Downbeat November 2025.

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

17972 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 17 years ago. 936 of them this year alone and, so far, 45 this month (Nov. 14).

From This Moment On ...

November

Sat 15: Joseph Carville Trio @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 15: Tweed River Jazz Band @ Warkworth Memorial Hall. 7:00-9:30pm.
Sat 15: Les Frères Frangipane @ Jesmond Library, Newcastle. 8:00pm (doors 7:30pm). £10.00. ‘Chanson Française’. Fundraiser for Jesmond Community Orchard & Jesmond Library.

Sun 16: Jo Harrop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Duo performance.
Sun 16: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 2:30pm. Free. ‘Jazz Sunday’ with special guest PETE TANTON.
Sun 16: Lorne Lofsky-Nigel Price Quartet @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Lofsky (guitar); Price (guitar); Jeremy Brown (double bass); Joel Barford (drums).
Sun 16: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 16: Lorne Lofsky-Nigel Price Quartet @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Lofsky (guitar); Price (guitar); Jeremy Brown (double bass); Joel Barford (drums).

Mon 17: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club (1:00pm). Free.
Mon 17: Finn-Keeble Quartet @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 18: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Alan Law, Paul Grainger, Abbie Finn.

Wed 19: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 19: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 19: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 20: Castillo Nuevo Orquesta @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £6.50.

Fri 21: Tom Remon & Tony Ormesher @ The Lit & Phil, Newcastle. 1:00pm. SOLD OUT! Guitar duo.
Fri 21: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 21: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 21: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 21: Castillo Nuevo Trio @ Hotel Gotham, Newcastle. 5:30pm.
Fri 21: Pete Tanton’s Chet Set @ Sunderland Minster. 7:30pm.
Fri 21: East Coast Swing Band @ 1856 Exchange, North Shields. 7:30pm.
Fri 21: Martin Speake Quartet @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm.

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

Thursday, March 21, 2024

Album reviews: Cannonball Adderley Quintet - (1) Burnin' in Bordeaux: Live in France 1969. (2) Poppin' in Paris: Live at L'Olympia 1972

(1); Cannonball Adderley (alto sax); Nat Adderley  (cornet); Joe Zawinul (piano, electric piano); Victor Gaskin (bass); Roy McCurdy (drums) + unknown vocalist on Oh Babe.

(2): Cannonball Adderley (alto/soprano sax); Nat Adderley  (cornet); George Duke (piano, electric piano); Walter Booker (bass); Roy McCurdy (drums).

Just as I  never got to see Charlie Parker live one of my other eternal regrets is that I never heard Cannonball live either and these three discs, spread over two CDs (or four LPs), only serve to place an even greater awareness of what I missed. True I heard Nat Adderley at an excellent Corner House session in Newcastle but, good as it was, nothing could compare with hearing the brothers in full flight as on these three discs.

Although a couple of  numbers are duplicated they are very different suggesting they have evolved over the three years separating the two concerts. The big difference is Joe Zawinul on the earlier and George Duke on the later one. My personal preference is for the tracks with Zawinul - I  found Duke's frenetic approach a bit too much for my less adventurous tastes although in fairness upon listening to the later concert again he does become more accessible. Maybe I've just woken up after being asleep for a hundred years. Either way both are highly recommended for those who are partial to musical soul food with a 1970ish contemporary twist.

The 16 page booklets that accompany both albums have excellent notes by Bob Blumenthal although even he is unable to identify the blues singer on Oh Babe, the encore noisily demanded by the fans in Bordeaux. MYSTERY SOLVED - see comment.

These, and many others, are due for release on Record Store Day 2024 (April 20) via Elemental Music and other labels. DETAILS. Lance

(1a): The Scavenger; Manhä de Carnaval; Work Song; Somewhere; Why am I Treated so Bad?; The Scene. (1b): Experience in ; Blue 'n' Boogie; Come Sunday; Walk Tall (Baby That's What I Need); Mercy, Mercy, Mercy; The Scene; Oh Babe (features unknown blues singer).

(2): Black Messiah; Autumn Leaves; Soli Tomba; Walk Tall (Baby That's What I Need); The Scene; Doctor Honoris Causa; Hummin'; Directions; Mercy, Mercy, Mercy; The Scene.

3 comments :

Gordon Solomon said...

Some time ago I came across a You Tube video of Oh Babe from this session. The vocalist is listed as Cannonball’s brother, Nat Adderley.

Russell said...

An internet search does indeed suggest the vocalist is Nat Adderley. Bob Blumenthal doesn't credit Nat as vocalist, perhaps he (Blumenthal) knows more than we do.

Gordon Solomon said...

Fortunately the YouTube video is still available to watch. It clearly shows Nat as the vocalist, standing holding his cornet.
Cheers.

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