Bebop Spoken There

David Bailey (photographer): ''When I was 16 I wanted to look like Chet Baker. He was my idol - him and James Dean.'' (Talking Pictures documentary : Four beats to the bar and no cheating April, 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

18445 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 309 of them this year alone and, so far this month (April 20 ) 43,

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

April

Wed 22: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 22: Nubiyan Twist @ Digital, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £28.75 (inc. bf).
Wed 22: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 22: Daniel John Martin w. Swing Manouche @ Bishop Auckland Methodist Church. 7:30pm. Date, time & admission TBC.
Wed 22: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 23: FILM: Big Mama Thornton: I Can’t Be Anyone But Me @ Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle. 6:15pm. Dir. Robert Clem (2025).
Thu 23: Castillo Nuevo Orquesta @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. £6.50. 7:30pm (doors).
Thu 23: Eva Fox & the Sound Hounds @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.
Thu 23: Jeremy McMurray’s Pocket Jazz Orchestra & Musicians Unlimited @ ARC, Stockton. 8:00pm. £19.00. inc. bf.

Fri 24: Noel Dennis Trio @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. Dennis, Mark Willams, Andy Champion. SOLD OUT!
Fri 24: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 24: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 24: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 24: Trio Grand @ Land of Oak & Iron, Winlaton. 6:00-9:00pm. Free.
Fri 24: Ben Vince + The Exu @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £14.33., £11.16, £8.00. A ‘jazz adjacent’ gig!
Fri 24: Daniel John Martin w. Swing Manouche @ The Ship Isis, Sunderland. 7:30pm. £13.20 (inc. bf).
Fri 24: TBC @ The Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm.

Sat 25: Giles Strong Quartet @ Hindmarsh Hall, Alnmouth. 7:30pm. CANCELLED!
Sat 25: Daniel John Martin w. Swing Manouche @ The Old Cinema Launderette, Durham. 7:30pm (7:00pm doors). £13.20 (inc. bf).
Sat 25: ‘Portrait in Evans’: Noa Levy & Alan Barnes w. Paul Edis Trio @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:00pm. £24.00. Sage Two. ‘Portrait in Evans’. Levy, Barnes, Edis, Andy Champion & Steve Hanley.

Sun 26: Musicians Unlimited: Big Band Blast @ West Hartlepool RFC. 1:00-3:00pm . Free.
Sun 26: Daniel John Martin w. Swing Manouche @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. £10.00.
Sun 26: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Ni Maxine + Nauta @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £17.51., £14.33., £11.16.
Sun 26: Joe Steels @ The Pele, Corbridge. 7:00pm. Free (donations direct to the musicians). Joe Steels & Friends.
Sun 26: C.A.L.I.E @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £16.00., £14.00., £7.00.

Mon 27: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 27: House of Blues @ the Globe, Newcastle. 7:00pm. £7.00., £5.00. advance. A student-led jazz session. ‘House of Blues’ is, perhaps, a misnomer.
Mon 27: Littlewood Trio @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £10.00 + bf, £7.00. + bf.

Tue 28: Long/Remon/Zilker @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Tom Remon plays Irish folk!

Friday, May 10, 2024

Lewis Watson Quartet + Langdale Youth Jazz Ensemble @ Laurel's, Whitley Bay - May 9

Lewis Watson (tenor sax); Mark Williams (guitar); Andy Champion (double bass); John Bradford (drums)

A first visit to Laurel's in Whitley Bay. A former social club on Whitley Road, its discreet entrance leads visitors up a steep fight of stairs to a first floor bar (with pool table!). The decor, best described as 'funky', the place has a DIY feel to it. Dimly lit, the seating 'funky', a pint of Camden's Ice Breaker Pale Ale the pick (at an eye-watering £5.95 a pint), best of all, the sound system was Bird and Dizzy all the way.

Sometime later we took another flight of stairs (no lift) to the performance space. Seating on three sides, overhead theatre spotlights, Laurel's is a funky place, that's for sure. We, 'we' being the capacity audience, were in Whitley Bay to listen to Lewis Watson. The tenor saxophonist's quartet - Mark Williams, Andy Champion, John Bradford - opened, as always, with a searing take on Wayne Shorter's Yes or No. Listening to Lewis and co., the thought occurred...Small's, Smoke, the Blue Note, the Village Vanguard or any of the Big Apple's many jazz venues could/should book the Lewis Watson Quartet.

Song for Keith, No Light, No Tunnel, these are but two of the numbers occupying Lewis' 2023/24 set list. The musicianship - Lewis, Mark, Andy and John - of the highest order, over the course of two sets, if anyone was in doubt, this evening's performance should banish such thoughts for ever more. Prayer to Be concluded the evening. Here's a thought...if Lewis Watson did get himself a gig in NYC, he'd knock it out of the ballpark. 

Langdale Youth Jazz Ensemble: Lewis Watson (MD, tenor sax); Lara Hopper (trumpet); Erin (guitar); Thomas (keyboards); Neil Hopper (double bass); Finlay (drums)

Earlier, Lewis Watson led a Wallsend based youth ensemble - Langdale Youth Jazz Ensemble - in a short set of modern jazz standards. Trumpeter Lara (rapidly becoming a Black Swan jam session regular) and bassist Neil (Neil helping out Lewis on a regular basis), guitarist Erin*, pianist Thomas and drummer Finlay made a great job of it, playing Dear Old Stockholm (Dear Old Stockton, quipped MC Lewis), Hank's Groove, I Remember Clifford (a feature for Lara), Blue Bossa and Chick Corea's 500 Miles High. An excellent half hour or so.    

* Full marks to Erin. Shortly after the Langdale Youth Jazz Ensemble's set, Erin made a sharp exit due to the fact the following morning she was due to sit a GCSE exam! Russell 
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