Bebop Spoken There

Art Blakey (to Terence Blanchard): ''You ain't Miles find your own shit to do!'' (DownBeat May, 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

18532 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 396 of them this year alone and, so far this month (May 15) 50

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

May

Sun 17: Glenn Miller & Big Band Spectacular @ Forum Theatre, Billingham. 7:30pm.
Sun 17: QOW Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £14.00., £12.00., £7.00. Spike Wells, Riley Stone-Lonergan & Eddie Myer.

Mon 18: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 18: Mark Williams Trio @ The Black Bull, Blaydon. 8:00pm. £10.00.

Tue 19: GoGo Penguin + Daudi Matsiko @ Wylam Brewery, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £22.00 + £4.40 bf.
Tue 19: Danny Lowndes’ Hot Club @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £15.00 + £5.00 bf.
Tue 19: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young (piano); Paul Grainger (double bass); Mark Robertson (drums).

Wed 20: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 20: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 20: Jordan Jackson @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £19.80 (inc. bf); £15.40 (inc. bf).
Wed 20: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 21: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 21: Jazz Classics with Rivkala @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Rivkala (vocals); Alan Law (piano); Paul Grainger (double bass).
Thu 21: Paul Skerritt @ Angels' Share, St George's Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle NE2 2SX. 8:00pm. Free. Booking advised (0191 200 1975). Skerritt w. backing tapes.

Fri 22: Paul Skerritt @ Market Place, Durham. From 12 noon. Free. Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Fri 22: Paul Edis Trio @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £9.00. Edis, Andy Champion, Steve Hanley.
Fri 22: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 22: Castillo Nuevo Trio @ Hotel Gotham, Newcastle. 5:30pm. Free.
Fri 22: Paul Edis Trio @ St Cuthbert’s Centre, Crook. 7:30pm. £TBC. Edis, Andy Champion, Steve Hanley.

Sat 23: Tyne Valley Big Band @ Bywell Hall. 2:00pm. Northumberland County Show.
Sat 23: Paul Edis @ Core Music, Gilesgate, Hexham. 3:00pm. £12.00. A Core Music fundraiser, Hexham Jazz Weekender Day/Weekend ticket not applicable. Hexham Jazz Weekender.
Sat 23: Blyth Big Band @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth. 6:30pm. £9.00., £5.00.
Sat 23: Paul Edis & Friends @ Musicwonders, Church Chare, Chester-le-Street. 7:00pm (6:30pm doors). £15.00. www.musicwonders.org. BYOB.
Sat 23: Alexia Gardner Quintet @ Queen’s Hall Hexham. 7:00pm. £13.50 (inc. bf). Hexham Jazz Weekender.
Sat 23: TC & the Groove Family + Lagos to Longbenton @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle. 7:00pm (doors). £17.51., £14.33., £11.16.
Sat 23: Davina & the Vagabonds @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £22.00. + £1.50 bf.
Sat 23: Celebrating Wes Montgomery @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 8:15pm. £14.00., £12.00. Hexham Jazz Weekender.
Sat 23: Chris Coull’s Porgy & Bess @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 9:30pm. £16.50 (inc. bf). Hexham Jazz Weekender.

Wednesday, November 27, 2024

Alexia Gardner Quintet @ the Black Swan - Nov. 26

© Mike Tilley
Alexia Gardner (vocal); Harry Keeble (tenor sax); Alan Law (keys); Jude Murphy (bass, vocal); Abbie Finn (drums)

I just  had to check this one out. There had been a lot of Chinese whispers circulating about this singer who'd been sighted, on YouTube, in Switzerland, New York, Asia and other points east and west as well as recording for Alex Webb's Copasetic Foundation.

More recently she'd been making waves at local jams and low key venues...

...Alexia Gardner.

I wasn't disappointed!

© Mike Tilley
The Black Swan was crowded. I wasn't the only one who was curious to see if Alexia Gardner delivered the goods. After an impressive, if earsplitting, opener by top tenor Keeble on Moment's Notice the delightful diva hit the deck running with Cheek to Cheek and it was game on!

The gambler's lucky streak hadn't vanished with It Might as Well be Spring. This was like hitting the Tote Double with a couple of longshots up the road at Gosforth Park!

Moon River had  Jude  providing vocal harmonies behind Alexia's vocal to great effect and One Note Samba saw Harry blowing a lot of notes. Bass too played quite a few.

© Mike Tilley
The Nearness of You was everything that most romantic of ballads should be whilst The Lady is a Tramp swung with super solos all round. It also demonstrated Alexia's prediliction for rolling her 'r's: e.g. the lady is a trrrrramp. A big clue in a blindfold test.

The set closed with It's Gonna be a Great Day and a spirited Milestones.

Interval conversations agreed that it most certainly had been a geat day (night) and there was more to come.

Harry blew St. Thomas with able support from Abbie, Alan and Jude before  Alexia returned for Don't Get Around Much Anymore followed by Seven Steps to Heaven.

Mo Better Blues was another killer with Harry even besting his best. Black Coffee was as bluesy as they come with its saga of a  lonely woman although our vocalist managed to inject (jokingly?) a reference to her own marriage!

The evening drew to a close with Turn Your Lights Down Low, Stand by me and What a Wonderful World.

The applause raised the roof with a volume that wouldn't have been out of place at the Gallowgate End of St. James' Park. 

Gardner, Keeble, Law, Murphy and Finn - carve their names with pride then catch them again at the Globe on Dec. 29. Lance
at

3 comments :

Anonymous said...

The years she performed in Switzerland, I was at almost every show! Looking forward to be in the audience on December 18th when she will perform here again. (Janice.🇨🇭 )

Wednesday, November 27, 2024 5:45:00 pm
Lance said...

December 18? Tell me more...

Wednesday, November 27, 2024 11:32:00 pm
Anonymous said...

Lance, that December 18 was a Swiss concert at Guggenheim Liestal.
A well known music venue and Center for Live Music in Switzerland's
Basel Land. It was a great success. Alexia Gardner on vocals and Beat
Baumli on guitar. This line up is a salute to Alexia's A Little Closer album
Recorded in Basel Switzerland in 2011.

Saturday, January 18, 2025 3:17:00 pm

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