Bebop Spoken There

Melissa Aldana: ''Having to play a ballads album, which is something very revealing for a saxophone player, would help me to question some new aspects of how to go deeper into sound." (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

18656 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 520 of them this year alone and, so far this month (June 25) 72

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

June

Tue 30: Alan Law Trio @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 2:00pm. Free.
Tue 30: Eva Fox & the Sound Hounds @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

July

Wed 01: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 01: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 01: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 02: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 02: Paul Skerritt @ Angels' Share, St George's Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle NE2 2SX. 8:00pm. Free. Booking advised (0191 200 1975). Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Thu 02: De’Sean Jones & Blaque Dynamite feat. Urban Art Orchestra @ Cluny 2, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). De’Sean Jones (MD, tenor sax); Blaque Dynamite (Mike Mitchell, drums); Jamie Murray (drums) with UAO horns & strings.
Thu 02: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.
Thu 02: Howlin’ Mat @ Newcastle Arts centre. 7:30pm. Free. Acoustic

Fri 03: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 03: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 03: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 03: Paul Donnelly Quartet @ Saltburn Community Hall. 7:30pm.
Fri 03: Martin Taylor @ Arc, Stockton. 8:00pm. Taylor (solo guitar).

Sat 04: Spats Langham’s Hot Fingers @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00. Darlington New Orleans Jazz Club.
Sat 04: Michael Woods @ Cycle Hub, Quayside, Ouseburn. 1:30-2:30pm & 3:00-4:00pm. Free. Acoustic blues guitar. An Ouseburn Festival event.
Sat 04: Play Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 1:30pm. £27.50. Tutor: Steve Glendinning. Take the ‘A’ Train to Summertime: From Melody to Masterclass. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 04: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.

Sun 05: Smokin’ Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm. £10.00.
Sun 05: Ian Bosworth Quintet @ Chapel, Middlesbrough. 1:00pm. Free. Feat. guest Kevin Eland (trumpet).
Sun 05: Michael Woods @ Cycle Hub, Quayside, Ouseburn. 1:30-2:30pm & 3:15-4:00pm. Free. Acoustic blues guitar. An Ouseburn Festival event.
Sun 05: Lydia Rae Quintet @ Central Bar, Gateshead. 2:00pm. £10.00. Rae (vocals); Sam Lightwing (alto sax, tenor sax); Ben Lawrence (piano); Andy Champion (double bass); John Bradford (drums).
Sun 05: Sax Choir @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 05: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Table reservations (0191 261 8000). Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 05: Storytellers Street Band @ Ouseburn Woodland, Ouseburn. 5:00-6:00pm. Free. An Ouseburn Festival event.
Sun 05: Gerry Richardson’s Big Idea @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.
Sun 05: Jambone @ Glasshouse, Gateshead. 8:15-9:45pm. Free but ticketed.

Mon 06: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 06: Saltburn Big Band @ Saltburn House Hotel. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).

Monday, April 28, 2025

Sunday night @ the Globe: the Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet - April 27

© Ken Drew
Paul Edis (piano); Vasilis Xenopoulos (tenor sax, flute); Ken Marley (bass); Russ Morgan (drums)

Come Wednesday (April 30) we'll be celebrating, not only International Jazz Day which in itself is a cause worth popping a cork for, but also the anniversary of the Globe as a community owned music venue where, over the past eleven years, there have been many great gigs. However, few, if indeed any of those gigs, have topped last night's session by the Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet - not even their own previous appearances! They were on fire!

A balanced mix of standards and originals by the two leaders had the audience voluntarily captured. No one even thought about leaving until they'd heard the very last note of the final cadenza. I didn't need the Metro, I floated home on a cloud.

© Ken Drew
And home was the overall theme of the evening's compositions - not least because Paul and Vasilis' most recent album Feels Like Home is centred around that place where, 'tis said, the heart is.

Going Home got the journey underway and with a little help from Dvořák, who put in the groundwork, we were flying into a new world. Mega extended solos from piano and tenor drew the applause with bass and drums steadying the ship.

Collywood (Collier's Wood) referred to the area where Paul metaphorically hangs his hat. Vasi composed The Yard a number where Ken Marley let his fingers do the walking. A rare standard - The Folks Who Live on the Hill - had the 'Grecian God of the Tenor' at his sumptuous best with perhaps a hint of Dexter Gordon in the mix.

© Ken Drew
Another Vasi original, Get Off My Lawn, was, contrafactually speaking, actually You'd be so Nice to Come Home to which kept it in the remit. It brought the first set to a close and the buzzwords that were circulating didn't include any negatives.

Paul's Lockdown London is self-explanatory and a reflection of that strange period when the world stopped. The rhythm was more contemporary and Vasi's tenor solo left me breathless and I wasn't even blowing the damn thing. After a solo like that I doubt if I ever will!

Composed by Paul in a NYC hotel room, A Rainy Day in Manhattan is not only a great tune but a fantastic title that is just crying out for a lyric.

Vasi took to the flute for Paul's Coming Home to You then back to tenor for a wild  3/4 number Awaiting Boarding (at King's Cross).

The show finished with a mad blast on I Got Rhythm - a tune more frequently played as Anthropology, Lester Leaps in or at least 100 other titles many of which popped up in the solos. Special mention of the fireman and the stoker - Ken Marley and Russ Morgan. Ken had his moments in the sun whilst Russ was confined to solid support and the occasional break. Great that he's back on the scene.

And then it was all over - well not quite. There was also the album which, if you hadn't bought on the night, can be BANDCAMPED. Lance
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