Bebop Spoken There

Christian McBride: ''We knew back in the day that Emmet [Cohen] had it.'' (DownBeat July, 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

18721 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 585 of them this year alone and, so far this month (July 18) 49

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

July

Tue 21: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Joe Deans.

Wed 22: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 22: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 22: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 23: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 23: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 23: Side Café Orkestar @ New castle Arts Centre. 7:30pm. Free. Balkan, Hot Club, Klezmer.
Thu 23: 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 24: Lindsay Hannon Quartet @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £9.00.
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.

Sat 25: Sing Jazz! workshop @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00-5:00pm. £27.50. Tutor: Alexia Gardner. Cheek to Cheek - Ella Fitgerald. Enrol at: learning@jazz.coop.
Sat 25: Red Kites Jazz @ Costa Café (within Next), MetroCentre, Gateshead. 2:00-3:00pm. Free.

Sun 26: Musicians Unlimited: Big Band Blast @ West Hartlepool RFC. 1:00-3:00pm . Free.
Sun 26: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Paul Skerritt @ Hibou Blanc, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free. Table reservations (0191 261 8000). Skerritt w. backing tapes.
Sun 26: Ruth Lambert Trio @ Juke Shed, North Shields. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 26: Bright Street Big Band @ Sandhaven Amphitheatre, South Shields. 3.30-5.30pm.
Sun 26: Jo Harrop & Jamie McCredie @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £14.00., £12.00., £7.00.
Sun 26: King Bees @ Luckies, Jesmond, Newcastle. 8:00pm. Free. Chicago blues.

Mon 27: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.

Monday, August 04, 2025

Album review: Antonio Adolfo - Carnaval The Songs Were so Beautiful (AAM Music)

(Collective personnel): Antonio Adolfo (piano); Lula Galvão (guitar); Jorge Helder (bass); Rafael Barata (drums, perc.); Jesse Sadoc (trumpet, flugel); Idriss Boudria (alto sax); Marcelo Martins (tenor sax, flute); Rafael Rocha (trombone); Andre Siqueira (perc.)

I was preparing to change the duvet and I knew I had a long session ahead of me wrestling with a duvet that was quite happy with the status quo - after all they were old friends - as well as struggling to fit a mattress cover over a mattress that I knew would fight every inch of the way to defy my efforts.

I decided music might work its charms on my bedfellows and so I pulled out a 'waiting patiently to be reviewed' CD - Antonio Adolfo's Carnaval.

This proved to be an inspired choice. I've reviewed two of Adolfo's previous albums: one dedicated to Cole Porter and the other to Jobim and both were, and still are, excellent. The mattress and the duvet may have been oblivious to the sounds and rhythms of Brazil but, for me the task at hand was no longer a chore but an opportunity to wallow in this delightful mix of jazz and carnaval. Sure there's bossas and sambas but, as Adolfo explains, they are but the tip of the iceberg alongside the other sounds from Brazil.

Those rhythms and the melodies are infectious as are the solos which combine jazz with the indigenous sounds of a very large country.

The most danceable record of the year. Lance 

É Com Esse Que Eu Vou; Vassourinhas; OBA; Mal-Me-Quer; Vai Passer; As Pastorinhas; Exaltação À Mangueira; A Lua É Dos Namorados; Agora É Cinza

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