Bebop Spoken There

Ron Carter quoting Sonny Rollins: ''What we call jazz - that's keeping the world in equilibrium. I don't care what kind of music you like out here today. It all comes from jazz.'' (DownBeat August, 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

18844 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 18 years ago. 708 of them this year alone and, so far this month (Aug. 27) 77.

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

September.

Thu 03: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ The Millstone, Mill Rise, South Gosforth, Newcastle. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 03: Jazz Appreciation North East @ Brunswick Methodist Church, Newcastle NE1 7BJ. 2:00pm. £5.00.
Thu 03: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm. Free. Feat. Ian Bosworth (guitar); Ron Hampton (guitar); Riche Emmerson (tenor sax); Dan Johnson (tenor sax, alto sax); Garry Hadfield (keyboards); Adrian Beadnell (bass); Mark Hawkins (drums).

Fri 04: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 04: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 04: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 04: FUNK: new musicians collective @ Pilgrim, Newcastle. 7:30pm (doors). £6.00. Line-up inc. Chris Caygill & Daniel Chandler.
Fri 04: The Upside + Lagos to Longbenton @ Cumberland Arms, Byker, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £8.00. Ska, funk, Afro-fusion & more.

Sat 05: Alligator Gumbo @ St Augustine’s Parish Centre, Darlington. 12:30pm. £10.00. Darlington New Orleans Jazz Club.
Sat 05: Tees Bay Swing Band @ Hartlepool Art Gallery. 4:00-6:15pm. £6.00. Concert performance. Tickets available from the venue - tel: 01429 869706.
Sat 05: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Red Lion, Earsdon. 8:00pm. £3.00.

Sun 06: Smokin’ Spitfires @ The Cluny, Newcastle. 12:45pm. £10.00.
Sun 06: Ian Bosworth Quintet @ Chapel, Middlesbrough. 1:00pm. Free. Ian Bosworth (guitar); Richie Emmerson (tenor sax); Jeremy McMurray (keyboards); Adrian Beadnell (bass); Mark Hawkins (drums) & guest Mick Donnelly (tenor sax).
Sun 06: Tees Bay Swing Band @ Ropner Park, Stockton. 2:00-4:00pm. Free.
Sun 06: Sax Choir @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:00pm. Free.
Sun 06: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 06: Nils Kavanagh Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 07: Friends of Jazz @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 07: Saltburn Big Band @ Saltburn House Hotel. 7:00-9:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).

Tue 08: Seijiro Murayama Jean Luc Guionnet @ Star & Shadow Cinema Co-op, Warwick St., Newcastle, NE2 1BB. 7.00pm. £10.00 (advance). £12.00 (on door). £.15.00 (solidarity).
Tue 08: SH#RP Collective @ Newcastle House Hotel, Rothbury. 7:30pm. Coquetdale Jazz.
Tue 08: Jazz Jam Sandwich @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Wed 09: Vieux Carré Hot 4 @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 09: Jam session @ The Tannery, Hexham. 7:00pm. Free.
Wed 09: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 09: 58 Jazz Collective @ Hartlepool Cricket Club. 7:30pm. £7.00.
Wed 09: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. Wed 09: NONUNONU @ Elder Beer, Heaton, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.00. JNE. Excellent trio.

Friday, October 24, 2025

Joe Webb Trio @ Le Duc des Lombards, Paris - Oct 22

© Patti
Joe Webb (piano); Will Sach (double bass); Kai MacRae (drums) + Adrian Cox (clarinet)

EasyJet, NCL to Charles de Gaulle, convenient flight times, affordable. Let's go! Landing more or less on time, navigating the CDG metropolis - terminal to terminal to train station - proved to be straightforward. 

Arriving Gare du Nord, l'hôtel (When in France!), ideally situated across the road, reeked of 2* luxury. No time to waste, Métro to Chatelet, our final destination one of the French capital's finest jazz clubs. 

Le Duc des Lombards took some finding! Chet Baker singing Let's Get Lost the soundtrack to our wanderings. Stumbling upon Sunset Sunside (another renowned jazz spot) it was time to ask someone the way. Merci! And off we went, wandering around in circles - again. 

Sometime later...There it is! As we walked through the door, three others followed, a voice from behind saying: Long time, no see.* Once inside, the first face we saw was the man himself - Mr Joe Webb. Hugs, our man was surprised to see us! Taking our seats to the side of the venue's Yamaha piano, the lights would soon be dimmed, but not before your correspondent ordered 'deux bière'. 

Le Duc des Lombard's MC, situated somewhere (unseen) in the room, made the introductions: Á la batterie...Kai MacRae (cue applause). Contrabass...Will Sach (more applause), au piano, Joe Webb (a crescendo of applause). A week ago Joe was in Newcastle doing his thing as a Mercury Award nominee (home town favourite Sam Fender taking the spoils), this evening Paris and, next week...Newcastle**

In a set of some 75 minutes, the Joe Webb Trio would knock 'em dead. From an extended, explorative Cheek to Cheek to cuts from Hamstrings & Hurricanes (including 100 Years of Bill & Lil and Newcastle Full Feel), to James P (comp. J. Webb) to Myfanwy (Joe acknowledging his Welsh roots), the musicianship was of the highest order - that's Webb, long time friend Will Sach (double bass) and young, hot shot drummer Kai MacRae.

© Patti
And if that wasn't enough, Joe Webb's special guest for the evening was none other than clarinet virtuoso Adrian Cox. How lucky were we?! Webb and Cox took Just You Just Me to the cleaners and back again. Those who heard Cox on his recent tour of the BSH region will have a good idea of the 'eyeballs out' intensity of their performance. Très bon! 

Webb's Oscar, and frequently dazzling Tatumesque piano playing throughout the set, left his Parisian audience in no doubt whatsoever they were listening to one of the foremost pianists of his generation.

* Less than 48 hours earlier at Blaydon Jazz Club (the final date of their tour of the north east of England), we said goodbye to Adrian Cox, Honey Boulton and Alex Gilson. And here they were here in Paris to catch the Joe Webb Trio in concert. Small world. 

** Joe Webb will be appearing at a sold out event at Bonners (Kingston Park, Newcastle) on Thursday 30 October. Russell
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