Alexia Gardner (vocals); Alan Law (piano); Harry Keeble (tenor sax); Jude Murphy (bass, backing vocals); Abbie Finn (drums).
Alexia never fails to delight. Unique interpretations of tried and tested standards delivered in her own individual style.
I'd heard her singing them all before yet they seem to come out differently each time - the mark of a true jazz singer.
Toomey confessed to not being one for naming tunes - Mouse in the House and Song for Laura, titles inspired by home and family. And why not? That's as good as anything. Jeremy McMurray knows his way around a keyboard, that's for sure, Ken Marley, propulsive, robust, Paul Smith equally propulsive*, it all added up to a secure foundation, enabling Toomey to fly high, free as a bird (Yardbird?).
If Rhythm Changes was called at a jam session Mark Toomey would be in his element, standing his ground against the best of them. Ballad (Song for Laura), bop-burner (Mark Time), whatever Toomey's mood (Parker's Mood?), the Mark Toomey Quartet scored heavily on this second, sweltering, day at the 2026 Newcastle Jazz Festival.
* On Sunday (July 5) at Newcastle Jazz Co-op HQ on Railway Street, Smithy will be driving the juggernaut that is Gerry Richardson's nine-piece Big Idea. One of the great Hammond-led outfits here on Tyneside, or anywhere else for that matter, book now at: www.theglobenewcastle.bar. Russell
Set list included: Do You Have the Time?; One More Try; Mouse in the House; Song for Laura; Those Rainy Summer Days; I'm Sorry; I Don't Know What to Say; Mark Time.
https://www.ayclifferadio.co.
Playlist 28/06/26 (repeated Tuesday 30/06/26)
Seasonal: Red Allen's All Stars, Billie Holiday.
Requests from Dr. Jazz: Louis Armstrong, Stefon Harris, Dave Brubeck, Mammal Hands, Lou Reed.
Tony Eales Best of Britain: Alan Barnes.
Request: Emmet Cohen.
New Release: Prime.
Requests: Jaco Pastorius, Quincy Jones, Lena Horne.
What’s on in the NE: De'Sean Jones & Blaque Dynamite, Spats Langham.
Request: Robert Cray.
Aycliffe Radio is available on DAB in County Durham & the Darlington area or via your smart speaker.
Cooper Robson (vocals); Stanley Elvis Woodward/King David
Ike-Elechi/Ferg Kilsby (vocals) (track 9); Stanley Elvis Woodward (bass
guitar/synths); King David Ike-Elechi (drums/percussion); Ferg Kilsby (Trumpet,
flugelhorn); Sandro Shargarodsky (piano, keyboards, synthesiser); George
Johnson (tenor saxophone); Otto Kampa (alto saxophone); Tom Ford (guitar);
Geordie Greep (guitar) (tracks 4 and 7); Josh Mitchell-Rayner (piano) (track
1); Viviane Ghiglino (flute) (track 1); Lucy Rowan (alto flute) (track 1);
Frank Barr (clarinet) (track 1); Sebastian Barley (French horn) (track 1);
Tobias Amadio (trumpet) (track 1); Bertie Beaman (trombone) (track 1); Dillon
Pinder (trombone) (track 9); Enya Barber (violin); Congling Wu (violin);
Natalia Solis Paredes (viola); Morgan Key (cello)
There’s a wonderful Northern defiance that runs through much of this
album like a steel rod. It’s two fingers up to the South and advice to tell
them that they can stick their ingrained entitlement and belief in their
superiority where the sun don’t shine. (Ironic suggestion, I know, in the
middle of a heatwave).
It ranges from big boots on the ground, declaimed poetry, through rapid-fire punk rock to jazz-rock, some blues-soul and an occasional sweeping elegance that all holds together because these are all constituent parts of their portrait of the North. Heresy, I know, but it reminds me of Ezra Collective in the way that Knats have incorporated their roots into the music, meanwhile, the imagery in Cooper Robson’s poems add enormous strength to anchoring the group into the local soil.
 |
| © Russell |
From the moment that BSH announced to its readers the advance notice of this gig there was a buzz in the air, an eager anticipation that this was going to be out of this world. And it was.
Call me a romantic if you will but methinks that the almighty claps of thunder that shook the residential foundations of Tyneside this morning were in fact the Gods themselves saying thank you for last night's concert.
From the off everything gelled. Jackie McClean's Bird Lives saw the trio slotting a whole load of Parker phrases into the solos. It was hard to comprehend how a drummer-less trio could have such power.
Some albums, once heard, stay with you for the rest of your life, others are played once and then promptly forgotten. The Long Way Home belongs very much in the former category to the extent that I feel I'll still be listening to it in ten years time, and of course tomorrow and the day after that.
At 98 years old bass player Bill Crow, like Jack Honeyborne at the Spice of Life on Monday, proves that age is no obstacle - if you've got it - and he's got it as both soloist and ensemble rock - it stays with you. Likewise Steve Little, at 91, by comparison, is barely out of short pants.
For many years, Vanessa Haynes has been one of those voices woven into the fabric of British soul and jazz. Whether fronting Incognito, appearing regularly at Ronnie Scott's, performing at the BBC Proms or bringing her extraordinary energy to Natalie Williams' Soul Family, she has built a reputation as one of the finest vocalists working in the UK today. Audiences know the power of her voice. They know the way she can command a stage, lift a chorus and draw listeners into a performance. What they may not know is that behind that celebrated voice sits a songwriter of considerable depth and maturity.
Time flies. Was it really four, perhaps five years ago, when we first heard Sam Toulson and the Ho brothers, that's Edgar Ho & Oscar Ho? The Black Swan jam session in the basement of Newcastle Arts Centre is home to a twice monthly jam session and that's where, one night, these guys walked in.
Bill had a great sense of humour and I have a booklet of his limericks and his often humorous, sometimes hilarious, observations on jazz and its players.
You can listen to the
show anytime HERE.
Plus, you can request music
for future programmes, pass on news or leave feedback by emailing Colin at jazz.tyne.hive@gmail.com
or by heading to www.jazzonthetyne.org.
Sunday 28th June 2026
8-10pm, doors open at 7.30pm
£5 entry on the door, all welcome
The Moor Club, 35 Heaton Moor Road, Stockport SK4 4PB (next to the Elizabethan PH)
I was fortunate enough to see Olivia Murphy’s Orchestra at Cheltenham Festival last year performing Siren Cycle (review here) and most of the musicians on stage then have made it to this recording from a few months later. The ability she showed at Cheltenham for the imaginative use of the orchestra as a multi-headed, yet single voiced beast flows through the music on display here. There may be asides and winding threads whilst one musician holds the centre spot but there is a driving coherence to much of this as Murphy develops layers of themes and melodies. I don’t think I’ve been so excited by an orchestral jazz album since I first heard Colin Towns and, like Towns on his Mask Symphonic album Dreaming Man With Blue Suede Shoes with Maria Pia De Vito and Norma Winstone, the voices are folded into the sound of the orchestra, or stand in defiant contrast to it; integral, a part, yet not apart.
Shradhanjali honours the enduring legacy of the legendary tabla maestro Zakir Hussain - the pioneering force who, since the 1990s, brought together the world’s finest percussionists in a spirit of collaboration, virtuosity, and innovation, under the title Masters of Percussion.
 |
| © Jeff Pritchard |
An extraordinarily talented quintet of heavyweights of the UK jazz scene performed a set list of Nick Ramm composed tunes at Dalston’s premier Jazz Club on 19 June to provide a rich evening of entertainment on a sultry Friday evening. It was the first time I had seen Nick Ramm play live. Nick has been playing with Pete and Byron since the 1990’s and with Tom and Corrie more recently. I saw Corrie leading his own band at the Vortex last year and I have also seen him play with others such as Laura Jurd in the band Dinosaur. I have recently been enjoying the 2023 double album London Brew which celebrates the 50th anniversary of Miles Davis’ record Bitches Brew which features amongst others Nick Ramm and Tom Herbert so I was expecting a very special show and I was not disappointed.
 |
| © Sylvia |
It is very much to Knats' credit that in the June issue of DownBeat their latest album, A Great Day in Newcastle is allocated to Yanow.
There are few places quite like Soho on a warm summer evening. As the working day fades and the weekend edges into view, the streets take on a life of their own. Office workers spill from pubs onto crowded pavements, restaurant terraces fill with conversation and laughter, and every corner seems alive with possibility.
Emerging from Leicester Square
Underground station and heading towards Chinatown, Soho was enjoying one of
those glorious summer evenings that seem uniquely London. The late sunshine
lingered between the buildings, casting a warm glow across the streets as
people gathered for a drink before making their way home for the weekend.
Passing beneath the red lanterns of Chinatown and cutting through the heart of
Soho towards Frith Street, the unmistakable buzz of the neighbourhood
surrounded us. Outside Café Boheme on Old Compton Street, diners spilled onto
the pavement, glasses clinked and conversation drifted effortlessly into the
warm evening air. It felt as though the whole of Soho had decided to stay out
just a little longer before surrendering to the night.
https://www.ayclifferadio.co.
Playlist 21/06/26 (repeated Tuesday 23/06/26)
Requests from gigs: Thelonious Monk, Phineas Newborn Jr., Adrien Moignard Quartet, Pat Metheny, Tchavolo Schmitt, Artie Shaw, Jelly Roll Morton/Sidney Bechet, Jabbo Smith and His Orchestra, Sonny Rollins, Fats Waller, Preservation Hall, Edmundo Ros.
Seasonal: Charlie Parker.
Requests: Clare Teal, Peter Long, Benny Goodman, Ray Charles.
Father's Day: Horace Silver.
Memories: Charles Mingus Sextet/Eric Dolphy.
Aycliffe Radio is available on DAB in County Durham & the Darlington area or via your smart speaker.
Zoë Gilby
(vocals); Mark Williams (guitar); Andy Champion (bass); John Bradford (drums)
Newcastle based
vocalist, Zoë Gilby and her trio presented an eclectic blend of song and
improvisation at the Gregson Centre in Lancaster on Sunday June 14.
Gilby’s remarkable versatility as an
interpreter of classic song, improviser and lyricist along with provider of
detailed verbal forays to the audience was as impressive as it was informative.
What was of particular interest to this listener was Gilby’s inclusion of four songs co-written by herself (lyrics) and American trumpeter, Tom Harrell (composer). Titles like Shadowed in Solitude, Forget the Past, Ebb and Flow and Leap to the Limelight might give the listener a sense of the depth and introspection of the lyric. This, coupled with the similar and supportive melodic and harmonic shapes of Harrell’s tunes resulted in deeply heartfelt and uniquely memorable collaborations between Gilby and Harrell.
This FASCINATING VIDEO, courtesy of Andy Hudson and Californian Sting researcher Jay Matsueda, has some amazing shots of Andy, the Newcastle Big Band, San Sebastian and Newcastle Jazz Festivals back in the 1970s. Many familiar faces both past and present can be seen and it's fun tring to put a name to some of the faces 50 years on!
Andy talks with inside knowledge on the early days of the Newcastle Jazz Festivals and many other aspects of jazz in general. Lots of it never seen before. Lance
 |
| © Pam |
The Lit and Phil's Loftus Room was, as per usual on jazz afternoons, well attended. Whether this was to escape the blazing sun or to listen to some cool, laid back guitar jazz, I know not. However, I'd like to think it was the latter and deservedly so.
Steels has an impeccable technique that he uses to great effect without resorting to any extraneous effects. He also composed all six originals that made up the programme including A Blue Patch, the title track of his most recent album.
Today that was me! A new Animal Rescue shop had opened on our local high street so, out of curiosity, I popped in.
I wasn't a man on a mission, just curious.
The lighting was low, maybe non-existent so the books were out of question but, a cardboard box on the floor was crammed with vinyl, crammed to the extent they must have been shoehorned in.
July 15, 2026 - Locust Valley,
NY – Vangie Gunn-Goodwin in conjunction with GoodGunn Creative, Inc. has
announced the impending release of “25 Years of Phatness.” This exciting new album
features the Grammy® and Emmy®-winner, Gordon Goodwin and his Big Phat Band,
along with vocalist Vangie Gunn-Goodwin performing 11 spectacular Gordon
Goodwin compositions and arrangements.
“This recording, the last recorded before Gordon’s tragic passing, is without doubt the most impactful of Gordon’s and the Phat Band’s celebrated and award-winning career. With 11 tracks, including 8 previously unreleased and a trio updated by Gordon for 2026 is a stone killer,” stated Vangie Gunn-Goodwin. She added: “Gordon works were always not only brilliant and a platform for all of the great Phat Band members, but also a labor of love for him. This album continues to place Gordon in the pantheon as one of our greatest jazz composer/arrangers.”
Interview Contact: Vangie Gunn-Goodwin vangiegunnvocal@gmail.com or Vangievocal@gmail.com
This concert was billed as a tribute to the life and music of the great American jazz saxophonist and composer Walter Theodore “Sonny” Rollins who died on 25 May 2026 aged 90 years. No better man in the UK than Dean Masser to take Sonny’s role as saxophonist and band leader for this evening. Neil Yates curates jazz here each Monday and all of the musicians are regulars at Llandudno Jazz Club.
This concert celebrated
the music and life of the late American trumpeter, bandleader and composer
Miles Davis who was born on the 26 May
1926.
All musicians were well known to me save for Mark Hanslip who I was seeing play live for the first time. A terrific tenor saxophone player who, this evening, was playing a King tenor saxophone. A very knowledgeable audience were treated to some of the best Miles Davis tunes played by five very accomplished musicians. The repertoire of Miles Davis is very much enjoyed by those at Llandudno Jazz Club who have the privilege of hearing top UK trumpet player Neil Yates playing every Monday evening and he curates these weekly jazz sessions.
Sunday 21st June 2026
8-10pm, doors open at 7.30pm
£5 entry on the door, all welcome
The Moor Club, 35 Heaton Moor Road, Stockport SK4 4PB (next to the Elizabethan PH)
The
multi Grammy Award winning Yellowjackets
are at Zeffirellis in Ambleside on Tuesday June 30 & Wednesday July 1
(8.00pm start both nights).
Tickets £35.00 or side
seats £28.00 (to book visit the online calendar in the Live
Music tab and select either June 30 or July 1 or call 015394
33845).
These Are the only UK appearances of their European tour.
Russell Ferrante (keys, piano); Bob Mintzer (sax); Dane Alderson (bass); William Kennedy (drums)
“Jazz buffs know about the Yellowjackets. This is a
Grammy-winning band that writes and performs intricate compositions that cross
countless boundaries.”
- The Arts Fuse
Sometimes the simplest evenings turn out to be the most memorable.
As I made my way to Union Chapel there was every chance this was going to be a wet one. The skies over North London were heavy with grey cloud and umbrellas were very much at the ready. Yet somehow, whether through luck, timing or a little divine intervention, the rain never came. Instead, the clouds gradually parted and shafts of evening sunlight began to stream through the chapel’s magnificent stained-glass windows, filling the vast space with a constantly shifting palette of colour and light.
 |
| © Roly |
 |
| © Jeff Pritchard |
This quartet, I was surprised to learn, was formed back in 2013. All four musicians are much in demand and it must be difficult to get them all together in one place to play the sort of hard-driving music they like.
Grant Russell ls the leader of this remarkable quartet, his formidable technique commanding the attention of the Moor Club audience. It is the ideal venue to demonstrate his talent. Kyran Matthews is well known to jazz followers in the UK and I have seen him many times in large and small ensembles and he is always amazing.
These qualities were evident on several occasions in the north east. Particularly at the now long gone Gateshead International Jazz Festival which was a much loved event held at the then Sage (now Glasshouse).
Some albums tell you exactly where they come from within a few bars.
Falcón In Blue is one of those records.
Close your eyes and you can almost feel
Havana around you. The heat rising from the streets. The sound of conversation
drifting from open windows. Music spilling from doorways and courtyards. A city
where rhythm is woven into everyday life and where the line between tradition
and modernity feels wonderfully blurred.
That spirit runs through every note of
Alejandro Falcón’s latest album.
