Joy Ellis Quartet @ The Jazz Café - May12

Joy Ellis (piano & vocals), James Kitchman (guitar), Henrik Jensen (double bass) & Adam Osmianski (drums)

(Review by Russell/Photos courtesy of Mike Tilley)

This Newcastle Jazz Café date previewing her forthcoming CD Life on Land was a first opportunity for a Tyneside jazz audience to hear singer-songwriter pianist Joy Ellis. The London-based Ellis is fortunate in being able to work with many of the best musicians on the scene. Three of them made the journey north to perform two sets of Ellis’ compositions, some of which feature on her new CD, some yet to have a title. A select gathering on Pink Lane thoroughly enjoyed listening to Ellis and her band – James Kitchman, guitar, Henrik Jensen, double bass, and drummer Adam Osmianski.

Album review: James Kitchman - First Quartet

James Kitchman (guitar); Bruno Heinen (piano); Tom McCredie (bass); Shaney Forbes (drums)

After leaving the tranquility of rural Northumberland and the learning curve of Tyneside jam sessions, James Kitchman graduated from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance to become an in-demand composer and guitarist on the London jazz scene and other genres.

He has returned to the north east on several occasions most notably with the Joy Ellis Quartet and a contemporary trio - Glasshopper.

Album review: Glasshopper – I’m Not Telling You Anything (Clonmell Jazz Social)

Jonathan Chung (tenor sax, effects); James Kitchman (electric guitar, effects); Corrie Dick (drums).

This is another of those ‘Wot no bass player?’ groups that seem to be popping up all over at the moment. Jonathan Chung is the lead man in this outfit but Corrie Dick has a record of playing with all the right people in recent years and James Kitchman was a solid addition to the Rob Luft and Elina Duni performance I saw a few months back. He’s also a local lad, hailing from the wilds of Hexham.*

And so, here they are, back for Glasshopper’s second album after 2020’s Fortune Rules. Immediately, what I like about I’m Not Telling You Anything is that it’s just the right amount of weird, just the right amount of fun, just the right amount of loud. It’s the Baby Bear’s album of the year in that, just at the moment, it’s just right.

Old Hat Jazz Band

(Review by Russell)

A few short years ago a young guitarist turned up at the Chillingham, Newcastle looking to sit in at Dave Weisser’s now legendary jazz workshop (See photo circa 2008 – Ed.). Quiet, perhaps shy, possibly a sixth form student, ‘James’ (the surname then unknown, guardedly unknown) got up and joined the house band. Trumpeter Weisser and long-time associate Barry Ascroft (piano) welcome all-comers and ‘James’ took his chance, reading the charts, taking a solo, a new face on the scene. Some time later James went to London, end of story. Not quite…

Hexham Jazz Festival: Day 2 (Saturday 14, evening)

(© Malcolm Sinclair)

For some this was the pick of the 2022 Hexham Jazz Festival - Jo Harrop with her ace band plus strings, followed by a solo piano set by Dean Stockdale. The same set-up as on the opening evening, Harrop and co occupying centre ground (the 'crossing') looking down the nave past the cordoned-off crypt with the audience occupying the nave's pews and seated around tables in the north and south transepts. Forty eight hours earlier Harrop and her quartet were at Newcastle's temple to all things funk, soul and jazz, namely Hoochie Coochie, this evening it was the rather splendid setting of Hexham Abbey. 

Album review: Bruno Heinen & James Kitchman - Rainbow Shadows

Bruno Heinen (piano); James Kitchman (guitar)

Two musicians not entirely unknown in the north east. Kitchman honed his skills in local gigs and jams. London based Heinen, a Prof at Trinity Laban, works well with Kitchman and the duo have played several venues together 'up north' achieving a rapport that makes this collaboration rather special.

TJ Johnson & guests @ Jamboree, London - Nov. 9

TJ Johnson (piano, vocals); James Kitchman (guitar); Alex Clarke (tenor sax) 

Walk two minutes from King's Cross Railway Station and you might stumble upon Jamboree. On the other hand, you're more likely to walk straight past a nondescript back lane not ever knowing that there is a thriving music venue no more than fifty metres off the main drag. Three o'clock Wednesdays, TJ Johnson holds court, invariably a musician friend will drop by second set. This week there was a larger turn out than usual. TJ said: I know why you're all here, you're going to Adrian Cox's gig tonight, aren't you? Adding: I'm Adrian's warm up act. 

Joy Ellis Quartet @ Empty Shop, Durham - October 29.

Joy Ellis (keys, voice), James Kitchman (guitar), Henrik Jensen (bass), Adam Osmianski (drums).

(Review by Steve T) 

Another short un (hurrah). Definitely wanted to do this after Lance reviewed the album, which Ms. Ellis was thrilled by, and when I saw some of the musicians featured, not least Rob Luft and Binker.

My mission was to try to get to this and Hoochie’s SOSA, but a last minute decision to do them the other way round landed me in traffic gridlock due to the five hundred and ninety ninth month anniversary of the Freedom March.

This meant I got a little Sam Dees, a touch of Randy Brown and a slice of Betty Swann (and if these names mean anything to you at all you should be in the Empty Shop this Saturday) and the second half of Joy Ellis.

The Elina Duni and Rob Luft Duo – Songs of Love and Exile @ Kings Place, London. Oct. 22

Elina Duni (vocals and tambour); Rob Luft (guitar) plus, for 3 songs, James Kitchman (guitar).

This was a concert of music for the twenty-first century nomad including songs from Germany, Scotland, the Balkans, all four corners of the Mediterranean and on further south into Africa. Songs from across the ages as well; the oldest piece is from Egypt in the 1300s. Duni’s rich voice is set against a palette of Rob Luft’s psychedelic space folk from that hitherto unexplored point where Pat Metheny, John Martyn and Steve Hillage meet. Using more pedals than the Raleigh factory, Luft and his trusty Gibson semi-acoustic archtop uses echoes, loops and reverb to create an orchestra behind Duni as her voice rises through the scales to a full force impassioned wail and drops back to a whisper.

Duni treats each song as a dramatic vignette as she inhabits each character at the heart of the lyric. Thus, during the second song, Bella Ci Dormi, a tragic Italian piece she is passionate, singing of yearning and loss, dramatically reaching out. On another she is a Parisian boulevardier, scatting her way up the scales indulging in a little call and response with Luft’s guitar. 

Age cannot wither nor custom stale thy infinite variety - The Alan Glen Trio and Take it to the Bridge @ The Chilli.

Alan Glen (pno), John Pope (bs), David Carnegie (dms).

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Dave Weisser (tpt/vcl), Doug Fielder (ten), Barry Ascroft (pno), James Kitchman (gtr), Stuart Davies (bs), Malcolm Dick (dms). + Rob Brockway (pno).

What a day this has been what a rare mood I'm in ... After this afternoon's visit to the Porthole the Alan Glen Trio kept the adrenalin flowing with a mix of standards and originals laying waste to the suggestion that he only interprets rather than creates.

Glasshopper/Triptych @ the Bridge Hotel, Newcastle - Oct. 11

Glasshopper – Jonathan Chung (Ten Sax); James Kitchman (Guitar); Corrie Dick (Drums).

(Review/photos by Ken Drew) 

Second Sunday of the month means it’s Splinter at The Bridge – Two distinct sets, one by a locally-based group and one by an up and coming group from further afield. 

With band members hailing initially from Scotland and Hexham, the young London-based trio arrived at The Bridge as part of a short UK tour celebrating the release of their debut EP ‘Glasshopper’.  The band is a relatively new and exciting instrumental trio, born out of a love for melody and improvisation. Led by saxophonist Jonathan Chung, the trio thrives on the equally creative minds of guitarist James Kitchman and drummer Corrie Dick.  Chung is developing an increasing recognition for both his inspired improvising and his melodic writing. Always with improvisation at the heart of the performance, the band plays as one to reveal the story of each piece, taking the audience on wayward imaginary journeys.

Jo Harrop: The Heart Wants Tour @ Hoochie Coochie - May 12

Jo Harrop (vocals); Paul Edis (piano); Jihad Darwish (bass); James Kitchman (guitar); Steve Hanley (drums).

We love Jo - she's a singer who's at the top of her game with, maybe goodness knows what else she still has in store for us.

Last night's show at Hoochie was proof of her versatility as the somewhat less than capacity crowd discovered to their audible delight. The majority of the numbers were from her most recent album, The Heart Wants and were, with a couple of exceptions such as Duke's All Too Soon, mainly lyrics by Harrop, music by Edis.

On the album there's a 'cast of thousands' whereas here, it was whittled down to a quartet without losing any impact. The sound wasn't perfect. Too much bass in the first set and too much treble in the second but that, I was told later, could well have been due to where I was sitting as it seemed to be fine elsewhere in the room. Whatever, Jo's voice overrode any such obstacles real or imagined. Is there a better singer around? Maybe, maybe not.

Joy Ellis Quartet @ The Globe - March 2

Joy Ellis (voice, piano); James Kitchman (guitar); Henrik Jensen (bass); Adam Osmianski (drums)

(Review by Ann Alex/Photo courtesy of Sheila Herrick).

I’d seen this band at the Globe last year and some of us had been to the afternoon workshop at the Sage where we learned about Brazilian Samba and jazz with Joy and Adam, so I was really looking forward to this gig. I wasn’t disappointed and neither was the rest of the audience.

No Brazilian music tonight, but original songs in a contemporary vein, very atmospheric songs about London and cities in general, a song to welcome a new baby, a piece about a conspiracy theory, one about an icy, snowy day, even a song illustrating a jam session. Not the usual whole song then solos all round, but complex arrangements, often led by voice/piano or guitar.

In Tune this bank holiday Monday (May 29) with Kitchman & Heinen

Katie Derham's guests on In Tune this afternoon include James Kitchman and Bruno Heinen. London resident guitarist Kitchman hails from the Tyne Valley and at five o'clock he will be teaming up with pianist Heinen to perform one or two tracks from their latest album Rainbow Shadows. Tune to BBC Radio 3, 5:00pm. Russell     

JRR, Zoë & James - tomorrow (June 5)

The BSH region continues to be represented on Jazz Record Requests. Tomorrow afternoon (Sunday) listeners have requested tracks by Tyneside's award-winning vocalist Zoë Gilby and one-time Tyne Valley resident James Kitchman (last month guitarist Kitchman featured in his home town jazz festival playing a duo concert with Bruno Heinen in Hexham Abbey). Join presenter Alyn Shipton at four o'clock on BBC Radio 3. Russell  

Hexham Jazz Festival: Day 3 (Sunday 15)

(© Malcolm Sinclair)

Northern Rail let the side down. Cancellations (staff shortages) up and down the Tyne Valley line would mean arriving late for the final evening of this year's Hexham Jazz Festival. Plan B, call into the Centurion Bar for a pint and mull over what to do. Decision made - catch the next train...in an hour's time. On the pub's big screen tv Everton were losing, later going down to nine men. Could the Merseysiders go down? Sunderland find themselves in the third tier (for younger football fans that's the old Division 3), the same fate could await Everton. 

August Jazzwise

The August print edition of Jazzwise is now on the shelves of WHS and is well worth a punt (£6.95 to be precise). The contents are great and, not without a little local interest in the form of James Kitchman who, like so many others paid his dues at Dave Weisser's workshop sessions at 'The Chilli' in Heaton. James is interviewed and his first album - First Choice - is awarded four stars and acknowledged as one of the Editor's Choice albums - praise indeed. BSH mentions... 

There's also a tremendous piece on  Mingus by Kevin Le Gendre with observations by bassists Boris Kozlov and Christian McBride - I call Mingus 'Ellington in a hoodie' because it's much more raw. It's more street than Ellington.

Preview: Hexham Jazz Festival (Sunday 15, day 3/3)

Sunday 15 May, day three of the 2022 Hexham Jazz Festival. At half past seven in Hexham Abbey(see the stained glass windows!) you'll be able to hear London-resident, one time Hexham lad, guitarist James Kitchman performing in a duo with pianist Bruno Heinen. It wasn't too long ago that Heinen played a gig at Gosforth Civic Theatre in Newcastle. His return to the region will see the London-based musicians performing a concert of original music. To round off what is certain to be a successful weekend, the Abbie Finn Trio (Abbie Finn, Harry Keeble, Paul Grainger) will be playing numbers from the trio's Northern Perspective album and from a forthcoming second recording. The concert begins at nine o'clock, tickets £12.50. from www.queenshall.co.uk. Russell       

Tune in to Claude the Great on In Tune

Next Friday’s (Sept. 18) edition of In Tune (Radio 3, 4:30pm) includes a live studio set from the Southern Cone Quintet. A London-based contemporary music ensemble, their broadcast debut will be of interest to those who came across the globetrotting, duffle-coated tenor saxophonist Claude Werner during his time on Tyneside.

Werner will be playing clarinet and flute alongside guitarist James Kitchman (formerly of Tynedale), Anisa Arslanagic (violin), Losif Purits (accordion) and Louis Thomas (double bass). Music with a hint of tango, hearing Claude the Great without his tenor will be odd to say the least! Southern Cone Quintet’s concert debut will be on Wednesday October 28 at the Red Hedgehog on Archway Road, Highgate, London.

Claude, the next time you’re in Toon, how about playing a gig? And don’t forget to bring your tenor!

Russell.             

Check out here.

Joy Ellis Quartet @ The Globe Jazz Bar, Newcastle - May 12.

Joy Ellis (piano/vocals); Chris Montague (guitar); Henrik Jensen (bass); Adam Osmianski (drums).

(Review by Lance).

Q: When is a trio not a trio?

A: When it's a quartet!

The gig was advertised as The Joy Ellis Trio but, after counting twice and double-checking with the lady sharing my table, we both agreed that there were definitely 4 bods making it a quartet. Our curiosity turned to joy (as opposed to Joy) when we realised the ringer was none other than local boy made good, guitarist, Chris Montague.