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Bebop Spoken There

Ambrose Akinmusire: “ I am certainly always aware of what the masses are doing. And when I see too many people going one way, I'm going another way - even when I don't know what's over that way". DownBeat, March, 2024.

The Things They Say!

Hudson Music: Lance's "Bebop Spoken Here" is one of the heaviest and most influential jazz blogs in the UK.

Rupert Burley (Dynamic Agency): "BSH just goes from strength to strength".

'606' Club: "A toast to Lance Liddle of the terrific jazz blog 'Bebop Spoken Here'"

The Strictly Smokin' Big Band included Be Bop Spoken Here (sic) in their 5 Favourite Jazz Blogs.

Ann Braithwaite (Braithwaite & Katz Communications) You’re the BEST!

Holly Cooper, Mouthpiece Music: "Lance writes pull quotes like no one else!"

Simon Spillett: A lovely review from the dean of jazz bloggers, Lance Liddle...

Josh Weir: I love the writing on bebop spoken here... I think the work you are doing is amazing.

Postage

16287 (and counting) posts since we started blogging 16 years ago. 169 of them this year alone and, so far, 41 this month (Mar 18).

From This Moment On ...

March

Tue 19: Jam session @ The Black Swan, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free. House trio: Michael Young, Paul Grainger, Tim Johnston.

Wed 20: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Wed 20: Darlington Big Band @ Darlington & Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free. Rehearsal session (open to the public).
Wed 20: Take it to the Bridge @ The Globe, Newcastle. 7:30pm. Free.

Thu 21: Vieux Carré Jazzmen @ The Holystone, Whitley Road, North Tyneside. 1:00pm. Free.
Thu 21: Castillo Neuvo Trio + Conor Emery & His ‘Bones Band @ The Grove, Ouseburn, Newcastle. 7:30pm (7:00pm doors). £10.00. (£7.00. student).
Thu 21: Remi Banklyn + Chris Corcoran Trio @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm. £12.50. Chicago blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Thu 21: Merlin Roxby @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Ragtime piano.
Thu 21: Tees Hot Club @ Dorman’s Club, Middlesbrough. 8:30pm.

Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis @ The Gala, Durham. 1:00pm. £8.00. SOLD OUT!
Fri 22: Classic Swing @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: Rendezvous Jazz @ The Monkseaton Arms. 1:00pm. Free.
Fri 22: New Orleans Preservation Jazz Band @ The Oxbridge Hotel, Stockton. 1:00pm. £5.00.
Fri 22: Nauta + Remy CB + Last Orders @ Hoochie Coochie, Newcastle. 8:30pm (7:30pm doors). Free.
Fri 22: Vasilis Xenopoulos-Paul Edis Quartet @ Traveller’s Rest, Darlington. 8:00pm. £15.00. Opus 4 Jazz Club.
Fri 22: Redwell @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sat 23: Jambone @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead. 6:30pm. Free (ticketed). End of term performance in the Northern Rock Foundation Hall.
Sat 23: Milne-Glendinning Band @ The Vault, Darlington. 7:00pm. Free.
Sat 23: Red Kites Jazz @ Rowlands Gill Community Centre NE39 1JB. 7:00pm. Tickets: £12.00. (gibsidecommunityfarm@gmail.com). A ‘Build a Barn’ fundraiser. BYOB, tea/coffee available.
Sat 23: New Century Ragtime Orchestra @ Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle. 7:30pm. £20.00. + bf (book in person at venue - no booking fee!). Featuring pianist Martin Litton.
Sat 23: Pete Tanton’s Cuba Libre @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 8:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig.

Sun 24: Musicians Unlimited @ Park Inn, Hartlepool. 1:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: More Jam @ The Globe, Newcastle. 2:30pm. Free.
Sun 24: Luis Verde @ Queen’s Hall, Hexham. 3:00pm. Verde (alto sax); Joe Steels (guitar); John Pope (double bass); John Hirst (drums). Alto sax brilliance!
Sun 24: Elsie Franklin @ The Globe, Newcastle. 3:00pm. £10.00. Country blues. An International Guitar Foundation promotion.
Sun 24: 4B @ The Ticket Office, Whitley Bay Metro Station. 3:00pm. Free.
Sun 24: Las Vegas Live with the Rat Pack @ The Forum, Billingham.
Sun 24: Ian Millar & Dominic Spencer @ Otterburn Memorial Hall. 7:30pm. £12.00.
Sun 24: Lindsay Hannon: Tom Waits for No Man @ Prohibition Bar, Newcastle. 7:00pm. A ‘Jar on the Bar’ gig. Note start time - 7:00pm.
Sun 24: Bold Big Band @ The Globe, Newcastle. 8:00pm.

Mon 25: Harmony Brass @ Cullercoats Crescent Club. 1:00pm. Free.
Mon 25: Michael Young Trio @ The Engine Room, Sunderland. 6:30pm. Free.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

A 'Sage' Decision. Sir Richard Rodney Bennett & Claire Martin

And gentlemen in England now a-bed shall think themselves cursed that they were not here (Hank Cinq). The quotation from The Bard is apt - to have missed this gig is almost akin to the life incomplete.
So I was standing in the bleachers? So what? Perfect for sound and vision and, with the help of my new Italian socks, thanks Liz, and the mesmeric appeal of the two superstars, my feet didn't hurt a bit! Plus the cash I saved allowed me to buy a CD without feeling guilty - as if!
The first set was devoted to the songs of Cy Coleman and, although I have to admit my lack of familiarity with many of them, I found this voyage of discovery enhanced rather than detracted from their charm.
Claire can handle just about any kind of lyric whilst Sir Richard provides more than mere support. This was a meeting of equals reminiscent of those other great couplings such as Ella and Ellis Larkins, Sinatra and Bill Miller, Tony Bennett and Bill Evans - that kind of empathy shone through. As an afterthought - add Becky Kilgore and Dave Frishberg.
Sir Richard's own vocal chops suggest the subtle, insinuating, appeal of Chet Baker; at times almost whispering the lyric.
The second set saw our girl excel on "Can't We Be Friends" - cleverly allowing the tune to temporarily segue into "Just Friends". A breathtakingly poignant vocal duet blended Claire's take on "The Very Thought of You" with Sir Rich.'s "I Thought About You"; the lyric's, I almost said sentences, ran concurrently, with the emphasis swinging from one tune to the other.
So many songs I'm running out of space and superlatives to mention them all save to say that as well as lesser known gems from the gasbook there were also nods in the direction of Dusty Springfield, Elvis Costello and Curtis Stigers.
The final "Some Cats Know" - a number I first heard Peggy Lee sing in maybe the '80s - also gelled. So much so I wondered if the composers, Leiber and Stoller, shouldn't have been Leider and Stoller for that's what the evening was all about - Leider.
Perhaps I, or rather they, have invented a new genré Leider Jazz.
Lance

2 comments :

Anonymous said...

Excellent review Lance, you led us though the programme with your usual expertise. There should be more of our type of music at the Sage. Whenever I get the new brochure it always seems to be obscure stuff, leading me to wonder how well attended some of these events are.
Thank you - Liz

Anonymous said...

This was reasonably well-attended without being the sell-out it should have been. However, Claire did say that they'd sold more CDs at the Sage than anywhere else on the tour. So I guess it was a quality audience.

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