Russ Morgan Quartet @ Blaydon Jazz Club - Apr. 15

(© Pam)

Harry Keeble (tenor sax); Mark Williams (guitar); Andy Champion (double bass); Russ Morgan (drums)

Blaydon Jazz Club's 40th anniversary concert series is shaping up nicely. This evening's concert featured the debut performance of the Russ Morgan Quartet. Other than a recent appearance at Darlington's Opus 4 Jazz Club working in the company of Paul Edis and Vasilis Xenopoulos, it had been a while since drummer Russ Morgan graced the regional jazz scene. His return to the stage here at the Black Bull on Bridge Street was eagerly anticipated and at a little after eight o'clock Pat Metheny's John McKee opened the show.

Jazz at the Engine Room update

The Engine Room in Sunderland have announced forthcoming dates by the Michael Young Trio.

April 29: A celebration of the music of Horace Silver. Michael Young (piano); Paul Grainger (bass); Mark Robertson (drums).

May 20:  Details to be announced. Michael Young (piano); Paul Grainger (bass); Abbie Finn (drums).

July 1:    Details to be announced. Michael Young (piano); Paul Grainger (bass); Abbie Finn (drums). Lance

Dave Newton @ Yamaha Music School, Blyth - April 15

Dave Newton (piano)

Blyth's Yamaha Music School's weekly lunchtime concert programme is going from strength to strength. This afternoon's concert featured the doyen of British jazz pianists, the great Dave Newton. Driving for more than six hours from his home in the south west of England, Newton arrived on Seaforth Street in good time to chat with well wishers and grab a coffee before the scheduled one o'clock start. 

Sunday night @ the Globe: JazzMain - April 14

(© Pam)

Nick Gould (tenor sax); Steve Grossart (keys); Iain Harkness (bass guitar); Kevin Dorrian (drums)

Last week was sold out. Next week is sold out so the smart money would have been down for a similar scenario this week. However, to misquote and degenderize Guiseppi Verdi - 'La donna (lee?) è mobile' - in other the words the jazz community is fickle and, this week, audience numbers were less than anticipated. Where, I wondered, were all the shareholders? Maybe they were at Rigoletto's!

Album Review: Cliff Beach – You Showed Me The Way

Cliff Beach (vocals); Munenori 'Moon' Kishi (keyboards); Evan Mackey (lead trombone, music director); Ruben Salinas (baritone sax); Sam Williams (tenor sax); Luis Cardena-Casillas, Joe Ferruzzo (trumpet); Satoshi Kirisawa (drums); Andy Moresi (guitar); Leah Concialdi (baritone/alto saxes)

I could do worse than simply quote from the publicity sheet to describe what type of singer this guy is. 'This 'funky, soulful. swinging singer, pianist and composer sounds like he could be the love child of Ella Fitzgerald and Stevie Wonder'.

Radio 4 'Soul Music' discusses Someone To Watch Over Me

Readers of BSH may be in the habit of listening to Soul Music on Radio 4, which talks about the effects of certain pieces of music and song in the personal lives of the contributors.  All types of music are explored and last Saturday, April 13, the standard Someone to Watch Over Me was featured. The Gershwins wrote the song originally for the musical Oh Kay!, and one of the best known versions is by Ella Fitzgerald.  

Those talking about the song included a woman who was brought closer to her father by playing the song, a man struggling with the fact that he was gay who found the song helpful, and a woman singer who somehow found herself performing the song at Birdland NYC unexpectedly.

Well worth a listen (LINK) and you can get this on BBC Sounds where the recording is available for about a year. Ann Alex

As the Globe turns 10, JRR marks the occasion

This afternoon's edition (April 14) of Jazz Record Requests noted a significant upcoming anniversary. The Globe's Dave Parker requested Jimmy Deuchar's Suddenly Last Tuesday as played by the Clark Tracey Quintet, an apt choice considering Tracey's all-star outfit will be in concert at the Globe (Railway Street, Newcastle NE4 7AD) on International Jazz Day (Tuesday April 30), coinciding with the 10th anniversary of Newcastle Jazz Co-op's acquisition of the premises which would become the award-winning venue it is today. Support your local jazz venue - tonight it's JazzMain. See you there! Russell

(Editor: Read review of the Clark Tracey album HERE. Programme link HERE -  Tracey track circa 31 minutes in.)

Album review: Brandon Goldberg Trio - live at dizzy's

Brandon Goldberg  (piano; Ben Wolfe (bass); Aaron Kimmel (drums)

An 18-year-old pianist very much inspired by the jazz piano tradition of such past giants as Ahmad Jamal,  Oscar  Peterson, Red Garland and Sonny Clark, Goldberg pays respect to the past whilst modernising it for today's listeners, or so the blurb says. Personally, I find it closer to the former than the latter and I'm not complaining one itsy-bitsy bit. Good music is timeless.

Tonight @ the Globe.

(© Debra Milne)

Don't miss tonight's return visit by Edinburgh based hard bop band JazzMain.  Fronted by tenor titan Nick Gould the quartet have recaptured the magic of those albums that laid down the benchmark for modern jazz. Building on the foundations laid down by Bird, Dizzy and Monk they set out the stall for future generations of musicians to work from and build on. JazzMain are probably among the UK's finest exponents of the style.

Doors at 7:00pm on stage at 8:00pm. Lance

SEE ALSO.

Jazz Time Aycliffe Radio - Sundays 6.30-8.00pm (repeated Tuesdays 8.00-9.30pm).

https://www.ayclifferadio.co.uk/listen

Aycliffe Radio is now available on DAB in County Durham & the Darlington area.

Playlist 14/04/24 (repeated Tuesday 16/04/24)

Requests: Stan Kenton, Jake Leg Jug Band.

Requests from Darlington New Orleans Club: Gus Cannon, Red Nichols, Scott Hamilton & Warren Vaché, New Orleans Heat, Kenny Ball/Lonnie Donegan, Miles Davis.

Other Requests: Cannonball Adderley, Tiny Grimes/Charlie Parker, Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra

Memories: Shorty Rogers.

What’s on in the NE: Alan Barnes & Dave Newton, Strictly Smokin' Big Band.

English jazz of the 50s/60s: Johnny Dankworth