Mama Terra @ Pilgrim - Jan. 28

Marco Cafolla (piano); Rachel Lightbody (voice); Konrad Wiszniewski (tenor/soprano sax);  Mikey Owers (trombone); Brodie Javier (double bass); Doug Hough (drums)

I knew this was going to be good but I never dreamed that it would be this good! Even the clips on YouTube only hinted at what to expect. Those expectations were surpassed after only a few of the opening bars.

With your average band, 90 minutes without an intermission can be a testing time. Not so last night at Pilgrim, the time just flew by. We were in awe of the sheets of sound that were enveloping us.

The material, mainly original, came from the band's albums - past, present and future.

Vintage Explosion @ Scala, London - Jan. 24

William Hitchell (vocals, guitar); Conor Smith (guitar); Dan Brown (piano); Jimmy Steele (tenor sax); Barry Steele (baritone sax); Richard Anderson (double bass); Douglas Macfarlane (drums)

A first visit to Scala, King's Cross. Occupying a corner site on Pentonville Road, the former 1000 capacity cinema has undergone many changes during its one hundred plus years - King's Cross Cinema, Gaumont Cinema, Odeon, La Scala Cinema. Now simply 'Scala', its principal function is that of a gig venue. 

The reason for a first visit? Vintage Explosion! Mr William Hitchell, Glasgow's viral sensation is, as near as damn it, the 'real deal' soulful voice. Hitchell's suited and booted, six piece band hit the ground running. For something like two and half hours, including two encores, Vintage Explosion kept a capacity audience on its dancing feet. 

D.O.A. | 1949 | Film Noir | Edmond O'Brien, Pamela Britton | Full Movie ...

I love vintage black and white noir movies and this is 1949 epic is one of the best. There's a rockin' club scene about 19 minutes in with a jump/jive band tearing it up. On screen the trumpet player is Teddy Buckner but, in true Hollywood fashion he's 'ghosted' by Ernie Royal.

Stockport Jazz

This week Stockport Jazz welcomes Simon Spillett, multi-award-winning tenor saxophonist (BBC Jazz Awards, British Jazz Awards, Jazz Journal's Album of the Year) with Andrzej Baranek (piano), Ken Marley (bass) and Eryl Roberts (drums).

Sunday February 1st

Every Sunday 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)

Preview: Mama Terra @ Pilgrim tonight (Jan. 28)

Marco Cafolla (piano, vocoder); Konrad Wiszniewski (tenor sax); Rachel Lightbody (vocals); Doug Hough (drums); Brodie Javier (double bass) + Mikey Owers (trombone); Cameron Jay (flugelhorn, trumpet)

Glasgow based band Mama Terra, heard above at jazzahead! 2024, are playing in Newcastle tonight (Jan. 28) at Pilgrim (formerly Hoochie Coochie) and, going by the video, it is going to be an incredible evening.

Wiszniewski I've heard many times over the years with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra and I also recall hearing Cafolla with American saxman Pee Wee Ellis and The Federation of the Disco Pimp. I was impressed back then and already I'm chomping at the bit to see them again tonight in this totally different, but no less exciting, line-up. Lance

TICKETS

R.I.P. Richie Beirach (1947 - Jan. 26, 2026)

I never had the opportunity of hearing pianist Richie Beirach live - one of the downsides of living 300 miles from London. I'm sure he must have played at some points north of the capital over the course of his 78 years but not Newcastle (correct me if I'm wrong). However, I did get to review a triple album he made with John Abercrombie which can be read HERE.

As many tributes have appeared online since his passing two days ago, rather than attempt to duplicate them I'll refer you to a DOWNBEAT OBIT by Michael J. West that captures the essence of Richie Beirach as both a man and a musician. Lance

Neil Yates Quintet @ Llandudno Jazz Club - January 26

Mike Hope  (tenor sax,  flute);  Neil Yates (trumpet);  Ric Weedon (drums);  Andrzej Baranek (keyboards); Joshua Cavanagh Brierley (double bass)

A wonderful evening of jazz in Llandudno, North Wales, by a stellar quintet led by host Neil Yates who is one of the top jazz trumpet players in the UK. 

Making his debut at the club was Manchester based drummer Ric Weedon. It was also the birthday of Andrzej Baranek who has been an integral part of the UK jazz scene for many years. I had not seen Mike Hope before but was impressed by the rich sound of his vintage Selmer tenor saxophone. I regularly see Joshua play in the north west of England and in North Wales. He is an immense talent who gets around.

Album review: Julian Argüelles: Echo Fields (Escapade Records)

Julian Argüelles (soprano/tenor sax); Larry Grenadier (double bass); Jorge Rossy (drums)

With the exception of Sonny Rollins and a small number of others, chordless trios can be a pointless indulgence for the players and boredom for the listener. Not so with Echo Fields. With Echo Fields Julian Argüelles can be added to the elite list headed by Sonny Rollins. Whether on soprano or tenor but, particularly on the former, his purity of sound floats in the most mesmeric way over the empathy shown by Grenadier and Rossy both of whom bring their own strengths of creativity to the session.

Durham University Big Band @ Pizza Express, Soho, London - Jan. 24

Tom Hardy (MD, trumpet, flugelhorn); Freya Lockeretz, Oliver Tranter,  Andrew Yu, Will Stevenson, Beth Cooley (reeds); Sam Armstrong, Leo Vernaglione, Sammy Cormack-Repath, Euan O’Connell (trumpet); Lillian Sparks, Owen Romhany, Chris Goede (trombone), Robert Halliday (bass trombone, sousaphone); Tom Paterson (piano); Izzy Willis (bass); Ed Jobburn (drums); Francesca Fitton (vocals)

For two decades and more Durham University Big Band has made an annual pilgrimage to play a prestigious concert in the capital city. On its way to/from London, the plan was for DUBB, as the band is known, to link up with two other universities to take part in a couple of big band sessions either side of the capital date. First, a 'Varsity jazz-off' with Oxford University Jazz Orchestra, followed by a similar shindig with Imperial College London Big Band.

Press release: North Sea Jazz Festival To Celebrate Historic 50th Anniversary With Star-Studded Line-Up

The NN North Sea Jazz Festival, the world’s largest indoor music festival, returns to Rotterdam’s Ahoy Centre from July 10 – 12, 2026 to celebrate its 50th anniversary with a landmark edition featuring legendary jazz icons, boundary-pushing innovators, and the brightest emerging talent.

Fifty years ago, on July 16 1976, the very first North Sea Jazz Festival opened its doors with six venues, 300 musicians, and around 9000 visitors, and featuring luminaries including Sarah Vaughan, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, and Stan Getz. Since then, the festival has become a cornerstone of international music culture, presenting around 1300 artists across 17 stages to an audience of up to 90,000 each year.