The musicians...
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The musicians...
The website contains brief biographies of the musicians listed below. There are discographies for most of them...
Gray Allard
Tony Archer
Reg Arnold
Vic Ash
Kenny Baker
Kenny Baldock
Cliff Ball
Ronnie Ball
Keith Barr
Carl Barriteau
Phil Bates
Gordon Beck
Lennie Best
Keith Bird
Eddie Blair
Pete Blannin
Graham Bond
Alan Branscombe
Lennie Breslaw
Terry Brown
John Burch
Bob Burns
Tito Burns
Lennie Bush
Leon Calvert
Ian Carr
Mike Carr
Lauderic Caton
Malcolm Cecil
Ronnie Chamberlain
Pete Chilver
George Chisholm
Keith Christie
Johnny Claes
Alan Clare
Kenny Clare
Jeff Clyne
Tony Coe
Les Condon
Bert Courtley
Gary Cox
John Critchinson
Tony Crombie
Johnny Dankworth
Brian Dee
Eric Delaney
Elaine Delmar
Joe Deniz
Jimmy Deuchar
Dickie Devere
Ralph Dollimore
Jackie Dougan
Martin Drew
Roy East
Bob Efford
Art Ellefson
Ray Ellington
Bill Eyden
Jack Fallon
Buddy Featherston'
Victor Feldman
Bernie Fenton
Aubrey Frank
Allan Ganley
Michael Garrick
Wilton Gaynair
Dave Goldberg
Coleridge Goode
Kenny Graham
Benny Green
Albert Hall
Ian Hamer
Stu Hamer
Joe Harriott
Kenny Harris
Eddie Harvey
Dickie Hawdon
John Hawksworth
Harry Hayes
Tubby Hayes
Spike Heatley
Frank Holder
John Horler
Frank Horrox
Derek Humble
Jo Hunter
Peter Ind
Ike Isaacs
Dill Jones
Dick Katz
Cab Kaye
Shake Keane
Bertie King
Pete King
Peter King
Tony Kinsey
Harry Klein
Carlo Krahmer
Duncan Lamont
Dave Lee
Tony Lee
Brian Lemon
Freddy Logan
Don Lusher
Bill Le Sage
Ron Mathewson
Bill McGuffie
Harold McNair
Tommy McQuater
Lennie Metcalfe
Mac Minshull
Laurie Monk
Dudley Moore
Gerry Moore
Laurie Morgan
Dick Morrissey
Danny Moss
Ken Moule
Joe Muddel
Jim Mullen
Kenny Napper
Derek Neville
Al Newman
Bobby Orr
Jack Parnell
Dick Pearce
Pete Pitterson
Tommy Pollard
Teddy Pope
Bobby Pratt
Colin Purbrook
Chris Pyne
Mick Pyne
Dizzy Reece
Don Rendell
Damian Robinson
Spike Robinson
Johnny Rogers
Denis Rose
Annie Ross
Ronnie Ross
Leon Roy
Joe Saye
Johnny Scott
Ronnie Scott
Phil Seamen
Mike Senn
Terry Shannon
Ralph Sharon
Jack Sharpe
Hank Shaw
George Shearing
Roy Sidwell
Ron Simmonds
Jimmy Skidmore
Martin Slavin
Derek Smith
Terry Smith
Pat Smythe
Harry South
Yorke de Souza
Norman Stenfalt
Ronnie Stephenson
Louis Stewart
Kathy Stobart
Eddie Taylor
Geoff Taylor
Joe Temperley
Art Themen
Eddie Thompson
Trevor Tomkins
Stan Tracey
Reg Wale
Jimmy Walker
Ray Warleigh
Stan Wasser
Stan Watson
Johnny Weed
Bobby Wellins
Spike Wells
Cedric West
Kenny Wheeler
Tommy Whittle
Dave Wilkins
Roy Willox
Ken Wray
Joe Wylie
The drummers...
The bass players...



Many musicians played a part in the British modern jazz story during from the 1940s through to the early 1960s. Further information can be found on the website for those listed on this page. The site also has record discographies for all the major figures as well as indications for records made by others.

Of the musicians who played regularly at Club Eleven on its formation back in 1948 only tenor sax player Ronnie Scott became a lasting figure in the British jazz scene. Johnny Dankworth remained a major figure in the popular music scene leading what was probably our best jazz tinged big band.

It was always hard to make good money solely as a jazz musician in the 1950s and 1960s and bands tended to form and reform shuffling the same personnel, hoping to hit the commercial bullseye. Modern jazz was difficult music to play. It demanded a high standard of musical and technical ability to cope with the fast tempos and complex harmonies and the best performers were something of a musical elite whose abilities were in demand elsewhere. Victor Feldman soon emigrated to America and Jimmy Deuchar and Derek Humble signed up for commercial work in Germany.

Jazz groups have many unsung heroes especially double bass players and drummers. Besides those highlighted on these pages many others played their part, often without much opportunity to be featured, and without them jazz would not have existed as we know it. Details of other musicians who appeared on the jazz scene during the period covered by this website, and are not currently listed, will be added in the future.

Bands such as Ted Heath, Jack Parnell, Vic Lewis, Kenny Baker, and Ivor and Basil Kirchin played a part in nurturing young musicians who became jazz musicians in time. They often gave temporary employment to otherwise out of work jazz musicians.

Going further back in time the bands of Harry Parry, Harry Hayes, Tito Burns, Buddy Featherstonhaugh, George Chisholm and Carlo Krahmer made their individual contributions to the music...

The part played by the black British swing bands during the 1940s is also important to the early modern jazz in Britain.

Many more musicians than are listed on this website were involved in the UK jazz world in the twenty years from the mid 1940s to the mid 1960s. I have a list of about fifteen musicians that I wish to add details of to the site. Most of these musicians were not band leaders and the majority of them did not experience much in the way of recording opportunities, but they did play in the jazz clubs. I hope to add biographical and recording details for those listed but for many of them there is little information available from the music press of the time. I am reliant on information from visitors to this site, many of whom will remember these musicians at some club or other. Any information on musicians listed below, plus any others, would be appreciated:

saxes, clarinet, flute:
Don Honeywell, Alex Leslie, Phil Goody, Rex Morris, Dougie Robinson
vibes:
Roy Marsh
double bass:
Eric Dawson



This page was last updated during February, 20229.
Any comments welcomed, please click on email below...