British modern jazz - from the 1940s through to mid 1960s...

This website is devoted to the British modern jazz musicians who, from the late 1940s to the early 1960s pioneered the music in the UK. It is intended to be a source for anybody coming to the music for the first time and to indicate where the music can be heard, albeit only on CD or long deleted records. British modern jazz began in the early 1940s and by 1948/49 our bebop had begun in the London clubs as an imitation of the American bebop developed by Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk and others. It proved difficult for many musicians and the public to get to grips with and soon moved into a less frenetic 'post bop' phase that lasted for fifteen years or more and, at its peak of popularity, attracted a good following... This website contains discographies for the major musicians and one of the main aims of this website is to indicate where the music of the period can be found now on CD. A number of companies have re-issued some of this classic jazz, notably Jasmine (Tempo, Vogue and others), Ember, and Vocalion (Decca). Several smaller companies have issued a number of old Esquire recordings but a large chunk of Esquire mid 1950s recording back catalogue remains unissued in CD format. The site will contain biographical details of the pioneer musicians as well as others who came to prominence in the 1950s...Tony Hall writing in 1960 said that he has spoken to many musicians, asking for the names of those who played the most important roles in the development of British bebop. Five names figured on everybody's list: trumpeter/pianist Denis Rose (top of everybody's list), guitarists Pete Chilver and Dave Goldberg, pianist Ralph Sharon, and pianist/drummer/leader Tony Crombie... Recording opportunities were few and far between for jazz musicians in the 1950s. Fans with money to buy jazz records chose American music. Only small independent labels such as Esquire, in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and Tempo in the mid and later 1950s were issuing records of the British jazz. By the mid 1950s only Tempo were recording significantly and they went out of business in 1960. The website was created in 2005 and is updated and expanded regularly. I regard the website as a tribute to the music and musicians of a somewhat forgotten period of British jazz. With the exception of Tubby Hayes and Ronnie Scott the musicians have faded from the memory of many who enjoyed the music live. If you can add information or photographs or correct anything on the website please contact me (David Taylor). This website is dedicated to our bop pioneers of the late 1940s...

Ronnie Scott

Update... Updated July 1st, 2008 Stan Tracey became a professional musician in 1942 but never became involved in the revolutionary London bop scene of the late 1940s. In the early 1950s he was playing with the Kenny Baker swing group and finding it difficult to get into the top flight of the modern jazz scene. From 1957 to 1959 he was with the Ted Heath big band and beginning to record with his own trio. He achieved wider recognition when he became house pianist at Ronnie Scott's from 1960 to 1967. In the forty years following his work at Ronnie's he went from strength to strength and is now internationally recognised as one of the major jazz voices in the world today. I have enlarged his biography and added another twenty years of records to his discography bringing it up to 1987. This in turn has led to additionsto the Peter King discography which now has details of the record sessions when he was part of Tracey's quartet and octet. Pages on this website are updated regularly when new information becomes available or new CDs are issued. Any information on these topics is always welcome...