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From: Trig Ellis Town Chesterfield County Derbys.
Posted on: Sunday, March 23, 2008, 11:24 AM
Invaluable!!! Even though we only occasionally visit the North West.
From: Alan Davis
Posted on: Monday, April 21, 2008, 9-15pm
Hello Fred,
Only just came across your website from a friend. Most impressive! A much needed addition to the web, to try to keep 'our' music alive. As you can see I'm doing my little bit. One of your links put me on to Radio 3 and I heard Billy Braggs programme re: Ken Colyer. Also heard again Alyn Shiptons programme re: Ken Colyer. Both progs. did a lot for Traditional Jazz, (in my opinion) although they were very different. As we know getting the BBC/popular media to even acknowledge 'our' jazz is almost impossible. I'm so pleased to see how much is going on in your area and how many bands/musos that are still so active. Someone in the south needs to begin a similar task, although there are a few small selective sites. I'm still going to computer classes to learn how to use the thing and find out what it will do. Maybe later, I'll try to construct my own website when I know how to. My son does my jazz club page, however he lives up north so there are problems. Enjoyed looking, keep up the good work.
Alan
From: Brenda Canty-Forrest
Posted on: Tuesday, April 22, 2008, 10-05am
Hi Fred,
Have just found your site and found it most interesting.
I used to play piano with Pete Haslam's Collegians from 1958-1962.
I was married to Colin Tomkins who played trumpet during that time with the
Zenith Six.
Knew Ted Calvert very well as he played the Bodega, The Cavern etc with us. I
have a programme from the 1960 Jazz Festival at the Cavern, Ted obviously didn't
play that with us, but we did many an all nighter there. We played a regular
Wednesday spot at the Bodega, and Paddy McKiernan was our agent who made us
change from The Crescent Jazz Band to P. H Collegians and we had Striped Blazers
and straw boaters to give us a 1920's kick! I may have the recording we did at
the Free Trade Hall, with Ted singing "Are you from Dixie"Must look
through my memorabilia!!
What fun we had going to all these clubs in some old vans with all the
instruments piled in with us..... that is ... I didn't have to take mine thank
goodness!
Looking at all these names... I know a lot of them. Have lived in Wales since
1962, so was a bit out of it then, but we did get a sort of band together in the
60's and 70's and Pete and a few others joined us from time to time.
Colin and I divorced in 1981, so didn't have a lot of time for jazz, as I had a
very time consuming job, then I married again in 87 and lived partly in Spain,
but for my 70th birthday, my husband arranged a surprise party for me and booked
a N. Wales band, "Jazz Rag" It was just like old times and I had a sit
in with them. They are very good, and I have really got to know them, and go to
Bettws y Coed when I can to see them play on a Thurs Night. I was a classical
LRAM pianist when I met Colin and it is due to him that I got into jazz, but had
some terrific times, and I can't recall any drugs or bad behaviour in clubs. We
were just happy!
Thank you for giving me a trip down memory lane. It doesn't seem all that long
ago!!
Regards Brenda
Dear Fred.
Reading through the jazz info on the net, where i came across your name, hoping you can help me to find some old recorded numbers, transferred to cds or even in the old tapes,33s,78s,better in cds though.
I was a regular at the Grosvenor Hotel,Deansgate, Manchester, from 1950s, followed that great band the "The Saints Jazz Band" the 1st line up i listened to was, Mike McNama (trumpet) Ron Simpson(trombone) Al Radcliffe (clarinet) John Fish (piano) Tom Gregory(bass) Jim Lolley(banjo) John Mills(drums), there was changes made later in the line up,could you help me to get hold of some of their recordings,i used to have some but lost them coming to Australia in the mid 1960s, i know they recorded " I want a girl just like the girl that married dear old dad" they played it fantastic at the royal jazz show with Princess Elizabeth there, that was put on record, they also recorded "The Saints" "Savoy Blues" and most likely many others, if you can get these and others i would be most grateful, i will post the money prior to you posting, the cost of the recording including postage.
I was a member of " Lancashire Society of Jazz Music" still got the card 540, other clubs i was a member was "York Club" 2 Bootle Street, Manchester, "Manchester Jazz Club"when the Zenith Six was resident, "Oasis' 45-47 Lloyd Street, Manchester,"Club Southside:with the South Side Jazzmen as resident, plus "Imperial Club" Stockport,"The Bamboo Club" Hazel Grove, "Buxton Jazz Club" Buxton, i still have my membership cards for these and a few others, but would love to get hold of the recordings and more if there are any around.
Great Memories.
Neville F. Jones ( nevfjones4 * yahoo.com) (replace * with @)
35 McConechy Drive, Victoria Point, Queensland 4165, Australia
Hi Fred,
Very enjoyable site.
Best wishes,
Dick Karner
Tradjazz Productions
www.tradjazzproductions.com
tradjazz55 * yahoo.com
20/10/08
Hi, Fred and greetings from Red Deer, Alberta. I came across your excellent site while doing some searching for information on jazz musicians. I am a young 63 yr. old who was brought up in N. Ireland. As a teenager I listened to trad jazz a lot, but succumbed to the times and listened more and more to the some of the better British rock music that was popular then. I have always had that root of jazz hiding in the background. Around 1974 my wife and I were in Dusseldorf and wandering around the Altstadt area when we stumbled across a sign outside a club saying Monty Sunshine Band were within! It was an awesome gig in a sawdust floored traditional German 'pub' .... white aproned waiters, etc. Recently I have been hankering after this part of my past... recapturing my youth sort of thing! My all-time favourite band was Chris Barber with Ottilie Paterson... mostly because I love Ottilie's voice and her Northern Irish roots. I once had an album (maybe an EP) called Ottilie Swings The Irish which I almost wore out. Sadly, I loaned it to someone who never returned it. I did, recently manage to get hold of the EP. I have a question maybe you or one of your friends could answer if you know anyone with connections to Belfast in the early sixties. There was a very good jazzband there that played at my school's annual 'graduation' dance (1963) and I can't recall their name. It was something like 'First (or second) City Jazzband'. Any info on them would be much appreciated. I am planning a trip to UK in April and will be in Edinburgh for a few days. Is there a venue there that you could recommend?
Thanks... and keep up the good work! Bob Turkington
19/01/2009
Hi, Fred and greetings from Red Deer, Alberta. I came across your excellent site while doing some searching for information on jazz musicians. I am a young 63 yr. old who was brought up in N. Ireland. As a teenager I listened to trad jazz a lot, but succumbed to the times and listened more and more to the some of the better British rock music that was popular then. I have always had that root of jazz hiding in the background. Around 1974 my wife and I were in Dusseldorf and wandering around the Altstadt area when we stumbled across a sign outside a club saying Monty Sunshine Band were within! It was an awesome gig in a sawdust floored traditional German 'pub' .... white aproned waiters, etc. Recently I have been hankering after this part of my past... recapturing my youth sort of thing! My all-time favourite band was Chris Barber with Ottilie Paterson... mostly because I love Ottilie's voice and her Northern Irish roots. I once had an album (maybe an EP) called Ottilie Swings The Irish which I almost wore out. Sadly, I loaned it to someone who never returned it. I did, recently manage to get hold of the EP. I have a question maybe you or one of your friends could answer if you know anyone with connections to Belfast in the early sixties. There was a very good jazzband there that played at my school's annual 'graduation' dance (1963) and I can't recall their name. It was something like 'First (or second) City Jazzband'. Any info on them would be much appreciated. I am planning a trip to UK in April and will be in Edinburgh for a few days. Is there a venue there that you could recommend? Thanks... and keep up the good work!
Bob Turkington
P. S. I will keep your site bookmarked as I am a travel agent specialising in UK/Ireland and you never know when I might have a client wanting to take in some trad.
14/04/2009
I was looking at you guest book entries for 2008. I was especially interested on an entry from Brenda Canty Forrest, about the late Ted Calvert. He was my uncle, the only brother of my Mum. Edna. He was a grear ukekele player. His four daughters and two sons are my cousins, and we all live in and around Manchester. It's so nice to know some people remember him. I am over eighty now, but can remember him vividly.
Patrick Halligan
Manchester.
20/05/2009
My name is tony lightfoot, and in 1958, I was in the british army with roy williams aka tery williams when the sergeant came round to get us out of bed he was accompanied by roy playing jazz trombone wonderfull shortly after I was demobbed and lost touch with himyears after I saw him in a film, them years after that he was on at the parr hall in warrington he was billed as the second best trombonist in england, I later found out he lives in rochdale and sde nt him a letter but did not get an anwer can you find out what the film was called and post it on the site thank you in hope
Tony Lightoot
06/06/09
Best wishes, I will pass on your website to the guy's @ WBGO New York.
I'm based in St. Albans Herts.
All the best,
Warren Knight For http://radioverulam.com
02/06/2009
Hi Fred I often check into your website even though I live in the Midlands. I wish there was something like it down here. However, a lot of the northwest bands do play down here, and it's great to hear about them. Keep up the good work. It's good to hear about the real jazz. George W Bush neglected New Orleans and where is he now? Take note, BBC.
David Bell Ashby-de-la-Zouch,
Leicestershire
13/06/09
Great site read it every week keep it coming Fred
Brian Grant from Canada
18/06/2009
Fred, I enjoyed your site. I'm a clarinet player from LA. I led a jazz band up at the Universal Tour for 14 years and out at Disneyland (as a sub band) for 2 years. I'm planning on going to Ireland later this summer and hope to hear some music while I'm there. If you have any ideas of where I might go, I'll try to check it out. Hope things are good with you and yours.
Tom Mann
L.A.
27/09/2009
Hi Fred,
Thanks for the website. My father Bob Terry was a founding member of the
Salt City Jazz Men, guitar and banjo mostly. He left the band in 1977 when we emigrated to Houston, Texas. We were close enough to New Orleans that he was able to visit and listen to trad jazz in its home city. We returned to the UK in 1979 but he never rejoined the Salt City as he had been replaced by Mark Challinor on Banjo. My father now resides in Eastern France and no longer plays but does enjoy listening to jazz. I'm hoping I can track down some recordings of the band from the 1970's so I can send them over for his
Ipod.
I remember many Friday and Saturday evenings as a child sat in a dark corner of working
men's clubs and pubs listening to the band play.
Thanks again for the site, and - as far as I know - the only photo of my father in the band that I have found.
Best regards Nick Terry
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