| Name
and Details |
Photograph |
| Max
Bacon. (UK)
Max was the larger-than-life
drummer with the Ambrose Orchestra for many years, who also had a unique
Jewish-style humour. Prior to joining Ambrose in late 1927, he had been
with Leon van Straten's band in 1926 and also was briefly with Fred
Elizalde's band (which seems to be made up of Ambrose musicians) and Al
Starita's Kit-Cat band (probably a temporary substitute for Eric Little).
He was a regular member of Ronnie Munro's band which recorded for
Parlophone and Imperial from 1926 to 1929, and also with Arthur Lally's
band at Decca in the early 1930s. His stint with Ambrose lasted until 1940
and his wry comments may be heard on a number of comedy titles, including
the famous number "Cohen the Crooner (The Crosby of Mile-End)"
which is extant on film. On leaving Ambrose, Max went into variety, and
also acting, taking small parts in films and television shows. |
|
| Joe
Badis. (UK)
Joe was the drummer in Sid
Phillips' band "The Melodians" which Sid formed in the mid-1920s
and existed until 1932 when it was taken over by Harry Leader. |
|
| Arnold
Bailey. (UK)
Saxophonist and violinist in
Herman Darewski's band in the late 1930s. |
|
| Frank
Bailey. (UK)
Frank played bass in Dare Lea's
band during 1934 and later played in Harry Leader's band in 1937-38. |
|
| Jeff
Bailey.(UK)
Saxophonist, violinist and
arranger for Alan Green in 1931 (at least). |
|
| Tom Bailey
(UK) -
pseudonym on "Broadcast"
records for Tom Barratt (q.v.). |
|
| Barney
Baillie. (UK)
Trumpeter in Don Marino
Barreto's Cuban Orchestra from 1942. |
|
Jock
Bain. (UK) A
time-line of trombonist Jock Bain's career, based on his known recordings,
follows:
Roy Fox and his
Band
October 1935 - August 1938
Jack Harris and his
Band
April 1939 - September 1939
Harry Roy and his
Band
July 1942 - August 1942
Ambrose and his
Orchestra
August 1942 - November 1944
Ted Heath and his
Band
December 1944
Geraldo and his
Orchestra
January 1945 onwards
Jock also made some records for Maurice Winnick (March 1944) and was on
the "Jive Rhythm Orchestra" recordings under Josephine Bradley's
direction (November 1943) and also on the recordings made under Nat Temple's
direction in April 1945 (Nat was also a member of Geraldo's Orchestra). |
|
| Arthur
Baker. (UK) Arthur
was the drummer in Billy Cotton's band for many years, joining the band in
mid-1930 and leaving in late 1943. |
|
| Arthur
Baker. (UK) Banjo
and guitar player, Arthur Baker was with Debroy Somers from January to
October 1930. He subsequently played in Nat Gonella's first band in late
1934 and then with the Krakajax in 1935 and 1936. |
|
| Cyril
Baker. (UK) Cyril
was the pianist in Alf van Straten's band which played at Quaglino's
Restaurant in 1939. |
|
| George
Baker. (UK) George
Baker was a classically-trained baritone who was a mainstay of the HMV
catalogue, taking part in their Gilbert & Sullivan Operetta recordings
for many years, usually in roles where excellent diction was required to
put across the humour in the words. He was occasionally used by dance
bands, especially Jack Hylton's, for tunes that needed a serious
interpretation. He showed his ability for humour, though, in Jack's
recording of "Eleven More Months And Ten More Days" in which he
takes the leading role. |
|
|
Howard
Baker. (UK) George
Howard-Baker was known in the 1930s as "The Gig King" for his
ability in providing top-class dance bands for almost any occasion.
Although highly thought of at the time, he left few recordings for us to
judge him in retrospect - 8 titles for the scarce "Hudson" label
in 1934, and 2 titles for the semi-private "Teledisk" label
which include Vera Lynn's first recording, "It's Home", in
February 1935. Howard himself was a trumpeter and saxophone player, though
I suspect he generally confined himself to organising and conducting. As
well as launching Vera Lynn's career, he discovered Dorothy Squires in
October 1935, though they made no recordings together at the time. |
 |
| Ken
Baker. (UK) Tenor
Saxophone player with The Krakajax in 1935 and 1936 |
|
Kenny
Baker. (UK) Trumpeter
Kenny Baker is one of the younger musicians to be mentioned here, being
born March 1st, 1921. He made
his recording debut with Lew Stone in 1941. His timeline is:
Lew Stone and his
Band
July - November 1941
Josephine Bradley's Jive Rhythm
Orch
November 1943
Frank Weir and his
Sextet
December 1943
Carl Barriteau and his
Orchestra
January - June 1944
George Evans and his
Orchestra
July - November 1944
Ted Heath and his
Band
December 1944 - 1948
Ambrose and his
Orchestra
January - September 1945
Kenny Baker and his Band/Baker's
Dozen 1948 onwards
I suspect the Ambrose sessions were at a time when Ammy wasn't maintaining
a regular band and these, like the Josephine Bradley session, were made by
a group of top recording musicians. He died on December 7th 1999. |
|
| Tom
Balderson. (UK) Trumpeter
Tom Balderson joined Oscar Rabin's band in the Summer of 1938, staying
with him until at least the end of 1940, maybe later. He subsequently
joined Harry Roy's band in November 1941, remaining until the end of 1942,
returning to play in the band in 1944. |
|
| Maurice
Baldiserri. (UK) In
an interview given some years ago, trumpeter Maurice Baldiserri said that
he was the first trumpet on all of the early Filmophone dance records. The
musical director on these recordings between January and May 1931 was
Nat Lewin, so Baldiserri may have been the trumpeter in Lewin's band at
the time, anyway. The other musicians are, so far, unidentified. Following
these sessions, Baldiserri joined Harry Roy's band in October 1931,
remaining in the band until early 1932. At this time, he went to Rome both
as a holiday and to help to cure his ill-health. He remained there for
some years, and formed his own band there in December 1936. |
|
| Les
Baldwin. (UK) Tenor
Sax player in Lew Preager's band, which played at the Hammersmith Palais
de Danse. The band didn't start recording until June 1944, by which time
Baldwin was already in the band, remaining with it until at least the end
of 1945. |
|
| Harry
Balen. (UK) Balen
joined Roy Fox's Band in September 1935 as the sole violinist. Previouly
Fox had not employed any string players. Harry stayed with Fox until he
disbanded in August 1938, during which time he also played on one
recording session (that is certain) directed by Phil Green for Parlophone.
Prior to joining Roy Fox, Balen had been in the studio band directed by
George Glover in 1933 for a couple of sessions for Sterno Records. |
|
Dick
Ball. (UK) Bassist
Dick Ball is generally associated with Ambrose's Orchestra, with which he
spent a number of years. A timeline, based on his known recordings,
follows:
Marius B. Winter
& his Hotel Cecil
Orchestra
December 1928 - 1930
Eddie Gross-Bart & his Ambassador's Club Band
September 1930 - January 1931
Eddie Gross-Bart & his Cafe Anglais
Band
February 1931 - August 1931
Lew Stone's "Durium" Dance
Band
March - April 1932
Jack Allen's "Great Foster's"
Band
June 1933 (no recordings)
Harry Jacobs & his Berkeley Hotel
Orchestra September
1933
Ambrose and his Embassy Club
Orchestra
October 1933 - March 1937
Jack Harris and his
Orchestra
July 1937 - May 1938
Ambrose and his
Orchestra
April - November 1941.
Dick also made many recordings under Jay
Wilbur's direction for the "Rex" & "Crown" labels
between June 1935 and May 1936 and
one session for George Scott-Wood in 1934. |
|
Edward (Ted)
Ball. (UK) Saxophonist
Ted (or Ed) Ball was a member of one of the "interim" Savoy
Orpheans at the turn of the 1930s. It is unlikely the 1930 band he is
reported as playing with (directed by Ben Evers) ever played at the Savoy,
but used the name under licence. Subsequently, Ted formed his own band
which played for the ABC cinema group. They made a test recording for
Sterno of Al Bowlly's number "In London On A Night Like This"
which was the theme song for the film "On A Night Like This"
which would have been showing at the cinemas in 1933 when the test record
was made. "Melody Maker" magazine for September 1932 gives a
personnel for the band at the time, which may still hold true for the
recording (of which no copy has been reported to date).
The musicians are:
Art Freeman & J.
Gillman (trumpet &
violin);
Fred Greenslade
(trombone);
Harry Fisher
(trombone & harp);
Len Furminger, Sid Clements & Berg Larsen
(saxophones);
Maurice Smeckler
(violin);
Norman Warren
(piano &
accordion);
Alf Smith
(guitar);
Ronnie Davies
(drums).
Of these musicians, Harry Fisher
had been in the 1930s Orpheans with Ted Ball., but only Norman Warren made
the "big time", replacing Billy Thorburn in Jack Payne's band in
1935 when the latter became Payne's band manager. Art Freeman had
previously played in Syd Chasid's band and in the later 1930s played at
Fischer's Restaurant for Tommy Kinsman. |
|
| Joe
Ball. (UK) Joe
was the drummer in the Corner House Ragtime Band, one of the
earliest dance bands, which was a Clifford Essex group, directed by
banjoist J. J. Ashton. |
|
| Fred
Ballerini. (UK) Fred
was a superb tenor saxophone and violin player who, sadly, rarely made
many records. He was a member of Tommy Kinsman's band at Fischer's
Restaurant in 1936-38 which recorded for Octocros and he plays some fine
"hot" fiddle on the records. He later (1944) was a member of
Frank Weir's excellent little band at the Astor Club, which made some
records for Decca. |
|
| Dick
Ballinger. (UK) Dick
played saxophone in the Embassy Six in the late 1920s. |
|
| Tony
Balmforth. (UK) Tony
or Tommy Balmforth (reports vary) played trumpet in Jack Harris's fine
band in 1939 |
|
| Freddy
Bamberger. (UK) Pianist
Freddie Bamberger joined Jack Hylton's band in December 1931 remaining
with the band until the middle of 1932 when he & drummer/dancer
Neville Bishop both left to form a variety act. |
|
| Claude
Bampton. (UK) Claude
Bampton was a multi-instrumentalist (playing clarinet, saxophone, piano
and accordion) and arranger who was a member of the award-winning
Cavendish Dance Band at the start of the 1930s. He subsequently formed his
own band which played and recorded some modern compositions by Bampton
himself and also some Duke Ellington titles. The band played at the
Prince's Theatre in the 1936. Claude Bampton subsequently led a band of
blind musicians which included the talented pianist, George
Shearing. |
|
| Tommy
Band. (UK) Trumpeter
Tommy Band generally worked in theatre-pit dance bands, being with
Percival Mackey at the Dominion Theatre for "Follow Through" in
the autumn of 1929. In late 1934 he was with Harry Perritt, who provided
the music for Jack Buchanan's shows. In September 1937, Tommy joined Bram
Martin's band at the Holborn Restaurant for about a year. |
|
| Dudley
Barber. (UK) Drummer
in Barney Gilbraith's quartet at the Cocoanut Grove in mid-1939. |
|
| George
Barclay. (UK) (1901
- 1989) Singer George Barclay was a farmer's son from Aberdeen who had
sung with Arthur Mouncey's band before travelling to London with Archie
Alexander and his band. Archie looked after his artists well, but made sure they kept
to the binding contract he drew up, charging extortionate fees to other
bandleaders if they wanted to use George. When George made some records
with Charlie Kunz, I believe Archie was most displeased. The two
bandleaders must have come to some arrangement, however, as George made a huge number of records
with Charlie between November 1934 & March 1937. At the same time he
recorded for Mantovani and Harry Leader. Subsequently he made occasional
recordings with Victor Silvester, Felix Mendelssohn and George Scott-Wood's
Six Swingers. He was resident singer with Billy Thorburn's band from
January 1939 until July 1940. On top of all this, George also broadcast
with Alf van Straten, Lou Preager and Ronnie Munro. He was quiet in his
manner and speech, mainly because he discovered that few people could
understand his broad Scottish accent. In response, HMV dubbed him
"The Shy Singer". In 1952, George and his wife ran a pub before
retiring to Peckham, South London. |
 |
| Geoff
Barker. (UK) Bass
player in Joe Orlando's band at the Gleneagles Hotel in 1937. |
|
| Norman
Barker. (UK) Norman
was a saxophonist who played in Billy Merrin's Commanders from September
1935 until mid-1937. Subsequently he played in Mantovani's Tipica
Orchestra from January 1939 until December 1941. |
|
| Charlie
Barlow. (UK) Lead
saxophonist in Bertini's band at the Tower, Blackpool, joining the band in
late 1933. |
|
| Bert
Barnes. (UK) Pianist
and arranger Bert Barnes made his first recordings while a member of Percy
Chandler's band in 1931. The spring of 1932 found him on the arranging
staff for Henry Hall's New BBC Dance Orchestra. The following years he was
providing arrangements for Ambrose as well. In April 1934, he joined
Ambrose full time, as pianist and arranger, a position he held until the
end of 1937. During this period he also attended recording sessions for
Jay Wilbur at "Rex" records. |
|
| Binnie
Barnes. (UK) Personality
singer who made a solitary appearance as a dance band singer with Harry
Roy's band on a session in February 1933. |
|
| Frank
Barnes. (UK) Saxophonist
who played tenor sax in Billy Cotton's band, from October 1931 until June
1936. He subsequently played in Joe Orlando's Gleneagles Hotel Band, at
least in 1937 when the band were recording. |
|
| Fred
Barnes. (UK) Tenor
saxophone player in Howard Jacobs' band in September 1937. |
|
| George
Barnes. (UK) Pianist
in the York-based band directed by Jack Prendergast. |
|
| Warwick
Barnes. (UK) Warwick
Barnes was the drummer in Bert Firman's band at the Carlton Hotel from
mid-1925 until early 1926 after which he joined Debroy Somers' newly
formed band, remaining with the band until the end of 1929. His subsequent
career is currently unknown. He was also regularly used by both Harry
Bidgood and Nat Star for their studio sessions at Vocalion and Sterno. |
|
| Rube
Barnet. (UK) Alto-saxophonist
in Lew Stone's band in October 1942 |
|
| Albert
Barnett. (UK) Director
of a band which made 2 titles for Pathe's Actuelle label in 1926 featuring
2 dances which Albert and his partner Nora Chilo had originated. |
|
| Alfred
Barnett. (UK) Bass
player in Claude Bampton's Bandits in 1935-36. |
|
| Stanley
Barnett. (UK) Saxophonist-leader
of the band which played in the restaurant of the famous Madame Tussaud's
waxworks museum in London. The band played there during 1933 and recorded
some excellent jazz records for Edison Bell Winner. In November 1934,
Barnett opened at Prince's Restaurant with a new band. He was also
director of the house band at Winner, the records being issued variously
under his own name or that of composer Howard Flynn who was one of the
directors of the company. |
|
| Frank
Baron. (UK) Pianist
in the little band playing at Hatchette's club in 1939-40 |
|
| George
Baron. (UK) Banjo
player in a small group known as Andy's Southern Serenaders (directed by
Harry Leader) which made some records for Parlophone in 1935. |
|
| J.
Barraclough. (UK) Trombonist
in Jay Wilbur's "Hi Gang" orchestra in 1942. |
|
| Tom
Barratt. (UK) Singer
Tom Barratt was present on a large number of recordings, especially dance
band ones, from the mid-1920s to the early 1930s, mainly those directed by
Nat Star and Harry Bidgood for Sterno & the Vocalion Group
respectively. He was also vocalist on many Edison Bell sides and those
directed by Debroy Somers and Stan Greening for Columbia & Regal.
Almost nothing is known about him or his career outside of recordings, but
it is thought his main work lay in the music halls or the theatre. |
 |
| Don Marino
Barreto. (UK) Pianist
and Bandleader whose cuban-styled orchestra made a number of recordings
for HMV between 1941 and 1943 |
|
| Zelda
Barrie. (UK) Singer
who made only one dance band recording, with Joe Loss in 1942. |
|
Don
Barrigo. (UK) Saxophonist
Don Pedro Barrigo was the backbone of Lew Stone's excellent band for many years. Here is
a timeline of his recording career:
Don Parker and his
Band at the Piccadilly & Kit-Cat March 1926 - November
1926
Syd Roy and his RKOlians December 1929 - 1930
Percival Mackey and his Kit-Cat
Band August 1931 - November 1931
Howard Jacobs and his
Orchestra September 1933
Maurice Winnick and his Ciro's Club
Band September 1933 -
Feb 1934
Don Barrigo and his
Band January 1934
Louis Simmonds and his Cafe Anglais
Band May 1934
Lew Stone and his
Band January 1935 - January 1941
Nat Gonella and his
Georgians January 1935 - July 1939
Harry Roy and his
Band March 1941 - April 1941
Frank Weir and his
Orchestra August 1944 |
|
| Carl
Barriteau. (UK) Born
in Trinidad in 1917, Carl Barriteau learned the clarinet during his
upbringing in an orphanage there. He joined the Trinidad Police band in
1935 then was brought to England a couple of years later by fellow West
Indian Ken Johnson and was a member of Ken's West Indian Orchestra at
London's Cafe de Paris until the famous bombing of the venue in 1941 which
killed Johnson and also seriously injured Barriteau himself. For a year he
free-lanced for many British bandleaders such as Lew Stone, Geraldo,
Percival Mackey, Ambrose, Joe Loss & Jack Payne before forming his own
band in 1942. He toured and recorded with his band until 1949 when he
became resident band at The Eldorado Ballroom in Leith, Edinburgh. He then
disbanded and joined Cyril Stapleton's band in 1951 before reforming his
own band a tear or two later. In the late 1950s Carl & his wife, Mae,
went to live in Germany, touring & playing round Europe before
emigrating to Australia. Carl Barriteau died in Australia on August 24th,
1998.
Information gleaned from the following
website for which many thanks....
http://www.swingtime.co.uk/Reviews/kenjohns/kencarl.html
|
|
| Sid
Barron. (UK) Banjo
& guitar player recruited briefly by Fred Elizalde in 1930. The only
two titles recorded by the band at the time were unfortunately never
issued. |
|
| Errol
Barrow. (UK) Pianist
in Ken Johnson's West Indian Orchestra in 1938. |
|
| Pete
Barry. (UK) Bass
player and vocalist in Sid Millward's band, recording in 1938. |
|
| Sidney
Bartle. (UK) Drummer
in George Elrick's band in 1937 and 1938, and subsequently did a spell
with the Savoy Hotel Orpheans in 1939 and 1940. |
|
| Bill
Barton. (UK)
Barton generally played tenor saxophone, doubling clarinet and violin. His
first recordings were with Bert Ralton's Havana Band between November 1925
and September 1926. Barton was on tour in South Africa with Ralton until
the middle of 1927 when, on his return to England, he joined the Savoy
Havana Band until it disbanded in December 1927. March 1928 finds him on
tour with the "Original Savoy Orpheans" in Germany. Barton then
remained in Germany, forming his own band and recording for Ultraphon
until 1932. During the period between his tour of S.A. and his leaving for
Germany, he was a regular player in the studio bands directed by Bert
& John Firman for Zonophone records. |
|
| Gilbert
Barton. (UK) I
suspect Gilbert Barton is a classical musician as he is only an occasional
player on dance band recordings, and plays flute & piccolo - not
instruments usually associated with dance bands. He was a member of Jack Hylton's
massive orchestra in August 1936. |
|
| Jock
Barton. (UK) Multi-instrumentalist
Jock (some sources say his name was "Jack") was mainly a trumpet
player, but he also doubled on piano-accordion. He was with Jerry Hoey's
band at the Piccadilly Hotel for at least the whole of 1931. By June 1933,
he was playing for Charlie Kunz's newly-formed band at the Casani Club,
where he stayed until the Autumn of 1934. |
|
| Pamela
Baselow. (UK) I
assume Pamela was a "straight" singer. She made one recording
which is appropriate to us here - in July 1922, accompanied by Jack
Hylton's Queen's Dance Orchestra. The title was "In Romany",
issued on HMV C-1085. |
|
| Bert
Bassett. (UK) A
real "old-timer", Bassett was a top-line banjo player at the
start of our period. He played briefly in the Savoy Quartet in 1915, a
pre-cursor of the dance bands, consisting of 2 banjos, piano and drums. In
1921 & 22 he was a member of Jack Hylton's early Queen's Dance
Orchestra. |
|
| Doug
Bastin. (UK) Doug
was a saxophonist and trumpeter (quite an unusual combination). He was a
member of Arthur Rosebery's band at the Kit-Cat Restaurant during 1929 and
the first half of 1930. |
|
| Leslie
Bates. (UK) Tenor
saxophone player, Leslie Bates was a member of the Savoy Havana Band from
September 1923 until the summer of 1927 |
|
| Elizabeth
(Betty) Batey. (UK) Singer
Betty Batey was discovered by top Northern bandleader Peter Fielding in
the 1930s. She later joined Joe Loss, making many recordings with his band
during WWII. |
|
| Reg
Batten. (UK) Reg
was a classically-trained violinist, but is much better known as the
leader of the Savoy Havana Band from September 1923 until they left the
Savoy Hotel in December 1927. There was a short period during about 1925
when he "swapped" with Debroy Somers and became director of the
Savoy Orpheans. Later, he tried to enter the Classical music field, but
was unable to make his mark, and so returned to dance music, playing with
Howard Jacobs' band and recording with him in 1937. Whilst with the Havana
Band, he also occasionally sang. There are two records on which he sings
solo; "Who Wouldn't?" on HMV B-5123, and "I'm A Little
Blackbird Looking For A Bluebird" on HMV B-5130. He also sang in
duets with the saxophonist Joe Cassidy and in the vocal trio. |
|
| Dick
Battle. (UK) Dick
was a member of Fred Elizalde's Cambridge Varsity Band, playing trumpet
and flugelhorn. The band recorded 4 sides for Brunswick and 2 for HMV
during 1927, all of which are rare. |
|
| Al
Baum. (UK) Alto-Saxophonist
Al Baum played for Tommy Kinsman at Fischer's Restaurant between March
1935 and February 1937, recording many sides for the hard-to-find Octacros
record label. From April 1939 until late 1939 he played in Jack Harris's
band. |
|
| Eddie
Bave. (UK) Alto
and baritone sax player, Eddie, was a member of the Savoy Orpheans
from April 1927 until their disbanding in November 1927, also apparently
playing in the Sylvians, at the Savoy Hotel at the same time. |
|
| Jack
Baverstock. (UK) Jack
was the pianist in the RAOC Blue Rockets (directed by Eric Tann) which
made some recordings for HMV in 1942 & 1943. |
|
| Eric
Bayliss. (UK) Eric
was a bandleader and, with his band , made two recordings for Panachord in
1927. It seems reasonable to assume his was a provincial band, but I would
obviously welcome any information |
|
| Sidney
Baynes. (UK) Composer
and conductor Sidney Baynes isn't usually associated with this sort of
dance music, but in 1928 he was directing the pit orchestra for the
production of "Clowns in Clover" and recorded a medley of the
main tunes from this show as a foxtrot for HMV. Later on, in 1931 he was
leader of a band described as his "Radio Dance Band" which
recorded 8 titles for Edison Bell Winner. Sydney is much better know for
his delightful light orchestral compositions such as "Destiny" and "Ecstasy". |
|
| Reggie
Beard. (UK) Reggie
played double-bass in one of the two large bands which Jack Hylton was
running at the start of WWII. |
|
| Ken
Beaumont. (UK) vocalist
and guitarist Ken Beaumont made few records, which is a great pity as he
has a very pleasing musical voice. He recorded just a few sides (mainly as
a vocalist) with the following bands: Larry Brennan (April - July
1934), Joe Orlando (March - October 1937), Henry Hall
(guitar only- April 1939), Oscar Rabin (January 1941) and Billy
Ternant (1943-44). However, I don't believe that he was a regular
vocalist with any of these bands. |
|
| Cliff
Beaver. (UK) Cliff
was a guitar player and was a member of Maurice Winnick's 1944 band whose
recordings for Decca were never issued. |
|
Eve
Becke. (UK) Born
1910, singer Eve Becke started her professional career in the late 1920s
as a chorus girl before joining Jack Hulbert's organisation. She was in
the chorus of "The House That Jack Built" and "Folly to be
Wise". After a three-and-a-half year period as a cabaret artist, she
joined Jack Hylton's organization in variety and subsequently sang on a
handful of his records. However, these weren't her first recordings; her
debut was in 1932 singing "Was That The Human Thing To Do" with
Roy Fox's band (at the time directed by Lew Stone). She subsequently made
a number of recordings for the "Sterno" label, including some
with Charlie Kunz' Casani Club Orchestra. she was in some demand on
records, making some with Ray Noble, Jay Wilbur and Teddy Joyce, starring
with the latter in the film "Radio Parade of 1935" as well as
making other films at this period. in 1936 she married an Italian Count
Eugenio Ugo Caneva di Rivarolo, who fell in love with her voice after
hearing her on the radio. They lived in London where Eve concentrated on
broadcasting and occasional recordings with the Geraldo and Louis Levy
orchestras. During the war, they moved to Italy, but the Count was killed
in 1944 and Eve returned to London and resumed her career, broadcasting
again with Geraldo and Louis Levy.
My thanks to Charles
Hippisley-Cox and the late Tony Clarke for this information. |
|
| P.
Belisante. (UK) A
violinist who played in Marius B Winter's earliest band in 1923 |
|
| Alec
Bell. (UK) Alec
was the bass player with Alex Freer's band, at least in May 1934 when this Glasgow-based band recorded for Decca. |
|
| Arthur
Bell. (UK) Arthur
was a composer and arranger. One of his compositions (and arrangements)
was "Etude" which was recorded by Lew Stone and his band in
1935. |
|
| Billy
Bell. (UK) Billy
was a versatile musician, being able to play banjo, guitar and bass. It is
as a guitar player he is best remembered, though if the Rust and Forbes
"British Dance Band" discography is to be believed, he made a
huge number of records both as a double bass and tuba player. Here's a
quick rundown of his likely dance band recording career:
Emlyn Thomas's London
Band...............................1923 to possibly 1925 (banjo)
Bert & John Firman's Zonophone house bands......1927 - 1932
(tuba)
Nat Star's studio band for Homophone........ various sessions 1929
to 1931 (banjo)
Jack Harris' Grosvenor House Hotel band.........May 1931 to May
1932 (bass and tuba)
Jay Wilbur's house band on Rex & Crown records.. various from
1933 - end 1941 (bass)
Phil Green's band.................................................
one session in April 1935 (guitar)
|
|
| T.
Bell. (UK) Tenor
Saxophone player in Will Hurst's band in the spring of 1927 when the band
was at the Palace, Blackpool. |
|
Jim
Bellamy. (UK) One
of the elder statesmen of the dance band era, bas and tuba player, Jim
Bellamy was born in 1875 and so was 46 by the time he joined the Savoy
Havana band in 1921, with probably quite an illustrious career behind him,
of which nothign is yet known. He played the bass saxophone and tuba at
the Savoy for most of the 1920s, with the Savoy Havana Band until
mid-1926, then switching places with Fred Underhaye in the Savoy Orpheans.
When the Orpheans left the Savoy for a tour of the Continent, Bellamy left
the band. In 1929 he was at the Piccadilly hotel, firstly with Jim
Kelleher and then with Jerry Hoey when the latter took over the band
following Kelleher's mysterious departure in mid-1929. Following
occasional recordings for Arthur Lally in 1931, we lose site of Jim, who
died, quite young, in 1934.
I mentioned him playing the bass saxophone and this was mainly in the
early 1920s when it was often used instead of a tuba, but Van Phillips,
who played in the Havana band with Jim, when interviewed in the 1980s,
said Bellamy would still use the bass sax occasionally in the mid-20s, and
it is thought it could be him on the excellent recording of
"Everybody Stomp" on HMV B-2228 recorded November 1925. This has
been previously ascribed to Van Phillips, but Van said he never played a
bass saxophone in his life! |
|
| Dave
Bellman. (UK) Violinist
who was a member of Nat Temple's Club Royal Orchestra in the mid-1940s. |
|
| Al Benny.
One of the many
pseudonyms used by Harry Bidgood
(q.v.) |
|
| Ivy
Benson. (UK)
Saxophonist Ivy was the leader
of Britains premier all-girls dance band. But this is not just a band of
attractive ladies, rather a top-class orchestra who have remained popular
for many years. Sadly, there are few recordings of the band with which to
make a judgment. Born 1913, she formed her own band in the late 1930s
after playing in Teddy Joyce's all-girls band, retaining her leadership
until the 1980s, quite a formidable record. She died in 1993, aged
79. |
|
| Bob
"Bix"
Benstead. (UK) No
prizes for guessing that Bob was a trumpet player, or who he was named
after! "Bix" Benstead was a stalwart of Oscar Rabin's Romany
Band during the early 1940s, joining the band in May 1940, remaining with
the band until late 1941. |
|
| Dick
Bentley. (UK) Singer
Dick Bentley was quite a well-known radio personality in the 1930s, but
only made one commercial recording as a dance band singer, with Phil
Green's orchestra in 1938. Green was responsible for quite a lot of radio
work at the time, mainly with the Ovaltine programmes on Radio Luxembourg
and, I think, Bentley was one of his regular vocalists on the programmes. |
|
| Harry
Bentley. (UK) Harry
Bentley was a very popular crooner during the first half of the 1930s. He
also played drums. Apart from being the regular singer with Jack Harris at
the Grosvenor House (1931-32) and Charlie Kunz at the Casani Club
(1933-34), he was also sought after for many recording sessions, including
a memorable occasion where he was called by Billy Merrin at very short
notice as Sam Browne (who had been booked for the session) had had to
leave due to having a very heavy cold. Harry turned up at the Studio in
his pyjamas (or so the story goes) and made a first class job of the four
remaining titles (January 26, 1934). His earliest known recordings were
with Tommy Kinsman's band at the Florida Club in late 1929. He played
drums with the band as well. In addition, he sang on record for: Stanley
Barnett, The Barnstormers, Bertini, Percy Chandler, Lionel Clapper (1930),
Leo Croke, Teddy Dobbs, Dave Frost, Carroll Gibbons, Harry Hudson, Louis
Levy, Sud Lipton, Joe Loss, Billy Mason, Van Phillips, Lou Preager, Oscar
Rabin, Arthur Rosebery, Syd Roy, Debroy Somers, Nat Star, Jay Wilbur,
Maurice Winnick and George Scott Wood. Harry Bentley died in 1935, while
still quite young. |
|
| Jack
Bentley. (UK) The
career of trombonist Jack Bentley begins right at the end of the dance
band era. He played for Jack Hylton from 1937 to 1940, then for Geraldo in
the summer of 1940, for Ambrose from June 1942 until 1945 and then for Ted
Heath. He also recorded for Carl Barriteau and Frank Weir (1944) and Phil
Green (1943). |
|
| Tommy
Benton. (UK) Pianist
Tommy Benton played for Bram Martin at the Holborn Restaurant from at
least 1935 until 1939 (this is the period the band were recording). After
WWII, he played regularly with Tommy Kinsman's band, often travelling to the
U.S.A. with the band and playing gigs while on the States.Tommy died on
October 8th, 1955, while still in his 40s.
My thanks to Tommy's nephew,
Kevin Benton, for the information and photograph scan. |
_small.JPG) |
|
Julius (Jules) Berkin.
(USA) .
Jules was an American trumpeter who played briefly with Ambrose's Orchestra
at the May Fair Hotel in the spring of 1928. |
|
Harry
Berly. (UK) Viola
and tenor saxophone player Berly played with the very top bands in the 1920s
and 1930s. A timeline shows this:
| Geoffrey Goodhard and his Band
(at the Piccadilly Hotel) |
Approx February 1925 - Autumn 1925 |
| Jack Hylton and his Orchestra |
Autumn 1925 - April 1930 |
| Arthur Lally & his Orchestra /
Ambrose organisation |
mid-1930 - May 1931 |
| Roy Fox and his Band (at the
Monseigneur Restaurant) |
June 1931 - September 1932 |
| Lew Stone and his Band
(various residencies) |
October 1932 - June 1935 |
In addition, Harry was well in demand for
recordings, being especially part of the excellent studio band put together
by Ray Noble for HMV. |
|
| Len
Bermon. (UK) |
|
| Clem
Bernard. (UK) |
|
| Peter
Bernard. (UK) |
|
| Rita Bernard.
(UK) |
|
| Gino
Berni. (UK) |
|
| George
Bernstein. (UK) |
|
| Simon
Bernstein. (UK) |
|
| Frank
Berry. (UK) |
|
| George Berry
- Pseudonym for singer
Harry Fay. |
|
| Bertini
(Bert Gutsell) (UK) |
|
| Anita
Best. (UK) |
|
| Tommy Best.
(UK) |
|
| Richard
Betts. (UK) |
|
| Harry
Bidgood. (UK) |
|
| Hal
Bidwell. (UK) |
|
| Frank
Bierman. (UK) |
|
| Frank
Biffo. (UK) |
|
| Ronald
Binge. (UK) |
|
| Don
Binney. (UK) |
|
| May
Birch. (UK) |
|
| Tom
Birch. (UK) |
|
| Arthur
Birkby. (UK) |
|
|
John
Birmingham. (UK) Bandleader
John Birmingham, born about 1889, was one of the pioneering bandleaders
who directed his "Big Twelve" in the early 1920s as well as
directing the band at the Hotel Cecil. Sadly, as the 1920s passed he
failed to keep pace with the modern ideas and had to resort to directing
the bands for revues and provincial shows. It was not an unusual tale;
Other bandleaders such as Leslie Jeffries, Emlyn Thomas and Victor
Vorzanger all deserted the Dance Music scene before the end of the 1920s.
John Birmingham made quite a good living out of his music, however, but
his career and life were tragically cut short when he died from injuries
sustained from falling from his balcony in May 1928. |
 |
| Frederick
Bishop. (UK) |
|
| Neville
Bishop. (UK) |
|
| Reg.
Bishop. (UK) |
|
| Billy
Bissett. (Canada) |
|
| Ted
Bissett. (UK) |
|
| Stanley Black.
(UK) |
|
| Alex
Blackforth. (UK) |
|
| Jimmy
Blades. (UK) |
|
| Tommy
Blades. (UK) |
|
| Bill
Blanch. (UK) |
|
| Alan
Blank. (UK) |
|
| Joe
Blank. (UK) |
|
| Tom
Blight. (UK) |
|
| Wilbur
Blinco. (UK) |
|
| Sid
Bliss. (UK) |
|
| Kurt
Blomquist. (UK) |
|
| Harry
Bloom. (UK) |
|
| The Blue
Notes. (UK) |
|
| Len
Blunt. (UK) |
|
| Bert
Boatwright. (UK) |
|
| Jean
Bobbe. (UK) |
|
| George
Boddy. (UK) |
|
| Sam
Bogen. (UK) |
|
| Bill
Boland. (UK) |
|
| Betty
Bolton. (UK) |
|
| Jack
Bond. (UK) |
|
| Charles
Bonheur. (UK) Pseudonym
for singer Robert
Howe. |
|
| Tom
Bonney. (UK) |
|
| Jack
Bonser. (UK) |
|
| Laurie
Bookin. (UK) |
|
| E.
Booth. (UK) |
|
| Webster
Booth. (UK) |
|
| Dick
Boothroyd. (UK) |
|
| John
Borelli. (UK) |
|
| Charlie
Botterill. (UK) |
|
| Suzanne
Botterill. (UK) |
|
| Victor
"Digger" Boulcott. (UK) |
|
| Wally
Bowen. (UK) |
|
| Alf
Bowes. (UK) |
|
| Al
Bowlly. (UK/SA) |
|
| Dave
Bowman. (UK) |
|
| Bert
Bown. (UK) |
|
| Bill
Bowness. (UK) |
|
| Stan
Bowsher. (UK) |
|
| Len
Bowthorpe. (UK) |
|
| Harold
Boyes. (UK) |
|
| Edgar
Bracewell. (UK) |
|
| Len
Bradbury. (UK) |
|
| Tommy
Bradbury. (UK) |
|
| Norman C.
Bradford. (UK) |
|
| Josephine
Bradley. (UK) |
|
| Ron
Bradley. (UK) |
|
| Aleg
Bragg. (UK) |
|
| Cas
Braithwaite. (UK) |
|
| Bill
Brakewell. (UK) |
|
| Mona
Brandon. (UK) |
|
| Eddie
Brandt. (USA/UK) |
|
| Joe
Brannelly. (USA/UK) |
|
| Hazel
Bray. (UK) |
|
| Perley
Breed. (USA/UK) |
|
| Alan
Breeze. (UK) |
|
| Eric
Breeze. (UK) |
|
| Larry Brennan.
(UK) |
|
| Gloria
Brent. (UK) |
|
| Freddy
Bretherton. (UK) |
|
| Val
Brett. (UK) |
|
| Jimmy
Brewer. (UK) |
|
| Laurie
Brewis. (UK) |
|
| Reg
Brewster. (UK) |
|
| Leslie
Brian. (UK) |
|
| Cpl G.
Bright. (UK) |
|
| Gerald Bright
- see Geraldo
(UK) |
|
| Sid
Bright. (UK) |
|
| Harry
Brindle. (UK) |
|
| Vic
Brinkman. (UK) |
|
| John
Bristol. (UK) |
|
| Herb
Britton. (UK) |
|
| Jimmy
Broad. (UK) |
|
| S.
Broadhead. (UK) |
|
| Ernest
Broadhurst. (UK) |
|
| Irving
Brodsky. (USA/UK) |
|
| Estelle
Brody. (UK) |
|
| Tommy
Bromley. (UK) |
|
| Benny
Bromnick. (UK) |
|
| Abe
Bronson. (UK) |
|
| Claude
Brooke. (UK) |
|
| Elizabeth
Brooke. (UK) |
|
| Ern
Brooks. (UK) |
|
| Freddy
Brooks. (UK) |
|
| H.
Brooks. (UK) |
|
| Vivienne
Brooks. (UK) |
|
| Albert
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Alec
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Bert
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Bob
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Cush
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Fred
Brown. (UK) |
|
| George
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Jimmy
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Les
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Sid
Brown. (UK) |
|
| Teddy
Brown. (USA/UK) |
|
| W.
H. Brown. (UK) |
|
| Sam
Browne. (UK) |
|
| Douglas
Brownsmith. (UK) |
|
| Fred
Bruce. (UK) |
|
| Phillipe
Brun. (France/UK) |
|
| L.
Brusko. (UK) |
|
| Eddie
Bryant. (UK) |
|
| Philip
Buchel. (UK) |
|
| George
Buck. (UK) |
|
| Sid
Buckman. (UK) |
|
| Andre
Budegery. (UK) |
|
| Fred
Budge. (UK) |
|
| Bert
Bullimore. (UK) |
|
| Mick
Burberry. (UK) |
|
| Dave
Burchett. (UK) |
|
| Ernie
Burgess. (UK) |
|
| Freddy
Burgess. (UK) |
|
| George
Burgess. (UK) |
|
| Jim
Burgess. (UK) |
|
| Al
Burke. (UK) |
|
| Marie
Burke. (UK) |
|
| Sid
Burke. (UK) |
|
| Maurice
Burman. (UK) |
|
| Nat
Burman. (UK) |
|
| Sid
Burman. (UK) |
|
| John
Burnaby. (UK) |
|
| Johnny
Burns. (UK) |
|
| Lily
Burns. (UK) |
|
| Norman
"Tito" Burns. (UK) |
|
| Bunny
Burrows. (UK) |
|
| Jack
Burrows. (UK) |
|
| Leslie
Burrows. (UK) |
|
| Stan
Burrows. (UK) |
|
| Bill
Burton. (UK) |
|
| William
Burton. (UK) |
|
| Bill
Busby. (UK) |
|
| Bob
Busby. (UK) |
|
| Lad
Busby. (UK) |
|
| Joan
Bush. (UK) |
|
| Teddy
Butler. (UK) |
|
| Freddy
Butt. (UK) |
|
| E.
A. Button. (UK) |
|
| Biff
Byfield. (UK) |
|
| George
W. Byng. (UK)
|
|
.JPG)
