Chris Barber RIP

[stewbones43]

Sad to announce the passing of British trombonist Chris Barber yesterday at the age of 90.

He led his British style trad jazz band from 1953 until he retired in 2019.

Sad day.

Stewbones43

[baileyman]

And he was an early Lotus sports car racer, at one time fielding his own team. I suppose that indicates the level of his financial success that he could fund what is usually a hugely loosing proposition. More tromboners should do that instead of hording the dough!

Here's a pic:

https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news ... o/80747290

[stewbones43]

Thanks Baileyman. I didn't know that about him.

Cheers

Stewbones

[Grah]

RIP Chris. Very sad! He was my trombone playing and band-leading hero when I first took up trombone in the 1950s. I used to follow his band around the greater London area, trying not to miss any of his gigs. Chris Barber, Pat Halcox and Monty Sunshine were a great sounding front line, and I still recommend their methods of blending to the players in my two current Traditional Jazz bands. Ottile Patterson was a very good jazz vocalist with the band, and also married to Chris for over 20 years before they divorced in 1983.

I also liked the way Chris developed his jazz style and used bigger band lineups with very swinging rhythm sections. Slightly more Mainstream sounds from these bands. I went even further myself in using a more Mainstream approach to my playing style and for my bands. But Chris was always there in my mind. And one can only envy his success.

[Bach5G]

Nice to hear from you Grah.

[chromebone]

Barber's legacy and influence goes far beyond trad jazz. The trad jazzers, led by Barber, Lonnie Donegan and Ken Colyer also introduced skiffle to England, which was the music that inspired the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and many others which started the British invasion in rock. If you want to see a short history of skiffle, this documentary is a great start:
https://youtu.be/-wfeO7Y_5eA

[Grah]

I should stress that Chris was my first hero and certainly remained a huge influence. However, the other British trombonist that greatly interested me with his style was Roy Williams, who was playing with Alex Welsh. I hope that when I am playing Dixieland (Traditional Jazz), my present-day style of improvising is mainly a combination of the two.

Of course, then came the the great swing and modern jazz trombonists, and I hope my improvising kept pace with the developing styles. Especially when I am soloing with big swing bands.