Ken Colyer

Ken Colyer (1928-1988) remains a pivotal figure in the development of Traditional Jazz in the UK. When his older brother, Bill, joined the army in World War Two, Ken was left in charge of his jazz and blues record collection, and became hooked on early jazz. Self taught on trumpet, he joined the Merchant Navy at 17. In the late 1940s he played with Mick Mulligan, and formed his own band, the Crane River Jazz Band, in 1949. He was with the Christie Brothers’ Stompers in 1951, before rejoining the Merchant Navy in an effort to get himself to New Orleans. Here he had the opportunity to perform with a talk and perform with musicians like Kid Howard, George Lewis and Paul Barbarin. Arrested and deported for overstaying his visa, he was back in London by 1953, where he took over leadership of a band which became the Ken Colyer Jazzmen. The band featured a strong lineup with Chris Barber, Monty Sunshine, Lonnie Donegan, Ron Bowden and Jim Bray, but musical differences led to Colyer reforming the band after little more than a year. The musicians he brought together in 1954 were equally impressive with Acker Bilk, Diz Disley and Stan Greig among them. His next band, with Mac Duncan (trombone), Ian Wheeler (clarinet), Ray Foxley (piano), Johnny Bastable (banjo), Ron Ward (bass) and Colin Bowden (drums) stayed together into the 1960s, touring Germany and building a following throughout Europe.

In the late 1950s, Colyer took up a residency at Studio 51, which became known as the Ken Colyer Club, and performed there for much of the 1960s. Stomach cancer forced him to stop playing for a while, and though he was able to return to music, the trad boom had by this time come to an end and work was harder to come by. In the 1970s, he reformed the Crane River Jazz Band for occasional tours, and also guested frequently with other bands. By 1986, illness once again caused him to retire, and he moved to France where he passed away just short of his 60th birthday.

Key Recordings:
New Orleans To London And Back To The Delta – Recordings 1953-54 (Lake 2005)
Serenading Auntie: BBC Recordings 1955-1960 (Upbeat 2002)
When I Leave The World Behind (GHB 2004)