Jazz in Britain has a glorious and robust past. From the 1920s and '30s up until World War II in 1939, jazz in the U.K. was largely "sweet" in dance-band style. Bands were formal and highly accomplished. Remember, Cherokee was by Ray Noble, the English bandleader, composer and arranger who recorded it first in 1938. He also wrote The Touch of Your Lips, I Hadn't Anyone Till You and The Very Thought of You among many other songs. Britain had swing bands, but it wasn't until the end of the war, with the resumption of recording there, that leaders began forming American-style bands. [Photo above of Johnny Dankworth]
By the late-1940s, jazz shifted in Britain toward bop and small ensembles inspired by American recordings while big bands like Ted Heath's became Kentonized, with barn-burning arrangements and powerful solos by strong players. As the 1950s progressed, British jazz took on a personality all its own as it followed the American model. One of the many strong players proficient in improvisation who came up in the 1950s was Johnny Dankworth, who died in 2010. [Photo above of Cleo Laine and Johnny Dankworth]
That year, the BBC broadcast an hour-long collection of performances by the bandleader and alto saxophonist, who clearly was influenced by Jimmy Dorsey. In the collection of on-camera performances, Dankworth also plays tenor saxophone and clarinet. In clips, band vocalist and Dankworth's wife, Cleo Laine, is featured. And watch for the great clip of Dankworth and Henry Mancini on flute and piccolo playing the Pink Panther theme and Baby Elephant Walk.
Here's the 2010 BBC tribute to Johnny Dankworth...
