John Taylor RIP

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

"A lovely, avuncular pianist, with more than a passing
resemblance to Kurt Vonnegut, headlined one
night. Before taking the stage to redefine our
understanding of jazz harmony and to infinitely
increase our thoughts rhythmic, he made a bee-
line to us youngsters to thank us for our set, “for
continuing to fly the flag for this wonderful music,
jazz,” and to comment helpfully on what we
(thought we) were doing! It was John Taylor. He
remained an inspiration, a friend to so many
musicians, and was always a joy to listen to.
There was no shred of competitiveness towards
younger generations of musicians, just a
welcoming smile. He came to a gig in Koln and
got so excited about the music that Geoff Amos
had to take him to one side and quieten him
down! He always reminded us about arriving at
Jonny’s club in 1979 to find that we’d sprayed
the chord changes to Giant Steps on the front of
the club. I will remember him, laughing once
again about that, at the recent Parliamentary
Awards (about which he was as poetically
scathing as only he could be, whilst keeping a
twinkle in his eye). What a wonderful human being"

-Django Bates quoted in the Ottawa Citizen obit.

Good affectionate obit in the Guardian by John Fordham.

BN.

[Alyn_Shipton]

Do send me suitable JT requests to jazz.record.requests@bbc.co.uk - I'll do a memorial programme next month

[burning dog]

Pretty useful on the Fender Rhodes, used to great effect on "Way Back When" with John Surman.

[burning dog]

Pretty useful on the Fender Rhodes,
and here

[Jazzrook]

A very sad loss. His 1992 duo album with John Surman, 'Ambleside Days'(ah um 013) is well worth searching for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpsVgIYJ4YA

[Tenor Freak]

i really am very shocked and saddened by this as JT is one of my favourite pianists. When I was a student at the Parkshot jazz workshop held on Saturdays in Richmond (Royal Borough of Richmond upon Thames that is) he and Stan Sulzmann performed a duo of Kenny Wheeler compositions. It was excellent.

rip JT

[Serial_Apologist]

The funeral's on Tuesday (4th), at Charing, in Kent. I got this information today from Henry Lowther, who didn't have precise details to hand. The main problem will probably consist in getting there - hold-ups on the M2/M20 etc. I might be able to get further details, if wished.

[BLUESNIK'S REVOX]

Timely.....

" The RPM box, ‘Turtle Records’, is now
advertised on Spin CDs’ website, so
here’s what it’s about…

It’s a 3CD clamshell box set comprising
the three original LP releases from
legendary British jazz producer Peter
Eden’s own label, Turtle Records, in
1970-71. The albums are Mike Osborne’s
Outback, Howard Riley’s Flight and John
Taylor’s Pause, And Think Again. These
have never been reissued officially before
(though bootlegs appeared in the early
90s on FMR, stopped by legal intervention
from Peter). Original copies would set
anyone back over £800 today.

The albums have been mastered from the
original tapes and I’ve created a 17,000
word/56 page booklet telling the story of
progressive British jazz in and around
1970, having trawled the entirety of
Melody Maker issues for that year and
specifically interviewed or corresponded
with Peter Eden, John Taylor, Howard
Riley and other musicians on the albums
– John Surman, Norma Winstone, Barry
Guy – plus other musicians whom Peter
Eden produced in that period: Michael
Gibbs, Mike Cooper, Chris Spedding. The
booklet also includes a complete
discography of Peter Eden productions
spanning 1966-73."


BN.

[Serial_Apologist]

Timely.....

" The RPM box, ‘Turtle Records’, is now
advertised on Spin CDs’ website, so
here’s what it’s about…

It’s a 3CD clamshell box set comprising
the three original LP releases from
legendary British jazz producer Peter
Eden’s own label, Turtle Records, in
1970-71. The albums are Mike Osborne’s
Outback, Howard Riley’s Flight and John
Taylor’s Pause, And Think Again. These
have never been reissued officially before
(though bootlegs appeared in the early
90s on FMR, stopped by legal intervention
from Peter). Original copies would set
anyone back over £800 today.

The albums have been mastered from the
original tapes and I’ve created a 17,000
word/56 page booklet telling the story of
progressive British jazz in and around
1970, having trawled the entirety of
Melody Maker issues for that year and
specifically interviewed or corresponded
with Peter Eden, John Taylor, Howard
Riley and other musicians on the albums
– John Surman, Norma Winstone, Barry
Guy – plus other musicians whom Peter
Eden produced in that period: Michael
Gibbs, Mike Cooper, Chris Spedding. The
booklet also includes a complete
discography of Peter Eden productions
spanning 1966-73."


BN.

Funnily enough, all 3 of those recordings I have on D90 cassettes.