The Port Jackson Jazz Band

The Port Jackson Jazz Band were an Australian Dixieland jazz group formed in 1944 and based in Sydney. They were the longest running traditional jazz band in Australia and performed into the 1990s, though they had multiple breakups.[1]

History

Trombonist Jack Parkes formed the Port Jackson Jazz Band in 1944.[2][3] Other original founding members included trumpeter Ken Flannery, but the roster evolved as military service and other commitments saw the band occasionally interrupted.[4] They made their debut recording in 1945 which was unissued. It featured Parkes, Flannery, Alf Freeney (piano), John Sweeney (banjo), Duke Farrell (bass, vocals), and Mal Cooper (drums).[5] Other recordings were made which were played by Sydney radio stations.[6]

In 1947 Ray Price joined the then seven-piece band as their business manager / musical director,[7] and played guitar and banjo in the rhythm section.[2] That year the band made headlines when they refused to play at Sydney's Air Force House due to a "color ban" put in place by the venue management.[8][9] The band members were all ex-servicemen and spoke out against racial prejudice and continued to play elsewhere.[10] Their repertoire included tradition African-American music from the 1920s.[11] In early 1948 the ensemble were the first artists to perform jazz at Sydney Conservatorium of Music.[12] After an interstate tour where the band were accused of communist sympathies, the band broke up in 1948.[7] Ken Flannery was the only remaining original founding member at this time, and he reformed the group the following year without Price.[4]

In 1949 the band featured Ken Flannery (trumpet), Jim Somerville (piano), Bob Rowan (trombon), Ron Mannix (clarinet), Clive Whitecombe (drums), Doug Beck (guitar), and Bill Farmer (bass).[13]

During the late 1940s, the band performed with singers Georgia Lee (singer) and Nellie Small in Sydney and Newcastle,[14][15] with Small said to have stolen the show during her appearance with the jazz band.[16]

At the end of 1950, the Ken Flannery led band had broken up again, with only occasional reunions across the next five years.[4]

Ray Price reformed the Port Jackson Jazz Band and performed as a member between 1955-1962.[7]

In 1960 the band were part of the 1st Annual Australian International Jazz Festival in Sydney, billed as "Ray Price & The Port Jackson Jazz Band".[17] During the 1960s, they played regularly as a quartet at a hotel in Sydney, but would come together as a seven-piece for concerts or recordings. One of these recordings was Jazz Classics Volume 1, credited to Ray Price and his Port Jackson Jazz Band.[18]

After Ray Price retired in 1982, he occasionally rejoined The Port Jackson Jazz Band for reunions until his death in 1990.[19][7]

In 1988 the band reformed again with Ken Flannery as their only surviving original member.[3] He was joined by pianist Dick Hughes, clarinetist John McCarthy, drummer Allan Geddes, bassists Wally Wickham and Harry Harmon.[3] Later reunions featured other members, new and old.[2][20]

Lineup

The Port Jackson Jazz Band has had an evolving membership. Below are some past band members.

1944

Jack Parkes (trombone), Ken Flannery (trumpet).

1945

Jack Parkes (trombone), Ken Flannery (trumpet), Alf Freeney (piano), John Sweeney (banjo), Duke Farrell (bass, vocals), and Mal Cooper (drums).[5]

1946

Jack Parkes (trombone), Ken Flannery (trumpet), Bob Cruikshanks (clarinet), Don Roberts (clarinet), Kevin Ryder (piano), Ron Hogan (bass), and Lynn Healey (drums).[5]

1947

Ray Price (guitar, banjo), Ken Flannery (trumpet), James Somerville (piano),[4] Johnny Rich (trombone), Bob Cruikshanks (clarinet), Clive Whitcombe (drums), Marie Harriett (vocals).[5]

1948

Ken Flannery (trumpet), Dick Jackson (clarinet, tenor saxophone), Bob Rowan (trombone), James Somerville (piano), Ray Price (guitar), Len Evans (bass), and Clive Whitcombe (drums).[16]

1949

Ken Flannery (trumpet), Dick Jackson (clarinet, tenor saxophone), Bob Rowan (trombone), James Somerville (piano), Ray Price (guitar), Len Evans (bass), Clive Whitcombe (drums), and Georgina de Deon (vocals).[21]

1950

Ken Flannery (trumpet), James Somerville (piano), Les Nelson (trombone), John McCarthy (clarinet), George Harper (bass), Harry Shoebridge (guitar), and Clive Whitcombe (drums).

1955

Dick Hughes (piano),[1] John McCarthy (clarinet),[4] Francis John Willis (trombone)[4]

1957

Bob Barnard (trumpet), Ray Price (guitar),[1] Keith Silver (leader).

1961

Ken Flannery (trumpet), Johnny MacCarthy (clarinet), John Costello (trombone), Dick Hughes (piano), Wally Wickham (bass), Allan Geddes (drums), Ray Price (banjo and guitar), vocals by Katie Dunbar and Dick Hughes.[18]

1990

Ken Flannery (trumpet), Johnny MacCarthy (clarinet), Norm Wyett (trombone), Terry Wilkinson (piano), Wally Wickham (bass), Allan Geddes (drums), Ian MacNamara (vocals).[5]

Further reading

Mitchell, Jack (1995), Back Together Again!: The Story of the Port Jackson Jazz Band, ISBN 9780646236865

References
  1. Clare, John. Bodgie, Dada & the Cult of Cool [Australian Jazz Ssince 1945]. ISBN 0-86840-103-X. OCLC 1331946023.
  2. "A talented crusader for jazz". The Sydney Morning Herald. 7 Aug 1990. p. 4.
  3. Brennan, Gail (27 Jun 1988). "World's oldest band reunites". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 16.
  4. A Dictionary of Australian Mmusic. Warren Arthur Bebbington. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. 1998. pp. 116, 202, 261, 300, 348. ISBN 0-19-550839-4. OCLC 39924396.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. Lord, Tom (1997). The Jazz Discography. Vol. 17. West Vancouver, B.C., Canada: Lord Music Reference Inc. pp. 593–596. ISBN 1-881993-00-0. OCLC 30547554.
  6. "PORT JACKSON JAZZ BAND IN ELLIS BLAIN SESSION - ABC Weekly Vol. 9 No. 37". Trove. 13 September 1947. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
  7. Johnson, Bruce, "Price, Raymond Arthur (1921–1990)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 2023-02-28
  8. "BAND PROTESTS AT DANCE COLOR BAN". The Daily Telegraph. 29 Jul 1947. p. 5. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  9. "COLOR BAN IN BAND". Barrier Miner. 29 Jul 1947. p. 7. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  10. "Jazz Band Fights Prejudice". The Sydney Jewish News. 8 Aug 1947. p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  11. "Worth Reporting: Jazz as an Art". The Australian Women's Weekly. Vol. 15, no. 11. 23 August 1947. p. 25. Retrieved 18 March 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. "CONTACT". The Sun. Late Final Extra. No. 11, 877. Sydney. 19 February 1948. p. 1. Retrieved 18 March 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. "Sydney Jazz Group's Two Broadcasts". The Age. 26 May 1949. p. 13.
  14. Horne, Craig (2019). Roots : How Melbourne Became the Live Musical Capital of the World. La Vergne: Melbourne Books. ISBN 978-1-925556-93-3. OCLC 1127944344.
  15. "Jazz Comes Back To Newcastle". Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate. 2 Apr 1948. p. 2. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  16. "Coloured Singer was Popular". Queensland Times. 1948-07-03. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
  17. "Lee Gordon Presents 1st Annual Australian International Jazz Festival". The Sydney Morning Herald. 16 Oct 1960. p. 98.
  18. Jeffcoat, Keith (Jan 1962). "Popular Jazz". Radio, Television, and Hobbies. 32 (10): 76, 87.
  19. The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. Barry Dean Kernfeld. New York: St. Martin's Press. 1994. ISBN 0-312-11357-9. OCLC 30516743.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  20. Shand, John (21 November 1994). "Delicate artistry marks 50th anniversary". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 16.
  21. "We Meet The Port Jackson Jazz Band". South Coast Times and Wollongong Argus. 9 Mar 1950. p. 27. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
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