Donald Christopher Barber (17 April 1930 – 2 March 2021) was an English jazz musician, best known as a bandleader and trombonist. He helped many musicians with their careers and had a UK top twenty

trad jazz Trad jazz, short for "traditional jazz", is a form of jazz in the United States and Britain that flourished from the 1930s to 1960s, based on the earlier New Orleans Dixieland jazz style. Prominent English trad jazz musicians such as Chris Barb ...

hit with "

Petite Fleur "Petite Fleur" is an instrumental written by Sidney Bechet and recorded by him in January 1952, first with the Sidney Bechet All Stars and later with Claude Luter and his Orchestra. Chris Barber recording In 1959, "Petite Fleur" was an internatio ...

" in 1959. These musicians included the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

singer

Ottilie Patterson Anna Ottilie Patterson (31 January 1932 – 20 June 2011) was a Northern Irish blues singer best known for her performances and recordings with the Chris Barber Jazz Band in the late 1950s and early 1960s. She has been called the godmother of B ...

, who was at one time his wife, and

Lonnie Donegan Anthony James "Lonnie" Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002) was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the " King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scotland and brought ...

, whose appearances with Barber triggered the

skiffle Skiffle is a music genre, genre of folk music with influences from American folk music, blues, Country music, country, Bluegrass music, bluegrass, and jazz, generally performed with a mixture of manufactured and homemade or improvised instruments. ...

craze of the mid-1950s and who had his first transatlantic hit, "

Rock Island Line "Rock Island Line" ( Roud 15211) was originally sung as a spiritual by slaves on the plantations of the Mississippi River Valley, and was first transcribed as a folk song in 1929. The first recording was made by John Lomax, who was traveling amo ...

", while with Barber's band. He provided an audience for Donegan and, later,

Alexis Korner Alexis Andrew Nicholas Koerner (19 April 1928 – 1 January 1984), known professionally as Alexis Korner, was a British blues musician and radio broadcaster, who has sometimes been referred to as "a founding father of British blues". A major i ...

, and sponsored African-American blues musicians to visit Britain, making Barber a significant figure in launching the British

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

and "

beat boom Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a British popular music genre that developed around Liverpool in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The genre melded influences from British and American rock and roll, rhythm and blues, skiffle, tradit ...

" of the 1960s.

Early life

Barber was born in

Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second Garden city movement, garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first New towns in the United Kingdom, new towns (designated 1948). It is ...

, Hertfordshire, on 17 April 1930. His father, Donald Barber, was an insurance statistician who a few years later became secretary of the Socialist League, while his mother was a headmistress. His parents were left-leaning, his father having been taught by

John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist and philosopher whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originall ...

, while his mother became, in Barber's words, "the only socialist mayor of Canterbury". Barber started learning the violin when he was seven years old. He was educated at

Hanley Castle Grammar School Hanley is one of the six towns that, along with Burslem, Longton, Fenton, Tunstall and Stoke-upon-Trent, amalgamated to form the City of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. The town is the main business, commercial and cultural hub o ...

, near Malvern, Worcestershire, to the age of 15, and started to develop an interest in jazz. After the end of the war, he attended St Paul's School in London, and began visiting clubs to hear jazz groups. He then spent three years at the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a music and drama school located in the City of London, England. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz along with dram ...

, and started playing music with friends he met there, including

1950s

In 1950, Barber formed the New Orleans Jazz Band, a non-professional group of up to eight musicians, including Korner on guitar and Barber on

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

, to play both trad jazz and blues tunes. He had trained as an

actuary An actuary is a professional with advanced mathematical skills who deals with the measurement and management of risk and uncertainty. These risks can affect both sides of the balance sheet and require investment management, asset management, ...

, but decided to leave his job in an insurance office in 1951, and the following year became a professional musician. Barber and clarinetist Monty Sunshine formed a band in late 1952, with trumpeter Pat Halcox among others, began playing in London clubs, and accepted an offer to play in Denmark in early 1953. Simultaneously, it was found that Halcox would be unable to travel but that

Ken Colyer Kenneth Colyer (18 April 1928 – 8 March 1988) was an English jazz trumpeter and cornetist, devoted to New Orleans jazz. His band was also known for skiffle interludes. Biography He was born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, but grew up ...

, who had been visiting

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, was available. Colyer joined the band, which then took the name Ken Colyer's Jazzmen. The group also included Donegan, Jim Bray (bass), Ron Bowden (drums) and Barber on trombone. In April 1953 the band made its debut in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, Denmark. There Chris Albertson recorded several sides for the new Danish Storyville label, including some featuring only Sunshine (clarinet), Donegan (banjo) and Barber (bass) as the Monty Sunshine Trio. The bands played

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

jazz, and later

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...

, swing,

and R&B. Pat Halcox returned on trumpet in 1954 when Colyer moved on after musical and personal differences with both Barber and Donegan, and the band became "The Chris Barber Band". The band's first recording session in 1954 produced the LP ''New Orleans Joys'', and included "

", performed by Donegan. When released as a single under Donegan's name, it became a hit, launching Donegan's solo career and the British

boom. The Barber band recorded several ''In Concert'' LPs during the 1950s, regarded by critic

Richie Unterberger Richie Unterberger (born 1962) is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing. Life and writing Unterberger attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote for the university newspaper '' The Daily P ...

as "captur ngthe early Barber band in its prime.... ere's a certain crispness and liveliness to both the acoustics and the performances that make this in some ways preferable to their rather starchier studio recordings of the same era." The short documentary film '' Momma Don't Allow'', made in 1956, features the Chris Barber Band live with the Irish blues singer

in a north London trad jazz club. It captures the emerging 'youth culture' of that period. Barber married Patterson in 1959. In 1959, the band's October 1956 recording of

Sidney Bechet Sidney Joseph Bechet ( ; May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. He was one of the first important Solo (music), soloists in jazz, and first recorded several months before trumpeter Louis Ar ...

's "

", a clarinet solo by Monty Sunshine with Dick Smith on bass, Ron Bowden on drums and Dick Bishop on guitar, spent twenty-four weeks in the UK Singles Charts, making it to No. 3 and selling over one million copies, and was awarded a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

. After 1959, Barber toured the United States several times (where "Petite Fleur" charted at No. 5).

1960s

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Barber was mainly responsible for arranging the first UK tours of blues artists

Big Bill Broonzy Big Bill Broonzy (born Lee Conley Bradley; June 26, 1893 or 1903August 14, 1958) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s, when he played country music to mostly African-American audiences. In the 19 ...

Sonny Terry Saunders Terrell (October 24, 1911 – March 11, 1986), known as Sonny Terry, was an American Piedmont blues and folk musician, who was known for his energetic blues harmonica style, which frequently included vocal whoops and hollers and occas ...

and

Brownie McGhee Walter Brown "Brownie" McGhee (November 30, 1915 – February 16, 1996) was an American folk and Piedmont blues singer and guitarist, best known for his collaboration with the harmonica player Sonny Terry. Life and career McGhee was bor ...

and

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913April 30, 1983), better known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer-songwriter and musician who was an important figure in the post-World War II blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of moder ...

. This, with the encouragement of local enthusiasts such as Alexis Korner and

John Mayall John Brumwell Mayall (29 November 1933 – 22 July 2024) was an English blues and Rock music, rock musician, songwriter and producer. In the 1960s, he formed John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among its members some of ...

, sparked young musicians such as Peter Green,

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

and the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

British rhythm and blues British rhythm and blues (or R&B) was a musical movement that developed in the United Kingdom between the late 1950s and the early 1960s, and reached a peak in the mid-1960s. It overlapped with, but was distinct from, the broader British beat ...

powered the

British invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when Rock music, rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of Culture of the United Kingdom, British culture became popular in the United States with sign ...

of the USA charts in the 1960s. In January 1963, the British music magazine, ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' reported the biggest trad jazz event in Britain at

Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is an entertainment and sports venue in North London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. A listed building, Grade II listed building, it is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and th ...

. It included

George Melly Alan George Heywood Melly (17 August 1926 – 5 July 2007) was an English jazz and blues singer, critic, writer, and lecturer. From 1965 to 1973, he was a film and television critic for ''The Observer''; he also lectured on art history, with an ...

, Diz Disley,

Acker Bilk Bernard Stanley "Acker" Bilk, (28 January 1929 – 2 November 2014) was an English clarinetist and vocalist known for his breathy, vibrato-rich, lower-register style, and distinctive appearance – of goatee, bowler hat and striped waistco ...

, Alex Welsh,

Kenny Ball Kenneth Daniel Ball (22 May 1930Larkin C., ''Virgin Encyclopedia of Sixties Music''. (Muze UK Ltd, 1997), p. 29; ) – 7 March 2013) was an English jazz musician, best known as the bandleader, lead trumpet player and vocalist in Kenny Ball and ...

, Ken Colyer, Sunshine, Bob Wallis,

Bruce Turner Malcom Bruce Turner (5 July 1922 – 28 November 1993) was an English jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader. Biography Born in Saltburn-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire, England, and educated at Dulwich College, he learned to play the clarine ...

, Mick Mulligan and Barber. Barber stunned traditionalists in 1964 by introducing blues guitarist John Slaughter into the line up who (apart from a break between April 1978 and August 1986 when Roger Hill took over the spot) played in the band until shortly before his death in 2010. Barber next added a second clarinet/saxophone and this line-up continued until 2000. A recording of the Lennon–McCartney composition "Catswalk" can be heard, retitled "Cat Call", on '' The Songs Lennon and McCartney Gave Away''. Written by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

, the song was recorded in late July 1967 and released as a single in the UK on 20 October 1967. In 1969, Barber signed up to the progressive Marmalade Records label and released the album ''Battersea Rain Dance'', featuring both McCartney and

Brian Auger Brian Albert Gordon Auger (born 18 July 1939) is an English jazz rock and rock keyboardist who specialises in the Hammond organ. Auger has worked with Rod Stewart, Tony Williams, Jimi Hendrix, John McLaughlin, Sonny Boy Williamson, Eric B ...

. Throughout the 1960s The Chris Barber Band was very popular in Germany, including parts of communist eastern Europe. In 1968 they released the album ''Live in East Berlin''.

Later career

With guitarist

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as "Ireland's first rock star", he is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances. He has sometim ...

, Barber and his band recorded the 1972 album ''Drat That Fratle Rat'', described by Bob Stanley as an "unlikely but terrific trad jazz/blues rock fusion album". The band toured with the American clarinettist Russell Procope in 1976 and with Dr. John in 1981. Venturing into classical music, Barber commissioned and co-write a Concerto for Jazz Trombone in 1986 with Richard Hill, which was premiered behind the Berlin Wall at the

Palast der Republik The Palace of the Republic (, ) was a building in Berlin that hosted the '' Volkskammer'', the parliament of East Germany, from 1976 to 1990. Also known as the "People's Palace", it was located across the Unter den Linden from Museum Island in ...

on 2 October 1986. He also recorded the album ''Under the Influence of Jazz'' with The London Gabrieli Brass Ensemble in 1991. In 1998 Barber began to expand his band, partly so that he could play the music of the early Duke Ellington band, one of his favourites. He was joined by fellow trombonist/arranger Bob Hunt and added another clarinet/sax and trumpet. After his only 'Down Under Tour' of Australia and New Zealand in 2000 he permanently grew the band to 11 members, eventually renaming it The Big Chris Barber Band in 2001. This opened up the band to a broader range of music, although a spot was still reserved in the programme for the traditional six-man New Orleans line-up. Barber published his autobiography ''Jazz Me Blues'' in 2014, with co-author

Alyn Shipton Alyn Shipton (born 24 November 1953) is an English jazz author, presenter, critic, and jazz bassist. Early life Shipton became interested in jazz in his youth and formally studied cello, but also played double bass in a school jazz band. He pl ...

. He announced his decision to retire on 12 August 2019, after some 70 years of performing. The band continued under the musical direction of Bob Hunt. The line up of the Big Chris Barber Band in September 2019, which carried on with Barber's full support, was: Bob Hunt (trombone/arranger), Mike Henry and Gabriel Garrick (trumpets), Nick White, Trevor Whiting, and Ian Killoran (reeds), John Watson (drums), John Day (double bass), Joe Farler (banjo & guitar). Barber was awarded an OBE in 1991 for services to music. In June 2006 he received an honorary doctorate from Durham University, and in September 2013 he was awarded the "Blues Louis" for his services to popularizing the blues in Europe at the "Lahnstein Blues Festival" (Germany), where he is honored with the annual award. In 2014, he was honored for his life's work with the German Jazz Trophy.

Long-term musical partnerships

Pat Halcox, trumpeter with the Chris Barber Band since 31 May 1954, retired after playing his last gig with the Big Chris Barber Band on 16 July 2008. Halcox and Barber were together in the band for 54 years – the longest continuous partnership in the history of jazz, exceeding even that of

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...

and

Harry Carney Harry Howell Carney (April 1, 1910 – October 8, 1974) was a jazz saxophonist and clarinettist who spent over four decades as a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He played a variety of instruments, but primarily used the baritone saxophon ...

(48 years between 1926 and 1974). Tony Carter (reeds) also left the band at this time. John Crocker (reeds) retired from the band in 2003 after a 30-year stint. Vic Pitt (double bass) retired in January 2007 after 30 years with the band. His feature duet with the drummers of the day – "Big Noise From Winnetka" was not only a feature of the Barber concerts, but also his time with the Kenny Ball band immediately before.

Personal life

Barber was married four times: to dancer and singer Naida Lane; to the blues singer and band member Ottilie Patterson (from 1959 until their divorce in 1983); to Renate Hilbich, with whom he had two children; and finally to Kate Gray, who survived him. Aside from his musical life, Barber was a motor racing enthusiast. His first race was at

Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit in West Kingsdown, Kent, England, United Kingdom. Originally used as a grasstrack motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently hosts ...

in 1957, driving a Lotus Mark IX. He also owned several vintage Lagondas. His close friends included Lotus founder Colin Chapman and

Ken Tyrrell Robert Kenneth Tyrrell (3 May 1924 – 25 August 2001) was a British Formula Two racing driver and the founder of the Tyrrell Formula One constructor.Setright, L. J. K. "Tyrrell: A Shrewd Talent-spotter", in Northey, Tom, ed. ''World of Automo ...

. He died on 2 March 2021, aged 90, having suffered from dementia.

Select discography

*''New Orleans Joys'' Chris Barber Jazz Band, with Lonnie Donegan Skiffle Group, 1954 * ''Bestsellers: Chris Barber & Papa Bue's Viking Jazzband'', 1954 * ''Original Copenhagen Concert'', (live) 1954 * ''Chris Barber in Concert'', (live) 1956 * ''Chris Barber Plays, Vol. 1'', 1955 * ''Chris Barber Plays, Vol. 2'', 1956 * ''Chris Barber Plays, Vol. 3'', 1957 * ''Chris Barber Plays, Vol. 4'', 1957 * ''Chris Barber in Concert, Vol. 2'', (live) 1958 * "

", 1958 * ''Chris Barber American Jazz band'', 1960 * ''In Budapest'', 1962 * ''Louis Jordan Sings'', 1962 * ''Live in East Berlin'', 1968 * '' Battersea Rain Dance'', 1969 * ''Chris Barber & Lonnie Donegan'', 1973 * ''Golden Hour of Chris Barber and his jazz Band featuring Vocals by Ottilie Patterson and Clarinet by Monty Sunshine '', 1974 * ''Echoes of Ellington, Vol. 1'', 1976 * ''Echoes of Ellington, Vol. 2'', 1976 * ''Echoes of Ellington'', 1978 * ''Take Me Back to New Orleans'', 1980 * ''Concert for the BBC'', 1982 * ''Copulatin' Jazz: The Music of Preservation Hall'', 1993 * ''Live at the BP Studienhaus'', 1997 * ''Cornbread, Peas & Black Molasses'', (live) 1999 * ''The Big Chris Barber Band with Special Guest Andy Fairweather Low: As We Like It'', 2009 * ''Chris Barber's Jazz Band, Chris Barber 1957–58'', 2009 * ''The Chris Barber Jazz & Blues Band, Barbican Blues'', 2009 * ''The Big Chris Barber Band, Barber At Blenheim'', 2009 * ''Chris Barber's Jazz Band with Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, Sonny, Brownie & Chris'', 2009 * ''Chris Barber Memories Of My Trip'', 2011 * ''The Big Chris Barber Band 2011 European Tour''

References

External links

Official websiteChris Barber Myspace
* * Chris Barber @ Allmusic* * * as Chris Barber's Jazz Band * {{DEFAULTSORT:Barber, Chris 1930 births 2021 deaths Black & Blue Records artists Black Lion Records artists English male jazz musicians Dixieland jazz musicians English jazz bandleaders English jazz trombonists British male trombonists Musicians from Hertfordshire Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at St Paul's School, London People from Welwyn Garden City Skiffle musicians Timeless Records artists 20th-century British trombonists 21st-century trombonists 20th-century English musicians 21st-century British musicians 20th-century English male musicians 21st-century English male musicians Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Sonet Records artists