Harry Percy South (7 September 1929 – 12 March 1990) was an English
jazz pianist
Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the instru ...
,
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
, and
arranger
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...
, who moved into work for film and television.
Career
South was born in
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
, London. He came to prominence in the 1950s, playing with
Joe Harriott
Joseph Arthurlin Harriott (15 July 1928 – 2 January 1973) was a Jamaican jazz musician and composer, whose principal instrument was the alto saxophone.
Initially a bebopper, he became a pioneer of free-form jazz. Born in Kingston, Harriott ...
,
Dizzy Reece
Alphonso Son "Dizzy" Reece (born 5 January 1931) is a Jamaican-born hard bop jazz trumpeter. Reece is among a group of jazz musicians born in Jamaica which includes Bertie King, Joe Harriott, Roland Alphonso, Wilton Gaynair, Sonny Bradshaw, ...
,
Tony Crombie
Anthony John Kronenberg (27 August 1925 – 18 October 1999), known professionally as Tony Crombie, was an English jazz drummer, pianist, bandleader, and composer. He was regarded as one of the finest English jazz drummers and bandleaders, an oc ...
, and
Tubby Hayes
Edward Brian "Tubby" Hayes (30 January 1935 – 8 June 1973) was an English jazz multi-instrumentalist, best known for his tenor saxophone playing in groups with fellow sax player Ronnie Scott and with trumpeter Jimmy Deuchar.
Early life
H ...
. In 1954, he was in the Tony Crombie Orchestra with
Dizzy Reece
Alphonso Son "Dizzy" Reece (born 5 January 1931) is a Jamaican-born hard bop jazz trumpeter. Reece is among a group of jazz musicians born in Jamaica which includes Bertie King, Joe Harriott, Roland Alphonso, Wilton Gaynair, Sonny Bradshaw, ...
, Les Condon (trumpet),
Joe Temperley
Joe Temperley (20 September 1929 – 11 May 2016) was a Scottish jazz saxophonist. He performed with various instruments, but was most associated with the baritone saxophone, soprano saxophone, and bass clarinet.
Life
Temperley was born in Cowd ...
,
Sammy Walker (tenor sax), Lennie Dawes (baritone sax), and
Ashley Kozak
Ashley Kozak (c.1930 – 2008) was a British jazz bassist, record producer and artists' manager, best known as having been Donovan's manager.
After working, and recording, with Tony Crombie and His Orchestra in 1954, together with leading UK-based ...
(bass).
After returning from a 9-month tour of Calcutta, India, with the
Ashley Kozak
Ashley Kozak (c.1930 – 2008) was a British jazz bassist, record producer and artists' manager, best known as having been Donovan's manager.
After working, and recording, with Tony Crombie and His Orchestra in 1954, together with leading UK-based ...
Quartet, he spent four years with the
Dick Morrissey
Richard Edwin Morrissey (9 May 1940 – 8 November 2000) was a British jazz musician and composer. He played the tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and flute.
Biography Background
He was born in Horley, Surrey, England. Dick Morrissey emerg ...
Quartet,
[Harry South at David Taylor's British Bebop website](_blank)
where he both wrote and arranged material for their subsequent four albums.
He formed the Harry South Big Band in 1966 with
Dick Morrissey
Richard Edwin Morrissey (9 May 1940 – 8 November 2000) was a British jazz musician and composer. He played the tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and flute.
Biography Background
He was born in Horley, Surrey, England. Dick Morrissey emerg ...
,
Phil Seamen
Philip William Seamen (28 August 1926 – 13 October 1972) was an English jazz drummer.
With a background in big band music, Seamen played and recorded in a wide range of musical contexts with virtually every key figure of 1950s and 1960s Brit ...
,
Keith Christie,
Ronnie Scott
Ronnie may refer to:
*Ronnie (name), a unisex pet name and given name
* "Ronnie" (Four Seasons song), a song by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe
*"Ronnie," a song from the Metallica album '' Load''
*Ronnie Brunswijkstadion, an association football stadium ...
and
Ian Carr
Ian Carr (21 April 1933 – 25 February 2009) was a Scottish jazz musician, composer, writer, and educator. Carr performed and recorded with the Rendell-Carr quintet and jazz-fusion band Nucleus, and was an associate professor at the Guildhall ...
, and recorded an album, ''Presenting the Harry South Big Band'', for
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...
in 1966.
[''Presenting the Harry South Big Band'' (1966), track list and personnel]
/ref>
/ref>
In the mid-1960s, he began working with British rhythm & blues singer and organist Georgie Fame
Georgie Fame (born Clive Powell; 26 June 1943) is an English R&B and jazz musician. Fame, who had a string of 1960s hits, is still performing, often working with contemporaries such as Alan Price, Van Morrison and Bill Wyman. Fame is the on ...
,Humphrey Lyttelton
Humphrey Richard Adeane Lyttelton (23 May 1921 – 25 April 2008), also known as Humph, was an English jazz musician and broadcaster from the Lyttelton family.
Having taught himself the trumpet at school, Lyttelton became a professional ...
, Buddy Rich
Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time.
Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York ...
, Sarah Vaughan
Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer.
Nicknamed "Sassy" and "Jazz royalty, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine ...
, and Jimmy Witherspoon
James Witherspoon (August 8, 1920 – September 18, 1997) was an American jump blues singer.
Early life, family and education
Witherspoon was born in Gurdon, Arkansas. His father was a railroad worker who sang in local choirs, and his mot ...
. He worked as musical director for Annie Ross
Annabelle McCauley Allan Short (25 July 193021 July 2020), known professionally as Annie Ross, was a British-American singer and actress, best known as a member of the jazz vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross.
Early life
Ross was born in Surr ...
.
He branched out into session work, writing themes for television and music libraries, including the themes for ''The Sweeney
''The Sweeney'' is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London. It stars John Thaw as Detective Ins ...
'', ''The Chinese Detective
''The Chinese Detective'' is a British television police procedural drama series, first transmitted by the BBC between 1981 and 1982. The series was created by Ian Kennedy Martin, who had previously devised '' The Sweeney'' and ''Juliet Brav ...
'', the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. He wrote the scores for the
'' (1977). In 1981, he again arranged for Annie Ross and Georgie Fame in a collaboration on what was to be
, London, at the age of 60. In 2001, the
released an album in his honour entitled ''Portraits: The Music of Harry South''. In 2017 Rhythm and Blues Records released a four CD set titled ''Harry South: The Songbook'', with over sixty of his compositions played by various groups, some of which he played in. Included are early tracks with Tubby Hayes and nearly 40 sides by The Harry South Big Band, dating from 1960 to 1975. A further 4 CD set (taken from tapes of BBC broadcasts in the 1960s) followed two years later.