James Lloyd Morrison AM (born 11 November 1962) is an Australian jazz musician. Although his main instrument is trumpet, he has also performed on trombone, tuba, euphonium,

flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B, though some ...

, saxophone,

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

, double bass, guitar, and piano. He is a composer, writing jazz charts for ensembles of various sizes and proficiency levels. He composed and performed the opening fanfare at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. In 2009, he joined Steve Pizzati and Warren Brown as a presenter on '' Top Gear Australia''. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2010 Morrison and a cappella group,

The Idea of North The Idea of North are an Australian a cappella vocal ensemble founded in Canberra in 1993, by Nick Begbie (tenor), Meg Corson (alto), Trish Delaney-Brown (soprano) and Andrew Piper ( bass). In March 2002 Corson was replaced as alto by Naomi Cr ...

, won Best Jazz Album, for their collaboration on ''

Feels Like Spring ''Feels Like Spring'' is a collaborative studio album by Australian recording artists James Morrison and The Idea of North. The album was released in April 2010. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2010, the album won the ARIA Award for Best Jazz Albu ...

''. In 2012 Morrison was appointed as Artistic Director of the Queensland Music Festival for the 2013 and 2015 festivals. He was inducted into the Graeme Bell Hall of Fame 2013 at the Australian Jazz Bell Awards. In July 2013 he conducted the World's Largest Orchestra in Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, consisting of 7,224 musicians. In March 2015 Morrison opened the James Morrison Academy of Music in Mount Gambier, South Australia – a tertiary level, dedicated jazz school offering a degree in jazz performance.

Biography

Early years

James Lloyd Morrison was born on 11 November 1962 in Boorowa, a rural farming community where his father, George Morrison, was a Methodist minister. Morrison comes from a musical family: his mother plays alto saxophone, piano, and organ; his sister is a trumpeter, and his older brother,

John Morrison John Morrison or Morison may refer to: In politics * John Morrison (Manitoba politician) (1868–1930), politician in Manitoba, Canada * John Morrison (Saskatchewan politician) (1872–1950), Canadian Member of Parliament * John Morrison (intelli ...

, is a jazz drummer. The family moved to various sites in New South Wales due to his father's ministry before settling in

Pittwater Pittwater is a semi-mature tide dominated drowned valley estuary, located about north of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia; being one of the bodies of water that separate greater Metropolitan Sydney from the Ce ...

. From the age of seven Morrison practiced on his brother's cornet. Morrison attended Mona Vale Primary School and

Pittwater High School Pittwater High School, (abbreviation PHS) is a school located in Mona Vale, New South Wales, Australia, on Mona Street and Pittwater Road. It is a co-educational high school operated by the New South Wales Department of Education with students ...

, then Sydney Conservatorium of Music where he completed a jazz course. At the conservatorium he met Don Burrows, who became his mentor. In 1981, Morrison was a faculty member at his alma mater.

Morrison Brothers

In 1983 James and John Morrison formed the Morrison Brothers Big Bad Band, a 13-piece group. In 1984 the band included James Morrison on trumpet, trombone, and piano, Warwick Alder on trumpet, Peter Cross on trumpet, Paul Andrews on alto saxophone, Tom Baker on alto and baritone saxophones, Jason Morphett on tenor saxophone, Glenn Henrich on vibraphone, Craig Scott on bass, and John Morrison on drums. The band's debut album, ''A Night in Tunisia'', was released in 1984 by ABC Records as part of the Don Burrows Collection. The title track is a jazz standard by

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

; another track, "Burrows Bossa", was written by Morrison. Also that year he backed Burrows on ''Burrows at the Winery'', playing trumpet,

slide trumpet The slide trumpet is an early type of trumpet fitted with a movable section of telescopic tubing, similar to the slide of a trombone. Eventually, the slide trumpet evolved into the sackbut, which evolved into the modern-day trombone. The key dif ...

, trombone, and flugelhorn. The album was live at Rothbury Estate Winery. Morrison Brothers Big Bad Band used the same venue for their album ''Live at the Winery''.

Association with other musicians

Morrison has performed with Dizzy Gillespie (the first Australian to do so); Don Burrows, Ray Charles, and B.B. King. He has also worked with George Benson, Ray Brown,

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

Jon Faddis Jon Faddis (born July 24, 1953) is an American jazz trumpet player, conductor, composer, and educator, renowned for both his playing and for his expertise in the field of music education. Upon his first appearance on the scene, he became known ...

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

, Whitney Houston, Quincy Jones,

Graeme Lyall Graeme William Lyall ( AM), is an Australian saxophonist, composer and arranger. He became a Member of the Order of Australia on 26 January 2003: "''For service to music as Artistic Director of the Western Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra, and ...

, Wynton Marsalis,

Mark Nightingale Mark Daryl Nightingale (born 29 May 1967) is an English jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger. Career He began on trombone at age nine, and played in the Midland Youth Jazz Orchestra and the National Youth Jazz Orchestra in his teens. He at ...

, Red Rodney, Arturo Sandoval,

Woody Shaw Woody Herman Shaw Jr. (December 24, 1944 – May 10, 1989) was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer, arranger, band leader, and educator. Shaw is widely known as one of the most important and influential jazz trumpet ...

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

, and Phil Stack. In 1990, he recorded the album ''Snappy Doo'' with Ray Brown on double bass,

Herb Ellis Mitchell Herbert Ellis (August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010), known professionally as Herb Ellis, was an American jazz guitarist. During the 1950s, he was in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson. Biography Born in Farmersville, Texas, and raised ...

on guitar, Jeff Hamilton on drums, and Morrison on piano, trumpet, trombone (tenor and bass), saxophone (soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone), and bits of clarinet, flute, flugelhorn, and euphonium. He recorded a sequel, ''Snappy Too'', in 2011 with Hamilton, but Brown and Ellis died in the interim, so Morrison played guitar and bass in addition to all of the other instruments from the first album. In 1999, he collaborated with Gina Jeffreys and

on the song " Blue Christmas", which is included on Jeffreys' album, '' Christmas Wish''. In 2005, he was guest soloist at the 150th anniversary concert of the

Black Dyke Band Black Dyke Band, formerly John Foster & Son Black Dyke Mills Band, is one of the oldest and best-known brass bands in the world. It originated as multiple community bands founded by John Foster at his family's textile mill in Queensbury, West ...

; and in 2009 performed with them as special guest during their Australian tour. In 2007, he again appeared as guest soloist at concerts with the band in Manchester and London. In 2003 he founded the band on the Edge together with the German keyboardist and composer

Simon Stockhausen Simon Stockhausen (born 5 June 1967) is a German composer. His parents are the artist Mary Bauermeister and the composer Karlheinz Stockhausen; the musician Markus Stockhausen is his half-brother. Life Born in Bergisch Gladbach, Stockhausen ...

, son of Karlheinz Stockhausen. Morrison has a long association with composer and pianist

Lalo Schifrin Boris Claudio "Lalo" Schifrin (born June 21, 1932) is an Argentine-American pianist, composer, arranger and conductor. He is best known for his large body of film and TV scores since the 1950s, incorporating jazz and Latin American musical elemen ...

(composer of the theme from ''Mission: Impossible'') and has recorded albums for Schifrin's "Jazz Meets the Symphony" series. These include recordings with the London and the Czech National symphony orchestras. He found his lead vocalist,

Emma Pask Emma Pask (born 1977) is an Australian jazz vocalist. She is best known for her work with big bands and her continuing collaboration with noted Australian virtuoso James Morrison. Early life Pask grew up in the Sutherland Shire of Sydney in ...

, at a school concert when she was 16, and she became an internationally renowned jazz singer. Morrison sponsors scholarships for musicians and is involved with youth bands. His association with Generations in Jazz has spanned three decades. He is chairman of this organization which runs one of the largest youth jazz events in the world.

Radio and TV presenter

During a number of years, Morrison has been the presenter of the in-flight jazz radio station for

Qantas Airways Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the List of airlines by foundation date, world's third-oldest airline sti ...

. In 1994, James presented ''Behind The Wheel'', a motoring television series on

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...

. Ten saw the benefits of a series like this and commissioned 18 episodes. It aired on a Tuesday night at 7.30pm to an audience of 2.1 million viewers. The pilot episode was produced by Tim Kupsch, Andy Wallace and James Morrison. Unlike '' Top Gear'', the show ideas and script were largely conceived "on the fly" by Morrison and Kupsch. On 19 December 2008, presenter Charlie Cox announced his departure from '' Top Gear Australia'' due to lack of time. Morrison replaced him in the second season alongside Warren Brown and Steve Pizzati. He appeared as the "Star in a Bog-Standard Car" in episode 6 of the first series. On 18 September 2018, he started to present the Tuesday night 'specialist show' ''Top Brass'' for

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

, which was moved alongside '' Sunday Night Is Music Night'' for series 2 in 2020 and which continues to be broadcast in the United Kingdom at 9pm on a Sunday in 2022.

Instruments

In early 2010 he formed an association with Austrian brass manufacturer Schagerl to produce "signature" models. These include two series – the custom, hand-made "Meister" series and the intermediate professional "Academica" series. There are trumpets and trombones in both series, and the Meister series includes flugelhorn and bass trumpet. His design of a trumpet called "The Raven" uses rotary valves with a long lead pipe usually associated with a piston trumpet. An instrument project with designer and robotics expert Steve Marshall produced the Morrison Digital Trumpet, a MIDI wind controller that looks like a futuristic version of a typical trumpet. It allows a trumpeter to play electronic sounds in much the same way a pianist can play a

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

. On his collaboration album '' The Other Woman'' with singer Deni Hines, he wrote a track called "(Tired of Being) The Other Woman". When Morrison performed this track at a performance in Sydney, he revealed his latest piece of music technology. It is a

Roland Roland (; frk, *Hrōþiland; lat-med, Hruodlandus or ''Rotholandus''; it, Orlando or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the ...

keyboard (VP770) that has a microphone attached and 'sings' whatever Morrison speaks into the microphone, producing the sound of a choir.

Spanish national anthem

Morrison played the wrong Spanish national anthem at the

Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...

final in Australia in 2003. Instead of playing the current anthem, " Marcha Real", he performed the " Himno de Riego", not heard since the Second Republic era (1931–1939), causing the enraged Spanish Secretary of State for Sport to walk out in anger. Morrison later revealed he had mistakenly learned the incorrect tune due to being given the wrong sheet music. Fortunately an official quickly found a CD of the correct anthem, placating the Spanish and allowing the match to proceed. For similar incidents, see

list of wrong anthems incidents This is a list of incidents when the wrong national anthems were played, sung or performed. List See also *List of national anthems * List of former national anthems *List of regional anthems :''Soviet republics and U.S. states are omitted; ...

Personal life

James Morrison met Judi Green, the 1987 Miss Australia winner, at a barbecue before both participated in a celebrity race at the Adelaide Grand Prix. The couple married in 1988.

Discography

Albums

Awards and honours

On 9 June 1997 James Morrison was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia with a citation "for service to music, particularly jazz, and the sponsorship of young musicians".

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. , - , AIR Awards of 2017 , ''In Good Company'' (with Don Burrows) , Best Independent Jazz Album , , - , AIR Awards of 2018 , ''The Great American Songbook'' (with BBC Concert Orchestra) , Best Independent Jazz Album Album , , - , AIR Awards of 2019 , '' Midnight Till Dawn Mildlife – Phase'' , Best Independent Jazz Album Album , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions of ...

. Morrison has won two awards from thirteen nominations. , - ,

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

, ''Postcards From Down Under'' , rowspan="13", Best Jazz Album , , - ,

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

, ''Swiss Encounter'' (with Adam Makowicz) , , - ,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

, ''Snappy Doo'' , , - ,

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

, ''Manner Dangerous'' , , - ,

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

, ''To the Max'' (with Ray Brown) , , - ,

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

, ''Scream Machine'' , , - ,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, ''The Other Woman'' (with Deni Hines) , , - ,

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, ''Feels Like Spring'' (with The Idea of North) , , - ,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, ''Snappy Too'' , , - ,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, ''In Good Company'' (with Don Borrows) , , - , rowspan="2" ,

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, ''The Great American Songbook'' (with BBC Concert Orchestra, Keith Lockhart, Harry Morrison, William Morrison & Patrick Danao) , , - , ''James Morrison With His Academy Jazz Orchestra'' , , - ,

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, ''Ella and Louis'' (with Patti Austin, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra & Benjamin Northey) , , -

APRA Music Awards

, - ,

, "Saturday Sailing" , Most Performed Jazz Work , , -

Australian Jazz Bells

The Australian Jazz Bell Awards, also known as the Bell Awards or The Bells, are annual music awards for the jazz music genre in Australia. , - , 2013 , James Morrison , Graeme Bell Hall of Fame , , -

Mo Awards

The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. James Morrison won ten awards in that time. (wins only) , - , 1988 , James Morrison , Ricky May Jazz Performer of the Year , , - , rowspan="3", 1989 , James Morrison , Jazz Performer of the Year , , - , James Morrison , Jazz Male Performer of the Year , , - , James Morrison , Australian Performer of the Year , , - , rowspan="2", 1990 , James Morrison , Jazz Performer of the Year , , - , James Morrison , Jazz Male Performer of the Year , , - , 1997 , James Morrison , Jazz Instrumental Performer of the Year , , - , 1999 , James Morrison , Jazz Instrumental Performer of the Year , , - , 2002 , James Morrison , Jazz Instrumental Performer of the Year , , - , 2006 , James Morrison , Ricky May Jazz Performer of the Year , , -

References

External links

*
''Top Brass''
(BBC Radio 2) {{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, James 1962 births Living people ARIA Award winners APRA Award winners BBC Radio 2 presenters Sydney Conservatorium of Music alumni Australian multi-instrumentalists Australian jazz trumpeters Australian male composers Australian composers Members of the Order of Australia Australian jazz trombonists Musicians from New South Wales 21st-century trumpeters 21st-century trombonists 21st-century Australian male musicians 21st-century Australian musicians Male jazz musicians