The New Jazz Orchestra (NJO) was a British

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...

that was active from 1963 to 1970.

Neil Ardley Neil Richard Ardley (26 May 1937 – 23 February 2004) was a prominent English jazz pianist and composer, who also made his name as the author of more than 100 popular books on science and technology, and on music. Early years Neil Ardley ...

recorded several more albums with many of the NJO's members, which were released under his own name.

Origins and members

The NJO was the offspring of a popular weekend jazz club, the "Jazzhouse" based at the

Green Man, Blackheath The Green Man was a public house on Blackheath Hill (now the A2 road (England), A2), in Blackheath, London, Blackheath, London. It was an important stop for coach traffic owing to its position and was used as the headquarters of the Royal Blackh ...

(demolished to make way for Allison Close) where the "house" band was the Ian Bird Quintet (initially comprising Ian Bird, tenor sax; Clive Burrows, baritone sax; Johnny Mealing, piano;

Tony Reeves Anthony Reeves (born 18 April 1943, New Eltham, South East London) is an English bass guitarist/contrabassist, noted for his "distinctive and complex bass sound" and use of electronic effects. Career As a teenager Reeves learned orchestral doub ...

, bass and Trevor Tomkins, drums - Mealing and Tomkins left to join the newly formed Rendell-Carr Quintet and were succeeded by Paul Raymond and Jon Hiseman respectively. The ensemble featured many

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

-based jazz musicians, such as

Harry Beckett Harold Winston "Harry" Beckett (30 May 1935 – 22 July 2010) was a British trumpeter and flugelhorn player of Barbadian origin. Biography Born in Bridgetown, Saint Michael, Barbados, Harry Beckett learned to play music in a Salvation Army ...

Jack Bruce John Symon Asher Bruce (14 May 1943 – 25 October 2014) was a Scottish bassist, singer-songwriter, musician and composer. He gained popularity as the primary lead vocalist and ‍bassist ‍of British rock band Cream. After the group disbande ...

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 ...

Dave Gelly Dave Gelly MBE (born 28 January 1938) is a British jazz critic. A long-standing contributor to ''The Observer'', he was named Jazz Writer of the Year in the 1999 British Jazz Awards. Gelly is also a jazz saxophonist and broadcaster, presenting a ...

, Michael Gibbs,

Dick Heckstall-Smith Richard Malden Heckstall-Smith (26 September 1934 – 17 December 2004) was an English jazz and blues saxophonist. He played with some of the most influential English blues rock and jazz fusion bands of the 1960s and 1970s. He is known for pri ...

Jon Hiseman Philip John Albert "Jon" Hiseman (21 June 1944 – 12 June 2018) was an English drummer, recording engineer, record producer, and music publisher. He played with the Graham Bond Organisation, with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and later form ...

, Henry Lowther,

Don Rendell Donald Percy Rendell (4 March 1926 – 20 October 2015) was an English jazz musician and arranger. Mainly active as a tenor saxophonist, he also played soprano saxophone, flute, and clarinet. Career Rendell was born in Plymouth, England, an ...

Frank Ricotti Frank Ricotti (born 31 January 1949) is an English jazz vibraphonist and percussionist. Early life and education Ricotti was born in London, England. His father was a drummer. Bill Ashton, founder of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NY ...

, Paul Rutherford, Barbara Thompson,

Trevor Tomkins Trevor Ramsey Tomkins (12 May 1941 – 9 September 2022) was a British jazz drummer best known for his work in a number of British bands in the 1970s, including Gilgamesh. Biography Tomkins was born in London and studied music at the Guildhall ...

, Michael Phillipson, Les Carter, Tom Harris,

Trevor Watts Trevor Charles Watts (born 26 February 1939) is an English jazz and free-improvising alto and soprano saxophonist. Biography Watts was born in York, England. He is largely self-taught, having taken up the cornet at age 12 then switched to s ...

and

Lionel Grigson Lionel Grigson (12 February 1942 – 14 June 1994) was an English jazz pianist, cornettist, trumpeter, composer, writer and teacher, who in the 1980s started the jazz course at the Guildhall School of Music. As Simon Purcell wrote in ''The Ind ...

. Ardley, Gibbs, Carter, Rutherford,

Michael Garrick Michael Garrick MBE (30 May 1933 – 11 November 2011)Peter VacheObituary: Michael Garrick ''The Guardian'', 15 November 2011 was an English jazz pianist and composer, and a pioneer in mixing jazz with poetry recitations and in the use of jazz ...

, and composer Mike Taylor all contributed pieces and arrangements. The idea for the NJO was born in the autumn of 1963 out of an enthusiastic late night conversation "about big bands and possibilities" between Clive Burrows and Les Carter (one of the club's regular helpers and poster writer). The conversation ended with the decision to form such a band around the kernel of the Ian Bird Quintet - Burrows had the "book" (of musicians' telephone numbers) and Carter (himself a developing amateur flautist) undertook to write some arrangements to help swell the initial repertoire. The newly formed band finally debuted at The Green Man at Christmas, 1963 as "The Bird/Burrows Big Band". Following the departure (in 1964) of Ian Bird from the group, the band briefly became "The Neoteric Jazz Orchestra" but later settled for "The New Jazz Orchestra" (NJO). Later in 1964, the NJO found itself leaderless (Burrows had left to go pro), largely gigless and somewhat wanting in enthusiasm. Ian Carr (who had by then joined the trumpet section) approached Les Carter (who was directing rehearsals) with the suggestion that a friend of his might bring along an arrangement for the band to play through. The "friend" turned out to be pianist and composer

, and the arrangement was of

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

's "

In a Mellow Tone "In a Mellow Tone", also known as "In a Mellotone", is a 1939 jazz standard composed by Duke Ellington, with lyrics written by Milt Gabler. The song was based on the 1917 standard "Rose Room" by Art Hickman and Harry Williams, which Ellington himse ...

". It was not long after this that Ardley was invited by the members to take over the leadership of the NJO - a mantle that he assumed until 1971. Under Ardley, a self-confessed disciple of

Gil Evans Ian Ernest Gilmore Evans (né Green; May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988) was a Canadian–American jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest orchestrators in jazz, playing an important role ...

, the NJO personnel and instrumentation varied in a chameleonic fashion, following the colours of his evolving arranging and composing style. However, the (almost) original palette of instruments and personnel was at last reunited in 1993 for a celebratory 30th-anniversary gig at the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhi ...

, London.

Discography

*''Western Reunion'' (

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

, 1965) *''Le Déjeuner sur l'Herbe'' (

Verve Records Verve Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, ...

, 1968; released on CD in 2015 by Dusk Fire Records) *''Camden '70'' (live at the Camden Festival) (Dusk Fire Records, 2008)

Bibliography

*''Playing the Band: The Musical Life of Jon Hiseman''. Written by Martyn Hanson. Edited by Colin Richardson. Temple Music, 2010.

References

External links

* {{Authority control British jazz ensembles Musical groups established in 1963 Musical groups disestablished in 1970 1963 establishments in England 1970 disestablishments in England Big bands