Anthony John Kronenberg (27 August 1925 – 18 October 1999), known professionally as Tony Crombie,
was an English
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 major ...
drummer, pianist, bandleader, and composer. He was regarded as one of the finest English jazz drummers and bandleaders, an occasional but capable pianist and vibraphonist, and an energizing influence on the
British jazz
British jazz is a form of music derived from American jazz. It reached Britain through recordings and performers who visited the country while it was a relatively new genre, soon after the end of World War I. Jazz began to be played by British ...
scene over six decades.
Life and career
Born into London's
East End
The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...
Jewish community
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
, Crombie was a self-taught musician who began playing the drums at the age of fourteen. He was one of a group of young men from the East End of London who ultimately formed the co-operative
Club Eleven
Club Eleven was a nightclub in London between 1948 and 1950 which played a significant role in the emergence of the bebop jazz movement in Britain.
The club was so named because it had 11 founders – business manager Harry Morris and ten Britis ...
, bringing modern jazz to Britain. Having gone to
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
with his friend
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 ...
in 1947, witnessing the playing of
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...
and
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 ...
, he and like-minded musicians such as
Johnny Dankworth
Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females.
Variant ...
, and Scott and
Denis Rose
Denis Rose (May 31, 1922, London – November 22, 1984, London) was an English jazz pianist and trumpeter. He was a longtime fixture on the London jazz scene and was an early influence on British bebop.Stan Britt, "Denis Rose". '' Grove Jazz'' onl ...
, brought
be-bop
Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrumen ...
to the UK. This group of musicians were the ones called upon if and when modern jazz gigs were available.
In 1948, Crombie toured Britain and Europe with
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 ...
, who had been unable to bring his own musicians with him, except for
Ray Nance
Ray Willis Nance (December 10, 1913 – January 28, 1976) was an American jazz trumpeter, violinist and singer. He is best remembered for his long association with Duke Ellington and his orchestra.
Early years
Nance was the leader of his ow ...
and
Kay Davis
Kathryn Elizabeth Wimp known professionally as Kay Davis (December 5, 1920 – January 27, 2012 in Apopka, Florida) was an American jazz singer who performed with the Duke Ellington orchestra.
Davis was born in Evanston, Illinois, and attended Ev ...
. Picking up a rhythm section in London, he chose Crombie on the recommendation of
Lena Horne
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American dancer, actress, singer, and civil rights activist. Horne's career spanned more than seventy years, appearing in film, television, and theatre. Horne joined the chorus of th ...
, with whom Crombie had worked when she appeared at the Palladium.
In August 1956, Crombie set up a
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
band he called The Rockets,
which included future
Shadows
A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, ...
bassist
Jet Harris
Jet, Jets, or The Jet(s) may refer to:
Aerospace
* Jet aircraft, an aircraft propelled by jet engines
** Jet airliner
** Jet engine
** Jet fuel
* Jet Airways, an Indian airline
* Wind Jet (ICAO: JET), an Italian airline
* Journey to Enceladus a ...
. The group was modelled after
Bill Haley
William John Clifton Haley (; July 6, 1925 – February 9, 1981) was an American rock and roll musician. He is credited by many with first popularizing this form of music in the early 1950s with his group Bill Haley & His Comets and million-sel ...
's
Comets
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are ...
and
Freddie Bell & the Bellboys. Crombie and his Rockets released several singles for
Decca Decca may refer to:
Music
* Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label
* Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group
* Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label
* Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...
and
Columbia, including "Teach You to Rock", produced by
Norrie Paramor
Norman William Paramor (15 May 1914 – 9 September 1979), known professionally as Norrie Paramor, was a British record producer, composer, arranger, pianist, bandleader, and orchestral conductor. He is best known for his work with Cliff Ri ...
, which made the
Top 30
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...
in the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
in October 1956.
He is credited with introducing rock and roll music to Iceland, performing there in May 1957. By 1958 the Rockets had become a jazz group with Scott 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 ...
. During the following year, Crombie started Jazz Inc. with pianist
Stan Tracey
Stanley William Tracey (30 December 1926 – 6 December 2013) was a British jazz pianist and composer, whose most important influences were Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk. Tracey's best known recording is the 1965 album ''Jazz Suite Inspir ...
. In 1960, he scored the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
TV series ''
Man from Interpol
''Man from Interpol'' is a 1960 TV series produced by The Danzigers. The NBC series was filmed in England and the music was scored by jazz musician Tony Crombie.
Premise
Anthony Smith, an agent based at Britain's Interpol Division at Scotlan ...
'' and composed the score for the film ''
The Tell-Tale Heart
"The Tell-Tale Heart" is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1843. It is related by an unnamed narrator who endeavors to convince the reader of the narrator's sanity while simultaneously describing a murder the n ...
'', and established a residency at a hotel in
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
. In May 1960, he toured the UK with
Conway Twitty
Harold Lloyd Jenkins (September 1, 1933 – June 5, 1993), better known by his stage name Conway Twitty, was an American singer and songwriter. Initially a part of the 1950s rockabilly scene, Twitty was best known as a country music performer. ...
,
Freddy Cannon
Frederick Anthony Picariello, Jr. (born December 4, 1936), better known by his stage name Freddy Cannon, is an American rock and roll singer, whose biggest international hits included "Tallahassee Lassie", " Way Down Yonder in New Orleans", and " ...
,
Johnny Preston
John Preston Courville, known professionally as Johnny Preston (August 18, 1939 – March 4, 2011), was an American rock and roll singer, best known for his international number one hit in 1960, "Running Bear".
Life and career
Born in Port Arth ...
, and
Wee Willie Harris
Charles William Harris (born 25 March 1933), better known by his stage name of Wee Willie Harris, is an English rock and roll singer. He is best known for his energetic stage shows and TV performances since the 1950s, when he was known as "Bri ...
.
In the early 1960s, Crombie's friend,
Victor Feldman
Victor Stanley Feldman (7 April 1934 – 12 May 1987) was an English jazz musician who played mainly piano, vibraphone, and percussion. He began performing professionally during childhood, eventually earning acclaim in the UK jazz scene as ...
, passed one of his compositions to
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...
, who recorded the piece on his album ''
Seven Steps to Heaven
7 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
7 or seven may also refer to:
* AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era
* 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era
* The month of
July
Music Artists
* Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artist
...
''.
The song, "So Near, So Far",
has been recorded by players including
Joe Henderson
Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...
, who named
a tribute album to Miles Davis using the title.
Over the next thirty years, Crombie worked with many American jazz musicians, including
Ben Webster
Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
Career Early life and career
A native of Kansas City, Missouri, he studied violin, learned how to play blues on the piano from ...
,
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November 21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes "Bean", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.Yanow, Scot"Coleman Hawkins: Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved December 27, 2013. One of the first p ...
,
Illinois Jacquet
Jean-Baptiste "Illinois" Jacquet (October 30, 1922 – July 22, 2004) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, best remembered for his solo on "Flying Home", critically recognized as the first R&B saxophone solo.
Although he was a pioneer of t ...
,
Joe Pass
Joe Pass (born Joseph Anthony Jacobi Passalaqua; January 13, 1929 – May 23, 1994) was an American jazz guitarist. Pass is well known for his work stemming from numerous collaborations with pianist Oscar Peterson and vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, an ...
,
Mark Murphy and
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
Edward F. Davis (March 2, 1922 – November 3, 1986), known professionally as Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
It is unclear how he acquired the moniker "Lockjaw" (later shortened in "Jaws"): it is either said that ...
.
In the mid-1990s, after breaking his arm in a fall, he stopped playing the drums, but continued composing until his death in 1999, aged 74.
Crombie was married twice. He had a son and daughter from his first marriage and another daughter from his second. One of his grandsons is the drummer, music producer and composer, Dylan Freed.
Discography
As leader
* ''Tony Crombie and His Orchestra'' – 30 October 1954 (Decca) 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,
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, Lennie Dawes,
Harry South
Harry Percy South (7 September 1929 – 12 March 1990) was an English jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, who moved into work for film and television.
Career
South was born in Fulham, London. He came to prominence in the 1950s, playing wi ...
,
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 ...
, Tony Crombie. (Re-released as ''Modern Jazz at the Festival Hall'', 1954)
* ''Tony Crombie and His Orchestra'' – 18 November 1954 (Decca DFE6247) 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,
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, Lennie Dawes,
Harry South
Harry Percy South (7 September 1929 – 12 March 1990) was an English jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, who moved into work for film and television.
Career
South was born in Fulham, London. He came to prominence in the 1950s, playing wi ...
,
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 ...
, Tony Crombie. "Perdido"/"Stop It"/"Love You Madly" (vocal
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 ...
) "All of Me" (vocal
Bobby Breen
Isadore Borsuk (November 4, 1927 – September 19, 2016), better known as Bobby Breen, was a Canadian-born American actor and singer. He was a popular male child singer during the 1930s and reached major popularity with film and radio appearanc ...
).
* ''Rockin' with the Rockets'' – 1958 (Columbia) – Tony Crombie and His Rockets (Red Morris, Jimmy Currie,
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 ...
,
Red Mitchell
Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell (September 20, 1927 – November 8, 1992) was an American jazz double-bassist, composer, lyricist, and poet.
Biography
Mitchell was born in New York City. His younger brother, Whitey Mitchell, also became a jazz ba ...
, Clyde Ray)
* ''Atmosphere'' – 1959 (Columbia) – Tony Crombie and His Men (Stan Roderick, Les Condon, Bob Burns,
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 ...
,
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 ...
, Norman Stenfalt, Lennie Bush)
As sideman
With
Don Byas
Carlos Wesley "Don" Byas (October 21, 1912 – August 24, 1972) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, associated with swing and bebop. He played with Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Art Blakey, and Dizzy Gillespie, among others, and also led ...
* ''Autumn Leaves'' (Jazz House, 1965)
With
Al Cohn
Al Cohn (November 24, 1925 – February 15, 1988) was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist Zo ...
and
Zoot Sims
John Haley "Zoot" Sims (October 29, 1925 – March 23, 1985) was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto (and, later, soprano) saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big ...
* ''Al And Zoot In London'' (World Record Club, 1965)
With
Victor Feldman
Victor Stanley Feldman (7 April 1934 – 12 May 1987) was an English jazz musician who played mainly piano, vibraphone, and percussion. He began performing professionally during childhood, eventually earning acclaim in the UK jazz scene as ...
* ''
Suite Sixteen'' (Contemporary, 1955
958
Year 958 ( CMLVIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* October / November – Battle of Raban: The Byzantines under John Tzimiskes ...
With
Stan Getz
Stanley Getz (February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of ...
* ''Live in London'' (Harkit, 1964)
With
Johnny Griffin
John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...
* ''Live in London'' (Harkit, 1963)
With
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for an unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a dist ...
* ''Wes Montgomery Quartet'' (SSJ (Japan), 1965)
With
Zoot Sims
John Haley "Zoot" Sims (October 29, 1925 – March 23, 1985) was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto (and, later, soprano) saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big ...
* ''Zoot At Ronnie Scott's'' (Fontana, 1961)
With
Ben Webster
Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
Career Early life and career
A native of Kansas City, Missouri, he studied violin, learned how to play blues on the piano from ...
* ''Ben Webster At Ronnie Scott's 1964 - The Punch''/''Ben Webster Plays Ballads'' (Soryville, 1964)
* ''Soho Nights With Stan Tracey - Vol. 2'' (ReSteamed, 1964)
Selected filmography
* ''
Rock You Sinners
''Rock You Sinners'' is a 1957 British second feature black and white musical film featuring early British rock and roll, including Art Baxter and His Rock 'n' Roll Sinners, best known for their song ''Rock You Sinners''. It is generally regarded ...
'' (1957)
* ''
Date at Midnight'' (1959)
* ''
Man from Interpol
''Man from Interpol'' is a 1960 TV series produced by The Danzigers. The NBC series was filmed in England and the music was scored by jazz musician Tony Crombie.
Premise
Anthony Smith, an agent based at Britain's Interpol Division at Scotlan ...
'' (1960)
* ''
Identity Unknown'' (1960)
* ''
The Spider's Web'' (1960)
* ''
The Tell-Tale Heart
"The Tell-Tale Heart" is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in 1843. It is related by an unnamed narrator who endeavors to convince the reader of the narrator's sanity while simultaneously describing a murder the n ...
'' (1960)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crombie, Tony
1925 births
1999 deaths
English jazz pianists
Bebop drummers
Hard bop drummers
English jazz drummers
British male drummers
Golders Green Crematorium
20th-century British pianists
20th-century English musicians
20th-century drummers
British male pianists
20th-century British male musicians
British male jazz musicians
Jewish British musicians
Jewish jazz musicians
Jewish rock musicians
British jazz vibraphonists