Freddy Bannister (3 December 1934 – 11 August 2019), sometimes written as Freddie Bannister, was a leading British

concert promoter Tour promoters (also known as concert promoters or talent buyers) are the individuals or companies responsible for organizing a live concert tour or special event performance. The tour promoter makes an offer of engagement to a particular artist, ...

during the 1960s and 1970s, and was the founder of the

Bath Festival of Blues 1969 The Bath Festival of Blues was a music festival held at the Bath Pavilion Recreational Ground in Bath, Somerset, England, on Saturday 28 June 1969. It featured a lineup of British blues bands, including Fleetwood Mac (the headliners), John May ...

, the

Bath Festival of Blues and Progressive Music 1970 The Bath Festival of Blues and Progressive Music was a counterculture era music festival held at the Royal Bath and West Showground in Shepton Mallet, Somerset, England on 27–29 June 1970. Bands such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin performed ...

and the Knebworth festivals. Bannister started promoting music acts through his father-in-law in 1959, organising performances in local dance halls. From 1963 to 1969 he promoted numerous shows at the Pavilion in

Bath, England Bath () is a city in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary area in the county of Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman-built baths. At the 2021 Census, the population was 101,557. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, ...

including those by artists such as

Gene Vincent Vincent Eugene Craddock (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971), known as Gene Vincent, was an American musician who pioneered the styles of rockabilly and rock and roll. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, " Be-Bop-a-Lula ...

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

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

, Jimi Hendrix,

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

, Pink Floyd and

The Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell ...

.Shawn Perry,
Bathing At Knebworth: The Festivals Of The 70s
", Vintagerock.com. His first festival event was the Bath Festival of Blues which was held on the Rec Ground in the centre of Bath in 1969. The following year, the Festival (now known as the Bath Festival of Blues and Progressive Music) was moved by Bannister to the much larger Bath and West Showground, attracting an audience of between 150,000-200,000. Following his departure from Bath, Bannister founded the Knebworth Festival in 1974 and ran what would be the first of seven consecutive festivals there. These festivals were headlined by

The Allman Brothers The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guitar ...

in 1974, Pink Floyd in 1975,

and Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1976,

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

in June 1978, Frank Zappa and Peter Gabriel in September 1978, and Led Zeppelin in 1979 (two concerts). Bannister's concert promotion company, known as Tredoar, was forced into liquidation in the early 1980s due to a financial dispute with the management of Led Zeppelin following the 1979 festival.Dave Lewis (2003), ''Led Zeppelin: Celebration II: The 'Tight But Loose' Files'', London: Omnibus Press. , pp. 54-63. Bannister was noted for his philosophy of "always giving the very best value for money" by keeping festival tickets at a reasonable cost, whilst also attempting to book the strongest program possible. He specialised in working with American Bands, including Jefferson Airplane,

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer Boats * Santana 20, an American sailboat design by W. D. Sch ...

Johnny Winter John Dawson Winter III (February 23, 1944 – July 16, 2014) was an American singer and guitarist. Winter was known for his high-energy blues rock albums and live performances in the late 1960s and 1970s. He also produced three Grammy Award-win ...

, Steppenwolf,

Canned Heat Canned Heat is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. The group is noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists and rock music. It was founded by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob ...

, Country Joe, Hot Tuna, The Flock,

It's a Beautiful Day It's a Beautiful Day is an American band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1967, featuring vocalist Pattie Santos along with violinist David LaFlamme and his wife, Linda LaFlamme, on keyboards. David LaFlamme, who as a youth had once p ...

and

Dr John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B. Active as a session musician from ...

.Rock Music Memorabilia.com
. In addition, he was the European representative for Frank Zappa and the

Mothers of Invention The Mothers of Invention (also known as The Mothers) was an American rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an R&B band ...

, and also

Grunt Records Grunt Records was a vanity label founded in 1971 by Jefferson Airplane and distributed by RCA Records. Initially created to sign local Bay Area acts, the label later was used only for Jefferson Starship and Hot Tuna releases. The label ended use ...

, the Jefferson Airplane label which represented such artists as Hot Tuna, Jack Bonus and Black Kangaroo. During the 1990s, Bannister and his wife Wendy ran Parkes Auctions, based at Sandown Park, Surrey, which was later complemented by a two-day classic and collectors car show at the same venue. In 1998 Parkes went out of business. The Sandown Park venue was subsequently taken over by Barons and has no connection with the Bannisters In 2003, Bannister released his autobiography, entitled ''There Must Be a Better Way'', published by Bath Books. He died of cancer on 11 August 2019 at the age of 84.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bannister, Freddy Music promoters 1934 births 2019 deaths English music people