Ted Heath

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George Edward "Ted" Heath (born March 30, 1902 in London , † November 18, 1969 in Virginia Water , Surrey ) was a British trombonist and band leader .

Life

Since his father was the leader of the Wandsworth Borough Band , Ted Heath came into contact with the music very early. At the age of 10 he was able to win a tenor horn competition, and from the age of 14 he played the trombone. He earned his first money as a street musician . Around 1919 he also had the opportunity to play in Doc Cook's orchestra, a ragtime orchestra then guesting in London , with which Sidney Bechet had also come to England. Heath was discovered by the band leader Jack Hylton , who got him his first permanent job in 1922. Heath had other engagements in 1924/25 with Bert Firman , from 1925 to 1927 with Jack Hylton and from 1927 to 1935 with Bert Ambrose .

After contracts with Sid Lipton and Geraldo , he was commissioned by the BBC in 1944 to found his own orchestra, which was mainly active in the field of swing and, to a limited extent, modern jazz. From 1945 the band performed every Sunday at the Palladium in London. A specialty in the big band's repertoire was an arrangement of the London Suite by Fats Waller, which was originally written for solo piano . Several tours led through England, to the European mainland and in 1956 for the first appearance in the USA . His last albums, most of which he recorded for the London label , included a series of recordings of note for note re-enacted arrangements of legendary big bands. After his death, his orchestra was directed by Don Lusher .

Individual pieces of music

Bakerloo Non Stop by Ted Heath (recorded by his big band), named after a London subway line, was the signature tune of BFN in Hamburg after the Second World War , which opened their popular program Seventeen Hundred Club .

In the episode Murders When the Leaves Fall of the crime series Inspector Barnaby , the piece of music The Creep plays a crucial role.

Discographic notes

  • Pop Hits from the Classics (Decca BLK 16156-P)
  • Ted Heath's First American Tour (Decca LK 4167) (1956)
  • The Great Film Hits (Decca LK 4307) (1959)
  • Ted Heath Swings In High Stereo (London PS 140)
  • Big Band Bash (Decca PFS 4018) (1962)
  • Fever (London 820 180-2 RT) (CD)
  • Coast To Coast (London 820 355-2 RT) (CD 1964/1985)
  • The Golden Age of Ted Heath (Horatio Nelson Records) (CD SIV 6102) (1989)

literature

  • Leo Walker: The Big Band Almanac . Ward Ritchie Press, Pasadena. 1978

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Heath, Ted
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Heath, George Edward (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British trombonist and band leader
DATE OF BIRTH March 30, 1902
PLACE OF BIRTH London
DATE OF DEATH 18th November 1969
Place of death Virginia Water, Surrey