Beryl Bryden

Beryl Audley Bryden (born May 11, 1920 in Norwich , Norfolk , † July 14, 1998 in London ) was an English singer and washboard player of traditional jazz . Ella Fitzgerald called her "Great Britain's Queen of the Blues".

life and career

She initially ran a Nat Gonella fan club before she started performing as a musician herself. She sang with Humphrey Lyttelton's band , then with Freddy Randall and with American stars such as Buck Clayton , Louis Armstrong and Bud Freeman (with whom she also recorded). In 1953 and 1954 she performed in Paris with Lionel Hampton . She then became a member of Chris Barbers Band, where she was involved in the recordings of Rock Island Line (1955), at which time she also worked with Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies . She later playedMonty Sunshine , where she interpreted Bessie Smith titles in particular and was able to demonstrate her percussion technique on the washboard in the Coney Island Washboard Blues . She also worked on the continent with Fatty George and with the Tremble Kids . In 1960 she performed at the Antibes Festival before touring the Far East and Africa. She then played in groups such as the Ted Easton Jazz Band or The Piccadilly Six , but also with Alex Welsh . In 1979 she made a guest appearance at the North Sea Jazz Festival with the Rod Mason Jassband. From this concert an LP was released on the Black Lion Label. In the 1980s she took part in a theater production Jazzin 'Around with the Pete Allens Band and performed (and recorded an album with) the Dutch New Orleans Syncopators . She also played with the Metropolitan Jazz Band , Digby Fairweather , the Alex Welsh Reunion Band and their Blue Boys . Shortly before her death, she recorded with Nat Gonella in 1998. She also wrote a loving homage to Louis Armstrong - to the melody of When the Saints , she told his life story: A Boy from New Orleans.

Discographic notice

• Two Moods of Beryl Bryden - ( Audiophile Records 1994) with Bud Freeman , Lennie Felix (released 1975 in Holland) and with "The Sweetwood Dixie Stompers" (released 1984)

Lexigraphic entry

• Ian Carr , Digby Fairweather , Brian Priestley : Rough Guide Jazz. The ultimate guide to jazz music. 1700 artists and bands from the beginning until today. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 1999, ISBN 3-476-01584-X .

Web links

• Beryl Bryden at Allmusic (English)
• Beryl Bryden at Discogs (English)