Dave Shepherd

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

David Joseph "Dave" Shepherd (* 7. February 1929 in Walthamstow , East London; † 15. December 2016 ) was a British jazz - clarinet , styled like Benny Goodman oriented.

Live and act

Shepherd, the son of a semi-professional pianist, began playing the clarinet at the age of 15, impressed by a concert by Freddy Mirfield's Garbage Men, in which the young John Dankworth was clarinetist. Shepherd then played first gigs with Freddy Randall , had lessons with Randall's clarinetist Bernie Izen and worked as a shorthand typist in the War Department. He did his military service from 1947 onwards for the British Forces Network in Hamburg. In addition to his work in the radio, he played with the BFN quintet, through which he came into contact with jazz. After his discharge from the army, he continued to work in the War Office in London from 1949; he also played in numerous bands in Dixieland . When he was a member of Joe Daniels' band, the Hot Shots , in 1951 , he began to work professionally as a jazz musician; In 1951 the first recordings for Parlophones were made . After three years at Daniels, he returned to Freddy Randall, with whom he began a longstanding relationship. In 1953 he recorded for the first time under his own name with the Teddy Foster Big Band; followed by the LP Salute to Benny Goodman . The Dave Shepherd Quartet included Roy Davey (vibraphone), Ken Penny (piano) and Barry Morgan (bass). For Parlophone he recorded (with Keith Christie and Don Lusher, among others ) titles such as "Mama Don't Allow It" or " I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate ".

In 1956, Shepherd moved to New York City, had day jobs in offices and was also able to work as a musician. After his return to England he played with the George Chisholm / Keith Christie Quintet and in April 1957 with the Gerry Mulligan Quartet, which is a guest in London . In 1958 he toured Great Britain as a member of the Dill Jones Quartet, as part of the first Jazz at the Philharmonic tour in his home country, with Ella Fitzgerald and Oscar Peterson as the stars of the troupe. During this time Shepherd had the opportunity to appear with his formation on BBC radio, as a guest on the Jimmy Young Show , in Round Midnight , Breakfast Special and in Music While You Work . He also toured frequently in Germany France; he also performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival . From 1967 he worked with Teddy Wilson , with whom he toured in the Kingdom, but also in 1973 in South Africa. In the 1970s he worked again with Freddy Randall and worked with his own quintet based on the Benny Goodman style. From 1980 he was head of the formation Pizza Express All Stars put together by the impresario Peter Boizot , which performed in the jazz club of the same name in London's Dean Street. Shepherd was a member of the band for the next several decades; he also worked in a film production company. In 1996 he moved to Hampshire; and played with the All-Stars until 2001, as well as with Digby Fairweather ’s Great British Jazz Band ( Swing That Music ! , 2001). The last recordings were made in 2004 with Chris Walker Quintet in Hampshire. In 2015 he last appeared with the All-Stars. In the field of jazz, he was involved in 47 recording sessions between 1951 and 2004.

Discographic notes

  • Mr. Shepherd Plays Mr. Goodman (Rediffusion, 1970)
  • Freddy Randall / Dave Shepherd Jazz All Stars Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival (Black Lieon, 1973)
  • Benny Goodman Classics (Black Lion Records, 1975)
  • Dixieland Classics (Black Lion Records, 1977)
  • Teddy Wilson with the Dave Shepherd Quartet (Lake, ed. 2011)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Obituary in The Guardian
  2. ↑ a b Tom Lord : The Jazz Discography (online, accessed December 31, 2016)
personal data
SURNAME Shepherd, Dave
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Shepherd, David Joseph
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British jazz musician
DATE OF BIRTH February 7, 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH Walthamstow , London
DATE OF DEATH 15th December 2016