Peter King (musician)

Peter King (2008)

Peter King (born August 11, 1940 in Kingston-upon-Thames , Surrey , † August 23, 2020 ) was a British alto saxophonist and clarinetist of modern jazz .

Live and act

Peter King is self-taught and first played the clarinet at the age of fifteen, then switched to the alto saxophone as the main instrument. He made his debut as a professional musician in 1959 in Ronnie Scott's London jazz club ; in the same year he was recognized by Melody Maker as a New Star . He then played as a sideman in countless sessions, especially in the British bebop scene; In 1960/61 he was a member of John Dankworth's orchestra , played in the big bands of Maynard Ferguson , Tubby Hayes , Harry South and Stan Tracey , and also in smaller formations with Philly Joe Jones , Zoot Sims , Al Cohn , Red Rodney and Hampton Hawes , Al Haig , Nat Adderley , Dick Morrissey, and others. In Ray Charles' band he toured Europe and also accompanied singers such as Jimmy Witherspoon , Joe Williams , Jon Hendricks and Anita O'Day . In 1982 he accompanied the bebop veteran Al Haig at a concert in Hampstead , and in 1985 he played as a soloist as well as composer and arranger with the Brussels Radio Big Band. He later led his own bands and recorded a number of albums with guest musicians such as Alan Skidmore , Alec Dankworth and Guy Barker . King occasionally played on recordings with Stan Tracey and Colin Purbrook and was a member of the Charlie Watts tentet . In 1990 he was a soloist in Colin Town's Mask Orchestra , and in 1997 he played with George Coleman ( Blues Inside Out ).

In terms of style, King was influenced by Charlie Parker , Stan Getz , John Coltrane and Lester Young .

As a leader

East 34th Street (Spotlite, 1983)
Brother Barnard (Miles Music, 1988/89) with Guy Barker, Alan Skidmore
Tamburella (Miles Music, 1994) with Alec Dankworth
Speed Trap (Jazz House, 1996) with Gerard Presencer , Steve Melling, Alec Dankworth
Lush Life (Miles Music, 1998) with Gordon Beck
Footprints (Miles Music, 2002) with Steve Melling, Jeremy Brown, Arnie Somogyi , Stephen Keogh

As a sideman

Ian Carr , Digby Fairweather , Brian Priestley : Rough Guide Jazz. The ultimate guide to jazz. 1800 bands and artists from the beginning until today. 2nd, expanded and updated edition. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2004, ISBN 3-476-01892-X .
Richard Cook: Jazz Encyclopedia London 2007; ISBN 978-0-141-02646-6 .
Richard Cook , Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide of Jazz on CD . 6th edition. Penguin, London 2002, ISBN 0-14-051521-6 .

↑ RIP Peter King from 1940 to 2020. London Jazz News, August 24, 2020, accessed August 25, 2020 .

personal data
SURNAME	King, Peter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	British alto saxophonist and clarinetist of modern jazz
DATE OF BIRTH	August 11, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH	Kingston-upon-Thames , Surrey
DATE OF DEATH	23 August 2020