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Ronnie Scott

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK's most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand.

He returned to London convinced that he would play this same kind of jazz in Britain, even if there was not yet a public ready to hear it. He played and recorded in the modern style with like-minded musicians in London's Club Eleven, and after stints with various other bands, formed his own nine-piece group in 1953, with a line-up that included the critic and writer Benny Green on baritone sax.

In 1957 he jointly fronted the Jazz Couriers with fellow-tenorist Tubby Hayes, and this band lasted until Scott (and his partner Pete King, another saxophonist) opened the first Ronnie Scott's night club in London's Gerrard Street in 1959. He frequently played with his own groups at the club, in between presenting the cream of the world's jazz musicians in an ideal setting for London audiences.

His subsequent premises in Frith Street became one of the world's most celebrated jazz rooms, complete with its own inbuilt studio and (eventually) its own record label. His tenor playing remained among the very best in Britain, and his groups included many famous figures in British jazz, including pianist Stan Tracey and organist Mike Carr. Between stints with his own group and acting as MC at his club, he played in Europe, notably with the Kenny Clarke -Francy Boland Big Band.

Scott passed in London on December 23, 1996.

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4
Album Review

Wes Montgomery: The NDR Hamburg Studio Recordings

Read "The NDR Hamburg Studio Recordings" reviewed by Chris May


Recorded in spring 1965, during Wes Montgomery's sole European tour, The NDR Hamburg Studio Recordings presents the guitarist as part of an all-star international octet assembled for a one-off appearance on German television station NDR. The programme was part of a series presenting musicians who did not regularly work together in informal “rehearsal" performances. Montgomery's tour, on which he appeared with both his own quartet and local rhythm sections, has been well documented on official and unofficial recordings. But this ...

323
London Calling

Ronnie Scott's and the London Scene

Read "Ronnie Scott's and the London Scene" reviewed by Nick Catalano


Historically, the London jazz scene has played an important part in the growth of the music and its appreciation although most of that importance has to do with English performers and writers and less with jazz venues. For decades, when you went to London, you thought of only one club--Ronnie Scott's. And even though there are several new boites about the city, a recent visit revealed that, despite the new establishments, very few Londoners and visitors out for a jazz ...

149
Album Review

Ronnie Scott: Birth Of A Legend

Read "Birth Of A Legend" reviewed by David Rickert


Ronnie Scott stares out at you from the cover shot on Birth of a Legend with a confident glare, as if to dare you to suggest that the Brits couldn't play as well as their American counterparts overseas. This two-disc set of the saxophonist's various musical exploits indeed proves that across the pond in the forties and fifties were a small group of musicians who could play just as well, and sometimes better on a good night, than their idols. ...

167
Album Review

Ronnie Scott: Birth Of A Legend

Read "Birth Of A Legend" reviewed by Nic Jones


Ronnie Scott's role as the owner of Britain's longest surviving jazz club has perhaps distracted attention from his work as a musician, and this situation was hardly helped by the fact that he wasn't recorded that often in his lifetime. This set goes some way towards rectifying the first situation, but at the same time it serves also as a primer for the way in which bebop was disseminated in the later 1940s and 1950s.

In a sense there is ...

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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK's most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand. He returned to London convinced that he ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK's most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand. He returned to London convinced that he ...

TV / Film

Documentary: Ronnie Scott and His Club

Documentary: Ronnie Scott and His Club

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers


Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK's most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand. He returned to London convinced that he ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK's most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand. He returned to London convinced that he ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK\'s most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand... Read more.

Place our Musician of the ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK\'s most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand... Read more.

Place our Musician of the ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK\'s most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand... Read more.

Place our Musician of the ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today! The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK\'s most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand... Read more. Place our Musician of the ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Jazz Musician of the Day: Ronnie Scott

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Ronnie Scott's birthday today!

The son of a musician, Scott became a saxophonist in his teens. Eventually, as the owner of the UK\'s most famous jazz club, his name was virtually synonymous with jazz in the country. Working on the Atlantic oceanliners in the late 1940s, Scott got to hear modern jazz being played by the likes of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis at first hand... Read more.

Place our Musician of the ...

Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Soho Scene '57: Jazz...

Rhythm & Blues Records
2023

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The NDR Hamburg...

Jazzline Classics
2021

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Soho Scene '66 and...

Rhythm & Blues Records
2020

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Birth Of A Legend

Giant Step Records
2007

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Birth Of A Legend

Giant Step Records
2006

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Some Of My Best...

Prestige Records
1999

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