Alan Lawrence Turnbull, (b. November 23, 1943) is a jazz drummer and freelance professional musician
Alan Turnbull was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1943. After taking drum lessons from Grahame Morgan he commenced his professional career at age 14, playing with top local jazz musicians such as Graeme Lyall, Keith Hownslow, Brian Brown (musician) whilst filling in for drummer Stewie Speer at Horst Liepolt's Melbourne jazz venue "Jazz Centre 44"
Moving to Sydney in the late 1960s Turnbull soon became very active in the jazz scene and worked regularly as a freelance professional musician, including a number of years with the Don Burrows quartet which worked regularly at Sydney's El Rocco jazz club, the Wentwoth Hotel Supper Club, and at various concerts and venues throughout Australia. He also performed at various international festivals with that quartet, including Montreux Jazz Festival, Newport Jazz Festival and also at Carnegie Hall
In the following years he worked with a large number of high profile jazz musicians and popular entertainers, including Milt Jackson, Joe Henderson, Gary Burton, Sonny Stitt, Barney Kessell, Richie Cole, Cleo Laine, Billy Eckstine, Cab Calloway, Billy Field, and Neil Sedaka and he has also performed with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Australian Pops Orchestra.
Alan Turnbull has appeared on numerous recordings, including those of Don Burrows, Rolf Stube's Jazz Police, Grahame Norris Band (recorded in New York City), The Jazz Co-op, The Two with Paul Macnamara, Neil Sedaka and Billy Field,
Clare, John (1995) Bodgie Dada and the Cult of the Cool. University of NSW Press ISBN 0-86840-103-X.
Bruce Johnson (1987) The Oxford Companion To Australian Jazz - Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-554791-8