Jazz Warriors
| Jazz Warriors | |
|---|---|
| Origin | 1986 |
| Years active | 1986–94 |
| Labels | Antilles Records, Jazz Warrior Records |
| Associated acts |
Nu Troop Jazz Life |
| Past members | Orphy Robinson, Courtney Pine, Tony Remy, Cleveland Watkiss, Phillip Bent, Steve Williamson, Gary Crosby, Ray Carless, Julian Joseph, Gail Thompson, Harold Beckett, Cheryl Alleyne, Claude Deppa, Brian Edwards, Andy Grappy, Ike Leo, Kevin Robinson, Rowland Sutherland, Fayyaz Virji, Jason Yarde, Dennis Rollins, Adrian Reid, Mark Mondesir, Alan Weekes, Trevor Edwards |
The Jazz Warriors were an all-black London-based group of jazz musicians that made its debut in 1986. The idea for the band came from the Abibi Jazz Arts — a London organisation that promoted black music and black culture - in 1985. The Jazz Warriors provided black British musicians with a venue to showcase their talents, which until that time was limited mostly to funk music and reggae.[1]
According to musician/writer John Chilton, "...[the Jazz Warriors] proved to be the launching pad for the stellar talents of a number of important jazz musicians."[2] The original band only released one album - 1987's Out of Many, One People - although the group remained together until 1994, despite many of the original members leaving to start their own careers.[3]
History
Formed in the 1980s and including 25-plus members,[4] The Jazz Warriors became a showcase for talented young black British musicians, many of whom - including Courtney Pine, Steve Williamson, Cleveland Watkiss, Phillip Bent, Orphy Robinson, Gary Crosby and others - went on to achieve international success.[4]
Former member Crosby has said of the Jazz Warriors:
There were all these different writers, but everything ended up sounding with the same energy. I've never felt anything like that energy — raucous, raw.... It wasn't the most accurate of bands, but the actual power, and the wildness of the soloing.... It was so exciting. Regardless of who wrote what, once we got to the meat of the music, there were fireworks.... A lot of spunk, man, a lot of testosterone going around![3]
The Jazz Warriors released only one album: Out of Many, One People, in 1987. They continued performing and touring under the leadership of pianist Adrian Reid, with the help of a committee formed from senior members of the Warriors, until formally closing in the late 1990s. An EP, Chameleon, was released on their own label, Jazz Warriors Records. It was well received internationally and appeared on a bestselling compilation, The Rebirth of the Cool Vol 2 (4th & B'way Records; 1993), with an unreleased album still in the cans. Certain new young members continued to gain national prominence and further highlighting the talent pool of young Black musicians attracted to the Jazz Warriors; these included Jason Yarde, Dennis Rollins, Winston Rollins, Robert Mitchell, Clarence Adoo, Byron Wallen, Rowland Sutherland, Tony Kofi, Robert Fordjour, Steve and Peter Lewinson, Tony Remy, Patrick Clahar to name a few.
Legacy
Courtney Pine's Afropean Jazz Warriors
On 6 October 2007, Courtney Pine assembled a fifteen-piece lineup for a new themed concert called "Afropeans" at the Barbican Centre, London, marking the bicentenary of the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.[5] This new band featured two original Jazz Warriors members (Pine and Jason Yarde), but brought in two other established black British jazz players — pianist Alex Wilson and trumpeter Byron Wallen. It also contained younger black British jazz talent, including Jay Phelps and Nathaniel Facey (both from the band Empirical), Ayanna Witter Johnson (on cello and vocals), Ebony Steel Pan Orchestra player Samuel Dubois and electric/acoustic guitarist Femi Temowo (known for his work with Soweto Kinch), as well as Cuban electric violinist Omar Puente. The concert was recorded for a live Courtney Pine Afropean Jazz Warriors album, also called Afropeans (Destin-e Records, 2008).
The Jazz Warriors International
In 2011 a new Jazz Warriors International organisation was formed by some members of the original Jazz Warriors, embracing the historic legacy of the original group; it was slated for public launch one year after its press launch.[4]
Tomorrow's Warriors
In 1991 the original Jazz Warriors double-bassist, Gary Crosby, established Tomorrow's Warriors, an organisation to nurture and develop talented young jazz musicians wishing to pursue a professional career in jazz.[6][7]
Discography
- Out of Many, One People, 1987
- Chameleon (Jazz Warrior Records, JW1 Vinyl 12" 45 RPM UK), 1993
- "Chameleon", on The Rebirth of the Cool Vol. 2 (4th & B'way), 1993
Notes
- ↑ Carr, Ian; Digby Fairweather; Brian Priestley (2004). The Rough Guide to Jazz.
- ↑ Chilton, John (2004). Who's Who of British Jazz. Continuum International Publishing Group.
- 1 2 Moore, Hilary (2007). Inside British Jazz: Crossing Borders of Race, Nation and Class. Ashgate Publishing. pp. 126–30.
- 1 2 3 "Our History", The Jazz Warriors International.
- ↑ Courtney Pine Jazz WarriorsAfropeans website.
- ↑ "Tomorrow's Warriors", The Real Histories Directory.
- ↑ "About" Tomorrow's Warriors.
References
- Carr, Ian; Digby Fairweather; Brian Priestley (2004). The Rough Guide to Jazz. Rough Guides. ISBN 1-84353-256-5. 404 pp.
- Chilton, John (2004). Who's Who of British Jazz. London: Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8264-7234-6. 193 pp.
- Moore, Hilary (2007). Inside British Jazz: Crossing Borders of Race, Nation and Class. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-5744-2.