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David George Bashford - Guitar and Banjo recorded at the
Theatre Royal,Margate,Kent,UK 11thFeb 2006
with the Bill Barnacle Jazz Band playing Jazz me Blues,rest of
the band: Bill Barnacle crnt, Sean Maple tmb, Chris Rumsey clt
Colin Hodges bass, Mike Marsh drms and Dave
Sadly no longer with us, a great and well loved guy
17th May 1939 - 5th May 2006
I started playing music while still at school (about 15years
old) when I aquired a ukelele banjo for half-a-crown (12.5p) I learned to
play from the song sheets of the day where the chords are shown in little
diagrams, tunes like Swannee River, when I'm Cleaning Windows etc. My mother
was not a great music lover and I used to practise in a nearby field where
my first groupies were a herd of cows who used to
form a circle around me and sway to the rhythms of the uke! One day there
was a knock on the door and the visitor said he had heard that I was a banjo
player and would I like to join his jazz band. At the time I thought jazz
was Ted Heath! That band was known as the Tishomingo Stompers and eventually
became reasonable proficient and popular in the East Kent area particularly
at the Bear and Key, Whitstable, Kent where we ran our own club. I then went
to college to study chemistry continuing to play including a stint with the
college band. I moved up to London, sold my banjo until approached to join a
band managed by Harold Davidson to cash in on the Trad boom (about 1960). I
was auditioned on my only instrument at the time, a classical Spanish guitar
where I had to play Sruttin with Some Barbeque. I got the job, bought
another banjo and away we went, where being the only driver in the band I
got £5 a week extra for driving . That band folded and I gave up playing
jazz, got married, pursued a career etc. Years later (1975) the Mo Hovery
Jazzmen needed a guitarist for a job on a boat. I did the gig, joined the
band and away we go again. Since then I've played in a lot of Kentish bands - Invicta, Preservation Stompers ,Pete Rose Jazz Band, Bill Barnacle Jazz, Dave
Link's Band culminating with several years touring the highways and byways
of Europe with Max Collie until forced to give up the heavy duty travelling
due to ill health. Now taking it easy with local bands and also Bob Dwyer's
Hot Seven band.
Dave had a wonderful send off, here are some of the photos at the
church and at the golf club, his favourite watering hole:
Click
on to above picture/writing
to
see
video
of Church
The funeral took
place at St Alphege Church, High Street, Whitstable, Kent. It was estimated
about L to
R Dave Bone, Mo Hovery
600 friends and
family wished him a great farewell, Dave would have loved it.
Sean Maple and Bill Barnacle
Dave's family and friends with the band behind
On the 30th November Mel had a thank you, combined birthday party, for her
friends who have been so kind to her
since the loss of her husband David. Here are a few photos and a video of
the Bill Barnacle Band playing etc:
The packed dancing
area
Vanessa and Samantha
Samantha
Vanessa
David's daughters
Dave Corsby, Pete Rose and Dave Bone
Video of The Bill Barnacle Band Bill's band playing
Beale Street Blues
playing
Tuxedo Junction
with Colin Hodges on vocal
click on the title to watch
click on title to hear
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Chris Marney - Banjo
I first became interested in the music from the age of about
12 by an Acker Bilk LP bought by my Mum and Dad. Roy James has a lot to
answer for, in that his banjo playing with this band inspired me to
(eventually) take up the instrument. The wonderful swinging style of this
band, from the late fifties Pye Nixa recordings through to their hit singles
of the early sixties, became for me the main ingredient of what did, and
still does it for me.The first band I played for was the Pete Rose JB, soon
to become the Bill Barnacle JB, I have many happy memories of these times,
and I am very appreciative of the breadth of jazz styles that this band
intoduced me to. A 'Spider' Wellard recording of a session I did with a band
led by Roy King led to an invitation to play with Max Collie, an astonishing
thing to me, since the raucous, swinging sound of this band in its 70's
heyday was, and still is one of my favourite things. I happily played most
of the band's gigs between '92 and '98. Since then, I have played regularly
with the Gambit jazzmen through to the present day. I was fortunate enough
to be invited to play with Malcolm Walton's Blue Rhythm Kings whilst Dave
Bashford was indisposed a couple of years ago, and it is a delight to me to
continue doing the gig until he rightfully reclaims it ! Chris Marney
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Ray Perkins - Piano
I first became interested in music listening to my father
playing piano, and so I went to piano lessons for a few years, and also I
was influenced by pianists like: Fats Waller, Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson etc.
Also I like all the 40's, 50's swingbands - Basie, Ellington, Shaw, Goodman
and in particular I loved listening to the Benny Goodman trio's and quartets
etc. There were many solo players influenced me like Errol Garner,Ben
Webster, Satchmo of course and Clark Terry. Many English bands caught my
attention like Dankworth Seven , Alex Welsh and Ted Heath. Over the years I
have collected records of all these artists and indeed I do still listen to
them from time to time and I must say there are a lot of local players I
have enjoyed gigging with over the years so all in all music has played a
big part in my life and hope I can go on playing for a few years ' who
knows' I may be lucky. At the present time I play in Lyn Falvey's Touch of
Class who sings all the jazz standards, and I do have quite a variety of
bands I gig with so all in all I enjoy it all.
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