Gordon "Jazz" Summers (15 March 1944 – 14 August 2015) was a British

music manager A talent manager (also known as an artist manager, band manager, or music manager) is an individual who guides the professional career of Entertainer, artists within the entertainment industry. The responsibility of a talent manager is to ove ...

. He managed acts such as

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and

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. Alongside

Simon Napier-Bell Simon Robert Napier-Bell (born 22 April 1939) is an English record producer, music manager, author and journalist. At different times, he has managed artists as diverse as the Yardbirds, John's Children, Marc Bolan, Japan, London, Sinéad O'Co ...

, he co-managed

Wham! Wham! were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981 consisting of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s, selling more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to ...

and is credited with having enabled them to break into the United States market in 1985 and to go on to become the first western pop group to tour China.

Early years

Summers was sent to Gordon Boys (a military school in

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

) at the age of 12 and enlisted in the army at the age of 15.Obituary
telegraph.co.uk; accessed 17 August 2015. He served as a radiographer in Hong Kong and Malaysia. In 1986, he and Tim Parry founded

Big Life Big Life was a record label established in 1987 by Jazz Summers and Tim Parry. It featured hundreds of releases from artists such as The Orb, Stare, Yazz, Junior Reid, Coldcut, De La Soul, and Damage. In 1999, the label was put into receiver ...

, a music management company. The two men also operated Big Life Records. Among his other music-related interests was his role as chairman of the Music Managers Forum.

Personal life

Summers was married four times; his third wife was the pop singer

Yazz Yazz (born Yasmin Evans; 19 May 1960) is a British pop singer, who remains perhaps best known for her 1988 UK number one single " The Only Way Is Up". Some of her records are credited to Yazz and the Plastic Population. Career Yazz was born i ...

, whom he also managed. He refuted allegations about his conduct, saying "I’ve never burned a venue to the ground. I've never even hit an A&R man. I locked one in a cupboard once, as punishment for some racism and sexism." His autobiography, ''Big Life'', was published in September 2013.

Posthumous tributes

Summers died on 14 August 2015 after suffering from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

for two years. He was survived by his wife Dianna, and three daughters. After his death, tributes were made on Twitter by Tim Burgess,

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and

Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reed Lowe (born 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence through pr ...

References

External links

Profile
biglifemanagement.co.uk; accessed 17 August 2015. {{DEFAULTSORT:Summers, Jazz 1944 births 2015 deaths Deaths from lung cancer British music industry executives British music managers Place of birth missing Place of death missing