Alan Richard James Skidmore (born 21 April 1942) is an English jazz tenor saxophonist, and the son of saxophonist Jimmy Skidmore.

Career

He was born in London, England. Skidmore began his professional career in his teens, and early in his career he toured with comedian Tony Hancock. In the 1960s, he began frequently appearing with the BBC Radio Big Band, then worked with

Alexis Korner Alexis Andrew Nicholas Koerner (19 April 1928 – 1 January 1984), known professionally as Alexis Korner, was a British blues musician and radio broadcaster, who has sometimes been referred to as "a founding father of British blues". A major i ...

John Mayall John Brumwell Mayall (29 November 1933 – 22 July 2024) was an English blues and Rock music, rock musician, songwriter and producer. In the 1960s, he formed John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among its members some of ...

, and

Ronnie Scott Ronnie Scott Order of the British Empire, OBE (born Ronald Schatt; 28 January 1927 – 23 December 1996) was a British jazz Tenor saxophone, tenor saxophonist and jazz club owner. He co-founded Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in London's Soho district ...

. Commissioned by the BBC in order to represent the UK at the

Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...

, Skidmore formed a group with Harry Miller,

Tony Oxley Tony Oxley (15 June 1938 – 26 December 2023) was an English free improvisation, free improvising drummer and electronic musician. Born in Sheffield, Oxley moved to London in 1966 and became house drummer at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club where he ...

, John Taylor, and

Kenny Wheeler Kenneth Vincent John Wheeler, Order of Canada, OC (14 January 1930 – 18 September 2014) was a Canadian composer and trumpet and flugelhorn player, based in the U.K. from the 1950s onwards. Most of his performances were rooted in jazz, but he w ...

. This group won three of six awards at Montreux, following which Skidmore was invited to record an album of the group's performances, forming the basis for ''Once Upon a Time''. In the early 1970s, he started a saxophone-only band with

John Surman John Douglas Surman (born 30 August 1944) is an English jazz saxophone, Clarinet family, clarinet, and synthesizer player, and composer of free jazz and modal jazz, often using themes from folk music. He has composed and performed music for danc ...

and

Mike Osborne Michael Evans Osborne (28 September 1941 – 19 September 2007) was an English jazz alto saxophonist, pianist, and clarinetist who was a member of the band Brotherhood of Breath in the 1960s and 1970s. Biography Mike Osborne was born in H ...

. He has also worked with

Mose Allison Mose John Allison Jr. (November 11, 1927 – November 15, 2016) was an American jazz and blues pianist, singer, and songwriter. He became notable for playing a unique mix of blues and modern jazz, both singing and playing piano. After moving to N ...

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and dancer. Bush began writing songs at age 11. She was signed to EMI Records after David Gilmour of Pink Floyd helped produce a demo tape. In 1978, at the ...

Elton Dean Elton Dean (28 October 1945 – 8 February 2006) was an English jazz musician who performed on alto saxophone, saxello (a variant of the soprano saxophone) and occasionally keyboards. Part of the Canterbury scene, he featured in Soft Mach ...

Georgie Fame Georgie Fame (born Clive Powell; 26 June 1943) is an English R&B and jazz musician. Fame, who had a string of 1960s hits, is still performing, often working with contemporaries such as Alan Price, Van Morrison and Bill Wyman. Fame is the only B ...

, Mike Gibbs,

George Gruntz George Gruntz (24 June 1932 – 10 January 2013) was a Swiss jazz pianist, organist, harpsichordist, keyboardist, and composer known for the George Gruntz Concert Big Band and his work with Phil Woods, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Don Cherry, Chet Baker ...

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such albums as ''My Fa ...

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...

Stan Tracey Stanley William Tracey (30 December 1926 – 6 December 2013) was a British jazz pianist and composer, whose most important influences were Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk. Tracey's best known recording is the 1965 album '' Jazz Suite Insp ...

Charlie Watts Charles Robert Watts (2 June 1941 – 24 August 2021) was an English musician who was the drummer of the Rolling Stones from 1963 until his death in 2021. Originally trained as a Graphic designer, graphic artist, Watts developed an interest i ...

, and Mike Westbrook.

Discography

* ''Once upon a Time'' ( Deram Records DN11/SDN11, issued 1970) * ''TCB'' (Philips 6308 041, recorded 21 October 1970) * ''

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath ''Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath'' is the debut album by South African pianist and composer Chris McGregor's big band of the same name. Produced by Joe Boyd, it was recorded in 1970, and was issued on LP by the short-lived Neon imprint of ...

'' (RCA/Neon, 1971) * ''Jazz in Britain '68–69'' with

, Tony Oxley (

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

Eclipse ECS 2114, 1972, previously unreleased masters recorded at various sessions in 1968 and 1969) * ''SOS'' with John Surman and

( Ogun, recorded Worthing, 9–11 February 1975) * ''El Skid'' with Elton Dean, Chris Laurence, John Marshall (Vinyl Records, recorded Riverside Studios, 25–26 February 1977) * ''European Jazz Quintet - Live at the Moers Festival'' (Ring-Moers 01018, recorded Moers, Germany, 29 May 1977) * ''European Jazz Quintet'' (EGO, 1978) * ''S.O.H.'' with Tony Oxley, Ali Haurand (EGO, 1979) * ''S.O.H.'' with Tony Oxley, Ali Haurand (View Records VS 0018, Neuss, Germany, 25 April 1981) * ''European Jazz Quintet III'' (Fusion, 1982) * ''Tribute to Trane'' (Miles Music, recorded London, 18–19 February 1988) * ''East To West'' with

(Miles Music MM 081CD, recorded Hong Kong, 1989, and Ronnie Scott's, London, February 1992) * ''After the Rain'' (with string orchestra) (Miles Music 1998) * ''The Call'' (Provocateur PVC 1018, Cape Town, April 1999 and London, May 1999) * ''Ubizo'' (Provocateur PVC 1036, ca.2002) * '' Bremen to Bridgwater'' with

Chris McGregor Christopher McGregor (24 December 1936 – 26 May 1990) was a South African jazz pianist, bandleader and composer born in Somerset West, South Africa. Early influences McGregor grew up in the then Transkei (now part of the Eastern Cape Prov ...

's Brotherhood of Breath (Cuneiform, 2004) recorded in 1971 and 1975 * ''S.O.H. Live in London'' (Jazzwerkstatt, 2007) * '' Eclipse at Dawn'' with Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath (Cuneiform, 2008) recorded in 1971 * ''Jazz Live Trio'' with Kenny Wheeler (TCB, 2012)

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skidmore, Alan 1942 births Living people 21st-century English male musicians 21st-century English saxophonists English male saxophonists Brotherhood of Breath members Canterbury scene Centipede (band) members English blues musicians English jazz saxophonists European Jazz Ensemble members English jazz tenor saxophonists English male jazz musicians The Dedication Orchestra members