John Fraser MacPherson CM (10 April 1928 – 27 September 1993) was a Canadian jazz musician from

Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations o ...

, Manitoba. MacPherson moved to Victoria, British Columbia, as a child. He learned piano, clarinet, and alto and tenor saxophones. After moving to Vancouver to continue a commerce degree, he played in bands led by Ray Norris, Dave Robbins, Paul Ruhland, and Doug Parke. He led his own groups and eventually took over the leadership of the Cave supper club band. He took a year's leave in 1958 to study in New York City, adding flute to his list of instruments. He played on the CBC and won a

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall o ...

for Best Jazz Album in 1983. He was awarded the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the c ...

in 1987. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s MacPherson was a first-call studio player in Vancouver, as well as leading the house band at the Cave supper club. He also taught briefly in the Jazz and Commercial Music department at Vancouver Community College, where his students included future Powder Blues Band baritone saxophonist Gordie Bertram and New Orleans based saxophonist and jazz educator John Doheny. ''Live at the Planetarium'', MacPherson's first album as leader of a small jazz group, was recorded for broadcast on the French-language CBC radio network. He leased the master tapes and released them on his own independent label, West End Records. The album was re-released by

Concord Records Concord Records is an American record label owned by Concord and based in Los Angeles, California. Concord Records was launched in 1995 as an imprint designed to reach beyond the company's foundational Concord Jazz label. The label's artists hav ...

, and MacPherson went on to record several other releases for them. He also recorded for

Sackville Records Sackville Records was a Canadian record company and label that specialized in jazz.Gardner/Kernfeld, "Sackville". '' Grove Jazz'' online. In 2011, with Sackville defunct, Delmark Records acquired its catalogue. Sackville was founded in 1968 in T ...

in Toronto and

Justin Time Records Justin Time Records is a Canadian record company and independent record label founded in Montreal by Jim West. It was established in 1983 and specialises in jazz and blues. Although Justin Time initially recorded Canadian musicians such as Oliv ...

in Montreal. In the summer of 1993, Pacific Music Industry Association (PMIA) created the Fraser MacPherson Scholarship Fund which annually awards grants of $2000 to four to eight aspiring music students. Later that year MacPherson died in Vancouver at the age of 65.

Gallery

Image:At the Palomar.jpg, From left: Chris Gage,

Louis Bellson Louie Bellson (born Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, July 6, 1924 – February 14, 2009), often seen in sources as Louis Bellson, although he himself preferred the spelling Louie, was an American jazz drummer. He was a composer ...

, Stan "Cuddles" Johnson, Tony Gage, Fraser MacPherson,

Harry Carney Harry Howell Carney (April 1, 1910 – October 8, 1974) was a jazz saxophonist and clarinettist who spent over four decades as a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He played a variety of instruments but primarily used the baritone saxophon ...

(Photo from the Fraser MacPherson estate) Image:Velma & Friends.jpg, From left:

Jack Teagarden Weldon Leo "Jack" Teagarden (August 20, 1905 – January 15, 1964) was an American jazz trombonist and singer. According to critic Scott Yannow of Allmusic, Teagarden was the preeminent American jazz trombone player before the bebop era of the 19 ...

, Sandy DeSantis, Velma Middleton, Fraser MacPherson,

Cozy Cole William Randolph "Cozy" Cole (October 17, 1909 – January 9, 1981) was an American jazz drummer who worked with Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong among others and led his own groups. Life and career William Randolph Cole was born in East Or ...

, Arvell Shaw, Earl Hines,

Barney Bigard Albany Leon "Barney" Bigard (March 3, 1906 – June 27, 1980) was an American jazz clarinetist known for his 15-year tenure with Duke Ellington. He also played tenor saxophone. Biography Bigard was born in New Orleans to Creole parents, Ale ...

at the Palomar Supper Club in Vancouver, B. C. (17 March 1951) Image:Harry James 1970.jpg, From left: Stan "Cuddles" Johnson, Fraser MacPherson, Bob Smith,

Harry James Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983) was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947 but shortly after he reorganized ...

, Al Johnson, Stew Barnett. (The Cave Supper Club, May 1970) Image:Fraser_MacPherson_3.jpg, MacPherson in 1966 (photo by Franz Lindner)

References

External links

Biography at vancouverjazz.com1976 CBC interview
* allmusic.com Entrybr>1966 documentary "Diary of a Musician"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macpherson, Fraser 1928 births 1993 deaths Canadian jazz saxophonists Male saxophonists Canadian people of Scottish descent Concord Records artists Juno Award for Best Jazz Album winners Members of the Order of Canada Musicians from Vancouver Musicians from Victoria, British Columbia Musicians from Winnipeg People from Saint Boniface, Winnipeg 20th-century saxophonists Powder Blues Band members 20th-century Canadian male musicians Canadian male jazz musicians Sackville Records artists Justin Time Records artists