Harold McNair (5 November 1931 – 7 March 1971) was a Jamaican-born saxophonist and

flautist The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

Early life

McNair was born in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, Jamaica. He attended the

Alpha Boys School Alpha Cottage School (often referred to as Alpha Boys' School, Convent of Mercy "Alpha" Academy and now called Alpha Institute) was the name of the vocational residential school on South Camp Road in Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica, still ru ...

under the tutelage of Vincent Tulloch, while playing with Joe Harriott (a lifelong friend who considered McNair his ''de facto'' younger brother), Wilton "Bogey" Gaynair, and Baba Motta's band. He spent the first decade of his musical career in

The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

, where he used the name "Little G" for recordings and live performances. His early Bahamian recordings were mostly in Caribbean musical styles rather than

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, in which he sang and played both alto and tenor saxophone. He also played a calypso singer in the film '' Island Women'' (1958). In 1960, he recorded his first album, a mixture of jazz and calypso numbers entitled ''Bahama Bash''. It was around this time that he began playing the flute, which would eventually become his signature instrument. Initially he had some lessons in New York, but he was largely self-taught. He departed for Europe later in 1960.

In Europe

Like many other Caribbean jazz musicians of the 1950s and 1960s (e.g., Joe Harriott, Dizzy Reece and Harry Beckett), McNair moved to Britain. However, before arriving in London, he toured Europe with

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

and worked on film and TV scores in Paris. Once in London, he quickly gained a reputation as a formidable player on flute, alto and tenor saxophone, leading to a regular gig at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club. His playing drew the admiration of

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

player

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz Double bass, upright bassist, composer, bandleader, pianist, and author. A major proponent of collective Musical improvisation, improvisation, he is considered one of ...

, who was in London to shoot the motion picture '' All Night Long'' (1961). McNair was part of a quartet Mingus formed to rehearse with during his stay in Britain. However, the band never performed in front of a paying audience, due to a ban imposed by the Musicians' Union on US musicians in British nightclubs. A recording of the band exists, playing the earliest recorded version of the Mingus composition "Peggy's Blue Skylight". The Musician's Union ban was lifted later in 1961, leading to a residency by US tenor saxophonist

Zoot Sims John Haley "Zoot" Sims (October 29, 1925 – March 23, 1985) was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto (and, later, soprano) saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big ...

at Ronnie Scott's club.Obituary: Pete King
''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...

'', 21 December 2009. Retrieved 25 June 2013. Ironically, McNair's own quartet were also on the bill, resulting in two of his performances with Phil Seamen on drums being issued. Around the same time, he also recorded with the drummer

Tony Crombie Anthony John Kronenberg (27 August 1925 – 18 October 1999), known professionally as Tony Crombie, was an English jazz drummer, pianist, bandleader, and composer. He was regarded as one of the finest English jazz drummers and bandleaders, an oc ...

and the percussionist

Jack Costanzo Jack James Costanzo (September 24, 1919 – August 18, 2018) was an American percussionist. Biography Costanzo is of Italian descent, both his parents being from Italy. A composer and drummer, Costanzo is best known for having been a bongo dr ...

Later recordings

McNair cut his first all-jazz

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

, ''Up in the Air with Harold McNair'' on a visit to Miami, before settling back in London permanently. His first UK album as a leader, ''Affectionate Fink'', was made for the fledgling

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

in 1965. The session saw him team up with

Ornette Coleman Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, trumpeter, violinist, and composer. He is best known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Ja ...

's then current rhythm section of David Izenzon (bass) and Charles Moffett (drums), for a set of standards played with hard swinging intensity. McNair equally featured his tenor sax and flute on this session, delivering virtuoso performances on both. His next (self-titled) album, cut for

RCA RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded in 1919 as the Radio Corporation of America. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westinghou ...

in 1968, recorded at

Trident Studios Trident Studios was a British recording facility, located at 17 St Anne's Court in London's Soho district between 1968 and 1981. It was constructed in 1967 by Norman Sheffield, drummer of the 1960s group the Hunters, and his brother Barry ...

featured probably his best known composition, "The Hipster", which was included on

Gilles Peterson Gilles Jérôme Moehrle MBE (; born 28 September 1964), better known as Gilles Peterson (), is a broadcaster, DJ, record label and festival owner. He is renowned for his genre-defying approach to music with jazz at its core. From this base he ...

's 2004 ''Impressed Vol. 2'' compilation of 1960s British jazz. His next album was ''Flute and Nut'' (RCA, 1970), which featured

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

and string arrangements by John Cameron. This was quickly followed up in the same year by ''The Fence'', which moved in the direction of

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as jazz rock, jazz-rock fusion, or simply fusion) is a popular music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric gui ...

. Another self-titled album was issued posthumously in 1972 by the B&C label, which mixed tracks from the 1968 RCA album with later, unreleased recordings. Recordings as a jazz sideman included sessions with the jazz-rock/big band ensemble Ginger Baker's Air Force and John Cameron's ''Off Centre''. He recorded with visiting Americans

Jon Hendricks John Carl Hendricks (September 16, 1921 – November 22, 2017), known professionally as Jon Hendricks, was an American jazz lyricist and singer. He is one of the originators of vocalese, which adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs and re ...

, pianist/vocalist Blossom Dearie and drummer

Philly Joe Jones Joseph Rudolph "Philly Joe" Jones (July 15, 1923 – August 30, 1985) was an American Jazz drumming, jazz drummer. Biography Early career As a child, Jones appeared as a featured tap dancer on ''The Kiddie Show'' on the Philadelphia radio stat ...

and performed with saxophonist Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis at the Manchester Sports Guild in 1967.

Other recordings

McNair's unique phrasing on the flute in particular led to great demand for his services among non-jazz musicians, especially during the late 1960s. His flute was featured on the soundtrack for

Ken Loach Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a retiredhttps://variety.com/2024/film/global/ken-loach-retirement-the-old-oak-jonathan-glazer-oscars-speech-1235956589/ English filmmaker. His socially critical directing style and socialist views ar ...

's film '' Kes'' (1969), with music written by regular McNair collaborator John Cameron. Another notable soundtrack contribution was his tenor saxophone on the original 1962 soundtrack theme from '' Dr. No'' and his solo flute on Johnny Harris, ''Movements'' (Warner Bros. 1970) that was originally recorded for the original soundtrack of the film '' Fragment of Fear''. His best-known sideman role came via his regular participation (with Cameron) on

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter and record producer. He emerged from the British folk scene in early 1965 and subsequently scored multiple international hit singles ...

's mid-to-late 1960s recording sessions, and as a member of Donovan's touring band. McNair arranged the hit single " There Is a Mountain" (1967) and played the flute

riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...

. Donovan's live album '' Donovan in Concert'' features McNair's flute and tenor extensively and demonstrates some of his finest recorded work. Throughout the late 1960s he also played on many other jazz-inflected

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

and

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

albums, including

John Martyn Iain David McGeachy (11 September 1948 – 29 January 2009), known professionally as John Martyn, was a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums and received frequent critical acclaim. ...

's '' The Tumbler'' and

Davy Graham David Michael Gordon "Davey" Graham (originally spelled Davy Graham) (26 November 1940 – 15 December 2008) was a British guitarist and one of the most influential figures in the 1960s British folk revival. He inspired many famous practitioners ...

's '' Large as Life and Twice as Natural''.

Death

McNair died of lung cancer in

Maida Vale Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district in North West London, England, north of Paddington, southwest of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn, on Edgware Road. It is part of the City of Westminster and is northwest of Charing C ...

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

, on Sunday, 7 March 1971, at the age of 39.

Discography

As leader

* as Little G, ''Bahama Bash'' (Top Rank, 1960) * ''Up in the Air with Harold McNair'' (Bahamian Rhythms, 1964) * ''Affectionate Fink'' with Alan Branscombe, David Izenzon, Charles Moffett (Island, 1965) * ''Harold McNair'' with Bill Le Sage, Spike Heatley,

Tony Carr Anthony Carr Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 5 September 1950) is an English sports coach and former Director of Youth Development at the West Ham United F.C., West Ham United football club's West Ham United F.C. Reserves and Academy, yo ...

(RCA, 1968) * ''Flute and Nut'' with John Cameron (RCA, 1970) * ''The Fence'' with

Keith Tippett Keith Graham Tippetts (25 August 1947 – 14 June 2020), known professionally as Keith Tippett, was a British jazz pianist and composer. According to AllMusic, Tippett's career "...spanned jazz-rock, progressive rock, improvised and contemporar ...

, Ric Grech,

Terry Cox Terence William Harvey 'Terry' Cox (born 13 March 1937, in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire) played Drum kit, drums in the British folk rock bands Pentangle (band), The Pentangle, Duffy's Nucleus and Humblebums. He also drummed with several oth ...

Danny Thompson Daniel Henry Edward Thompson (born 4 April 1939) is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist. He has had a long musical career playing with a large variety of other musicians, particularly Richard Thompson and John Ma ...

, Colin Green, Alan Branscombe (B&C, 1970) – reissued on CD in 2007 by Hux Records * ''Harold McNair'' (B&C, 1972) Appearance in compilations * V.A., ''Bacchanal At Chez Paul Meers'' (Carib, 1958) EP– two tracks only as bandleader eanuts Taylor & Orchestra LP* ''Alpha Boys' School Music in Education'' (Trojan, 2006) – one track only ("The Hipster" taken from ''Harold McNair'')

As sideman

Big Band, ''Swiss Radio Days Jazz Series, Vol. 1: Lausanne 1960'' (TCB, 1960) *

, ''Whole Lotta Tony'' (Ember, 1961) *

, ''Equation in Rhythm'' (Fontana, 1962), credited as "Little Jesus" * Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, ''Oh Gee: Live in Manchester'' (Jasmine, 1967) *

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

, ''Axis Bold as Love'', on the track ''If 6 were 9'' (Reprise RS 6281) *

, '' Trailways Express'' (Black Lion, 1968), with Peter King,

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 ...

* John Cameron, ''Off Centre'' (Deram, 1969) * Blossom Dearie, ''That's Just the Way I Want to Be'' (Fontana, 1970) *

, ''Live'' (Fontana, 1970) *

Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and Music of Africa, Africa ...

's Air Force, ''Ginger Baker's Air Force'' (Polydor, 1970), with

Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a guitarist, keyboard player, and vocalist prominent for his dis ...

, Rick Grech, Denny Laine, Chris Wood, Graham Bond * Phil Seamen, ''The Late Great Phil Seamen'' (SWP Records SWP 037, 2009), on the track ''Tangerine'', with Terry Shannon, Jeff Clyne, Phil Seamen

Session musician credits

With CCS * '' CCS'' (Rak, 1970) * '' CCS II'' (Rak, 1972) With

Syd Dale Syd Dale (20 May 1924 – 15 August 1994) was an English self-taught composer and arranger of big band, easy listening and library music. His themes and underscore music played an important role on television, radio and advertising media of the ...

* ''Flamboyant Themes'' – Vol. III (KPM, 1968) * ''Chorus And Orchestra'' (KPM, 1969) With

* '' Fairytale'' (Pye, 1965) * '' Sunshine Superman'' (Epic, 1966) * ''

Mellow Yellow "Mellow Yellow" is a song written and recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. Released in the US in 1966, it reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Outside the US, "Mellow Yellow" peaked at No. 8 in the UK in early 1967. Content ...

'' (Epic, 1967) * ''

A Gift from a Flower to a Garden ''A Gift From a Flower to a Garden'' is the fifth studio album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan, released in December 1967 through Pye Records in the UK and Epic Records in the US. It marks the first double-disc album of Donovan's career ...

'' (Pye, 1967) * '' Donovan in Concert'' (Pye, 1968) * '' Hurdy Gurdy Man'' (Epic, 1968) * '' Barabajagal'' (1969) With others *

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was an English writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical ''Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his work ...

, ''Isn't This Where We Came In?'' (Deram, 1968) * Brian Bennett – ''Illustrated London Noise'' (Columbia, 1969) * Marc Brierley, ''Hello'' (CBS, 1969) * John Cameron, ''Kes: Original Sound Track'' (Trunk, 2001) – rec. 1968 * Peter Collins, ''Peter Collins First Album'' (Decca Nova, 1970) * Cressida, ''Asylum'' (Vertigo, 1971) * Nick Drake – '' Bryter Layter'' (Island, 1970)(flautist on Bryter Layer was Lyn Dobson) *

, ''Large as Life and Twice as Natural'' (Decca, 1968) *

Kathe Green Kathe Jennifer Green (born September 22, 1944) is an American actress, model and singer. She is the daughter of composer and conductor Johnny Green and Bunny Waters. She has a younger sister, Kim Meglio. Early years Born in Los Angeles, Ca ...

, '' Run the Length of Your Wildness'' (Deram, 1969) * The Picadilly Line, ''The Huge World of Emily Small'' (CBS, 1967) * Johnny Harris, ''Movements'' (Warner Bros., 1970) * Rosetta Hightower, ''Hightower'' (CBS, 1970) * Tim Hollier, ''Skysail'' (Philips, 1971) * Al Jones, '' Alun Ashworth Jones'', (Parlophone, 1969) *

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 ...

, ''Bootleg Him'' (Warner Bros., 1972) *

Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter"), sometimes spelled Magna Charta, is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardin ...

, ''Magna Carta'' (Mercury, 1969) *

, ''The Tumbler'' (Island, 1968) * Don Partridge, ''Don Partridge'' (Columbia, 1968) * Seven Ages of Man, ''Seven Ages of Man'' (Rediffusion, 1972) * Steamhammer, '' Steamhammer'' (CBS, 1969) *

Caetano Veloso Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso (; born 7 August 1942) is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicália, which encompas ...

, ''Caetano Veloso'' (Philips, 1971)

References

External links

* *
Harold McNair
discography by David H. Taylor

''Jamaica Observer'' article on Jamaican jazz musicians, including Harold McNair.

"Died On This Date (March 7, 1971) Harold McNair / Jazz Flute Great", The Music's Over.

Official John Martyn website
{{DEFAULTSORT:McNair, Harold 1931 births 1971 deaths 20th-century Jamaican male musicians 20th-century Jamaican saxophonists CCS (band) members Deaths from lung cancer in England Ginger Baker's Air Force members Jamaican jazz flautists Jamaican jazz saxophonists Jamaican session musicians Jazz fusion musicians Jamaican male jazz musicians Jamaican male saxophonists Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica 20th-century flautists People educated at Alpha Boys School 20th-century Jamaican people