James Anthony Richardson (born 16 February 1941,

Tottenham Tottenham (, , , ) is a district in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, ...

, London) is an English

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 ...

and rock bassist and

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

. He was a member of the progressive rock band If.

Career

An original member of pioneering British jazz-rock band, If (1969–1973), he went on to undertake session and studio work. Around 1975–76 he was also a member of

Pip Pyle Phillip "Pip" Pyle (4 April 1950 – 28 August 2006) was an English-born drummer from Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, who later resided in France. He is best known for his work in the Canterbury scene bands Gong, Hatfield and the North ...

's The Weightwatchers, with

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 ...

and

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 ...

and leading his own group, Jim Richardson's Pogo Revisited which also featured Alan Barnes. In the late 1970s, his quartet featured

Bobby Wellins Robert Coull Wellins (24 January 1936 – 27 October 2016) was a Scottish tenor saxophonist who collaborated with Stan Tracey on the album ''Jazz Suite Inspired by Dylan Thomas's "Under Milk Wood"'' (1965). Biography Robert Coull Wellins was ...

. In 1981 he appeared on the

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard "Hoagy" Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor, author and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s and 1940s, a ...

tribute album ''

In Hoagland ''In Hoagland'' is an album by Georgie Fame, Annie Ross and Hoagy Carmichael, featuring a band of leading UK jazz musicians and arrangements by Harry South. Originally released under the title ''In Hoagland '81'', it was recorded in London and r ...

''. In the mid-1980s he reunited with former If band member

Dick Morrissey Richard Edwin Morrissey (9 May 1940 – 8 November 2000) was a British jazz musician and composer. He played the tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and flute. Biography Background He was born in Horley, Surrey, England. Dick Morrissey emerged ...

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. He worked with

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians. Gordon's height was , so he was also known as "Long Tall Dexter" an ...

and

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

and was a member of the Jack Honeyborne Quintet with

Derek Wadsworth Derek Wadsworth (5 February 1939 – 3 December 2008) was an English jazz musician, composer, and arranger. Early life Wadsworth was born in Cleckheaton, Yorkshire, on 5 February 1939. He began playing the cornet as his first instrument and star ...

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, and

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. Richardson released the album ''Chapter One'' on 15 October 2009. His album ''2 Plus 2'' was released on 22 April 2010. He was one of the guest speakers for the launch of the Princess Royal Trust for Carers Out of Hospital report held on 21 July 2010 at the

London Medical Society London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. He had been a carer for his partner, Maggie, before she died of cancer. Richardson provided a carers perspective to the gathered professionals, on behalf of the PRTC, to help campaign for more consideration by hospitals, to the needs of carers during patient discharge planning.

Discography

As leader

* ''Don't Get Emotional'' (Spotlite, 1988)

As sideman

With

* '' Rendez-Vous'' (Bingow, 1980) * ''Live in London Vol. 2'' (Ubuntu Music 2018) * ''Live in London'' (Ubuntu Music 2016) With If * ''If'' (Island, 1970) * ''If 2'' (Island, 1970) * ''If 3'' (United Artists, 1971) * ''If 4'' (United Artists, 1972) * ''Waterfall'' (Metromedia, 1972) * ''Europe '72'' (Repertoire, 1997) * ''Fibonacci's Number: More Live'' (Repertoire, 2010) With others *

, Georgie Fame, Annie Ross, ''In Hoagland 1981'' (Bald Eagle 1981) * Frank Evans, ''Mark Twain'' (77 Records 1970) *

Rachel Gould Rachel Gould (born June 25, 1953 in Camden, New Jersey, as ''Rachel Field'') is an American singer and teacher of Modern Jazz. Life and works Gould studied cello and classical singing at Boston University. She established herself as a jazz mus ...

, Chet Baker, ''

All Blues "All Blues" is a jazz composition by Miles Davis that first appeared on the influential 1959 album ''Kind of Blue''. In the original liner notes, pianist Bill Evans describes the piece as "a 6/8 12-measure blues form that produces its mood throug ...

'' (Bingow, 1979) *

Barbara Jay Barbara Jay (born 14 August 1937) is a British jazz singer. Barbara Jay grew up in a musical family, her father playing trumpet with many of the leading bands of the time. She took naturally to singing and by the 1960s she was working with top B ...

, Lee Gibson, Tina May, ''The Ella Fitzgerald Songbook Revisted'' (Spotlite, 2000) *

Lloyd Ryan Lloyd Ryan is an English drummer and educator. He has been described as "a specialist in the big band style of drumming". He was also a support act to Buddy Rich at the Lewisham Jazz Festival in 1986. Career Ryan is best known for his work as a ...

, ''Jazz 4 New Directions'' (Playback) *

Helen Shapiro Helen Kate Shapiro (born 28 September 1946) is a British Pop music, pop and jazz singer and actress. While still a teenager in the early 1960s, she was one of Britain's most successful female singers. With a voice described by AllMusic as poss ...

, ''Straighten Up and Fly Right'' (Dureco 1983) *

Tommy Whittle Tommy Whittle (13 October 1926 – 13 October 2013) was a British jazz saxophonist. Biography Tommy Whittle was born in Grangemouth, Scotland. He started playing clarinet at the age of 12 before taking up tenor saxophone at 13, guided by Al ...

, ''Grace Notes'' (Spotlite, 2003) * Tommy Whittle, ''The Tenor Connection'' (Spotlite, 2010)

References

*'' The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'' (2000) p. 64

*''The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music'' (1992) p. 1222 *''Who's Who in Rock Music'' (1978) p. 119 *''Who's Who of British Jazz'' (2004) p. 256 {{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson, Jim 1941 births Living people British jazz double-bassists British male double-bassists English male jazz musicians English jazz musicians People from Tottenham If (band) members 21st-century British double-bassists 21st-century English male musicians Musicians from the London Borough of Haringey