Jolyon Jackson (3 September 1948 – 18 December 1985) was an Irish musician and composer.Irish Times, Obituary, 7 January 1986

Life

Jackson was born in

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

where his father, Patrick Jackson, was Deputy Commissioner of the police and would receive the

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

. His father was from

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

, of a Cork family; his mother was the singer Charmian Jenkinson. They lived at Poul-na-murrish,

Annamoe Annamoe () is a village located on the Avonmore river in County Wicklow, Ireland about south of Dublin. It is on the R755 road (at the junction with the R763) between Roundwood and Laragh on the road to Glendalough. The small stone humpb ...

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606 in Ireland, 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces ...

. He was educated in

Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Church of England, Anglican cathedral in the city of Salisbury, England. The cathedral is regarded as one of the leading examples of Early English architecture, ...

School and

Bradfield College Bradfield College is a coeducational public school (independent boarding and day school) for pupils aged 13–18, in the village of Bradfield, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It is noted for its open-air Greek theatre and its trien ...

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

. He studied at

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

in the late 1960s, where he graduated in Arts and Music. He integrated himself into the musical life of Dublin, first with the group 'Jazz Therapy', and later with 'Supply, Demand and Curve.' He played cello, recorder and keyboards–including organ, piano and synthesizer. He married Teresa Le Jeune from

Delgany Delgany () is a small rural village in County Wicklow in Ireland, located on the R762 road which connects to the N11 road (Ireland), N11 road at the Glen of the Downs. It is about south of Dublin city centre. While it is an older more rural se ...

, County Wicklow and they had a son, Linus. Jackson died in

London 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 ...

Hodgkin's lymphoma Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells (RS cells) are present in the lymph nodes. The condition was named a ...

on 18 December 1985, aged 37.

Music

The band 'Supply, Demand & Curve' was formed in 1970 and initially consisted of Jackson, Brian Masterson—who had played with Jackson in 'Jazz Therapy' during 1968–69—and Paddy Finney. They had a weekly gig at the

Project Arts Centre Project Arts Centre is a multidisciplinary arts centre based in Temple Bar, Dublin, which hosts visual arts, theatre, dance, music, and performance. History Project Arts Centre was founded by Jim FitzGerald and Colm O'Briain in 1967 after a th ...

and later played mainly in folk clubs in Dublin and beyond. With a line-up of Jackson, Masterson, Finney and

Roger Doyle Roger Doyle (born 17 July 1949) is an Irish composer best known for his electro-acoustic work, for which he was made a Saoi of Aosdána, and for his piano music for theatre. Education Born in Malahide, County Dublin, Doyle studied piano from ...

—who had also been in 'Jazz Therapy'—they undertook a tour of Canada in 1973. Rosemarie Taylor (keyboards and vocals) and other musicians joined them off and on over the years. They released their eponymous album in 1976 on the Mulligan label (LUN 009). It contained eleven tracks, ten of which were composed by Jackson. It had taken several years of snatched studio time to complete, and included contributions from some musicians who were no longer in the band by the time the LP was released. Other recordings on which Jackson featured include ''

Camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

'' by

Sonny Condell Sonny Condell (born 1 July 1949, in Newtownmountkennedy, Ireland) is an Irish singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and Graphic arts, graphic artist. He is mainly known as a member of the Irish bands Tír na nÓg (band), Tír na nÓg and S ...

, and ''Taylormaid'' by Rosemarie Taylor—both released on Mulligan in 1977. He subsequently appeared as a guest musician on albums by

The Chieftains The Chieftains were a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous w ...

, Midnight Well,

Christy Moore Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was one of the founding members of the bands Planxty and Moving Hearts and has had significant success as a solo artist. His first albu ...

Terry Terry is a unisex diminutive nickname for the given names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence (given name), Terence, Terrance (masculine). People Male * Terry A. Canales, American politician * Terry A. Doughty (born 1959), American district ...

and

Gay Woods Gay Woods (18 September 1948) is an Irish singer. She was one of the original members of Steeleye Span. Early years Gabriel Corcoran was born in Dublin, a neighbour of her future husband Terry Woods. Her elder brothers shared Woods' love of ...

, and also reunited with Doyle who, by then, had created the music-theatre company
Operating Theatre
' with Irish actress

Olwen Fouéré Olwen Fouéré (born 2 March 1954) is an Irish actress and writer/director in theatre, film and visual arts. She was born in Galway, Ireland to Breton parents Yann Fouéré and Marie-Magdeleine Mauger. In 2020, she was listed at number 22 on ...

. Jackson was an early adopter of home-recording, buying an eight-track recorder and setting up a studio at his home in

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in County Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built up alongside a small existing settlement following 1816 legislation th ...

, where he recorded the seminal album ''Hidden Ground'' (Tara 1980) with fiddle player

Paddy Glackin Paddy Glackin (born 5 August 1954) is an Irish fiddler and founding member of the Bothy Band. He is considered one of Ireland's leading traditional fiddle players. Biography Paddy Glackin was born on 5 August 1954 in Clontarf, Dublin. His fath ...

, on which he arranged the music and also played all the instruments surrounding the fiddle. Compositions for television include the

RTÉ (; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Irish public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, ...

series ''Hands'', ''Visions of Transport'' and ''To the Waters and the Wild''. Jackson also involved himself in music for the theatre, most notably in the music for the

W. B. Yeats William Butler Yeats (, 13 June 186528 January 1939), popularly known as W. B. Yeats, was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer, and literary critic who was one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the ...

trilogy based on the Saga of

Cú Chulainn Cú Chulainn ( ), is an Irish warrior hero and demigod in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, as well as in Scottish and Manx folklore. He is believed to be an incarnation of the Irish god Lugh, who is also his father. His mother is the ...

, performed in the

Noh is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. It is Japan's oldest major theater art that is still regularly performed today. Noh is often based on tales from traditional literature featuri ...

style and directed by

Hideo Kanze was a Japanese actor and director, who specialized in the Noh form of musical drama. He was the second son of Kanze Tetsunojō VII, a descendant of Kan'ami and Zeami, who founded the Noh movement in the 14th century. Trained alongside his brot ...

at the

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre (), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland () is a theatre in Dublin, Ireland. First opening to the public on 27 December 1904, and moved from its original building after a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the p ...

. Later on, he also composed music to accompany the exercises of the

Gurdjieff movements The Gurdjieff movements are a series of sacred dances that were collected or authored by G. I. Gurdjieff. He taught his students as part of the work of ''self observation'' and ''self study''. Significance Gurdjieff taught that the movements w ...

Discography

; With Roger Doyle *''Oizzo No'' (1975) ; With Supply, Demand & Curve *''Supply, Demand & Curve'' (1976) ; With Sonny Condell *''

'' (1977) ; With Jimmy Crowley *''The Boys of Fair Hill'' (1977) ; With Midnight Well *''Midnight Well'' (1977) ; With Christy Moore *'' The Iron Behind the Velvet'' (1978) ; With Gay & Terry Woods *''Tender Hooks'' (1978) ; With The Chieftains *'' The Chieftains 9: Boil the Breakfast Early'' (1979) *''The Best of The Chieftains'' (2002) ; With Paddy Glackin *''Hidden Ground'' (1980)
by Paddy Glackin and Jolyon Jackson, Tara 2009 ; With Scullion *''

Balance and Control ''Balance and Control'' is the second studio album by Irish band Scullion. It was released in 1980 by WEA. The album was produced by John Martyn. Track listing Personnel * Philip King – vocals *Sonny Condell – vocals, guitar * Greg Bo ...

'' (1980) ; Compilation albums *'' High Kings of Tara'' (1980)
by Planxty & Various artists from the Tara label ; With Operating Theatre *''Miss Mauger'' (1983) *''The Early Years'' (2007)

References

External links