Nucleus was a British jazz-fusion band, which continued in different forms from 1969 to 1989. In 1970, the band won first prize 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 ...

, released the album '' Elastic Rock'', and performed both at the

Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hire ...

and the Village Gate jazz club. The band was established by Ian Carr, who had been in the Rendell–Carr Quintet during the middle and late 1960s. Nucleus's debut album, ''Elastic Rock'' (1970), and the next two collections, ''We'll Talk About It Later'' and ''Solar Plexus'' (1971), were all released on

Vertigo Records Vertigo Records is a British record company. It was a subsidiary of the Philips/Phonogram record label, launched in 1969 to specialise in progressive rock and other non-mainstream musical styles. Today, it is operated by Universal Music Group#B ...

, and music journalist Colin Larkin noted were "vital in any comprehensive rock or jazz collection". In August 2005, a reincarnation of Nucleus with old and new members performed at Cargo in London. This was followed on 30 March 2007 by a Nucleus Revisited concert at London's PizzaExpress Jazz Club as part of a series of concerts to mark the tenth anniversary of '' Jazzwise'' magazine. Nucleus Revisited included Geoff Castle, Mark Wood, and Tim Whitehead and on trumpet, as at the 2005 Cargo concert, Chris Batchelor. Although Ian Carr did not play due to ill health, he was present at the concert and received a standing ovation. On 4 August 2009, Nucleus Revisited appeared at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in London with Michael Garrick's Quartet as part of their two-week-long Brit Jazz Fest.

Members

* Ian Carr – trumpet * Chris Batchelor – trumpet * Harry Beckett – trumpet *

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 ...

– trumpet * Bob Bertles – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute * Brian Smith – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute * Phil Todd – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute * Tim Whitehead – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute *

Karl Jenkins Sir Karl William Pamp Jenkins, , Honorary Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales, HonFLSW (born 17 February 1944) is a Welsh multi-instrumentalist and composer. His best known works include the song "Adiemus (song), Adiemus" (1995, from the Adi ...

– baritone saxophone, oboe, piano, electric piano * Tony Coe – clarinet, bass clarinet, tenor saxophone * Tony Roberts – clarinet, bass clarinet, tenor saxophone * Geoff Castle – piano, electric piano, synthesizer * Ken Shaw - electric guitar * Gordon Beck – piano, electric piano * Dave MacRae – piano, electric piano * John Taylor – organ * Paddy Kingsland – synthesizer * Keith Winter – synthesizer *

Allan Holdsworth Allan Holdsworth (6 August 1946 – 15 April 2017) was a British jazz and rock music, rock guitarist, violinist and composer. He contributed to numerous bands, including Soft Machine, U.K. (band), U.K., The Tony Williams Lifetime, Pierre Moerl ...

– guitar * Jocelyn Pitchen – guitar * Ray Russell – guitar *

Chris Spedding Christopher John Spedding (born Peter Robinson, 17 June 1944) is an English guitarist and record producer. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Spedding is best known for his studio session work. By the early 1970s, he had become one of th ...

– guitar * Mark Wood – guitar * Roy Babbington – bass guitar * Rob Burns – bass guitar * Jeff Clyne – bass guitar * Mo Foster – bass guitar * Joe Hubbard – bass guitar * Billy Kristian – bass guitar * Dill Katz – bass guitar * Rob Statham – bass guitar * Roger Sutton – bass guitar *

Ron Mathewson Rognvald Andrew Mathewson (19 February 1944 – 3 December 2020) was a British jazz double bassist and bass guitarist. During his career, Mathewson performed with Ronnie Scott, but also recorded with Stan Getz, Joe Henderson, Joan Armatra ...

– bass guitar * Neil Ardley – drums *

Tony Levin Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer specializing in electric bass guitars, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (19 ...

– drums * Roger Sellers – drums * Bryan Spring – drums *

John Marshall John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American statesman, jurist, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth chief justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remai ...

– drums * Clive Thacker – drums * Richard Burgess – percussion * Chris Fletcher – percussion * Chris Karan – percussion * Aureo de Souza – percussion * Trevor Tomkins – percussion * Kieran White – vocals * Norma Winstone – vocals * Joy Yates – vocals

Discography

* '' Elastic Rock'' (Vertigo, 1970) ( UK No. 46) * ''We'll Talk About It Later'' (Vertigo, 1970) * ''Solar Plexus'' with Ian Carr (Vertigo, 1971) * ''Belladonna'' (Vertigo 1972, CD CD Linam Records) * ''Labyrinth'' with Ian Carr (Vertigo, 1973) * ''Roots'' (Vertigo, 1973) * ''Under the Sun'' (Vertigo, 1974) * ''Snakehips Etcetera'' (Vertigo, 1975) * ''Alleycat'' (Vertigo, 1975) * ''In Flagranti Delicto'' (Contemp, 1977) * ''Out of the Long Dark'' (Capitol, 1979) * ''Awakening'' (Mood, 1980) * ''Jazz London 29/30'' with Brian Lemon (BBC, 1983) * ''Live at the Theaterhaus'' (Mood, 1985) * ''Live in Bremen'' (Cuneiform, 2003) * ''The Pretty Redhead'' (Hux, 2003) * ''Hemispheres'' (Hux, 2006) * ''UK Tour '76'' (Major League 2006) * ''Live 1970'' with Leon Thomas (Gearbox, 2014) * ''Three of a Kind'' with Ian Carr (Gonzo, 2015) * ''Bracknell Sunshine'' with Ian Carr (Gonzo, 2016) * ''Live At The BBC'' 13-CD box-set (Repertoire, 2021)

References

External links

Ian Carr and Nucleus website

Article about Nucleus at All About Jazz

Article about Ian Carr at All About Jazz

Article about Nucleus at Prog Archives
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nucleus (Band) British rock music groups British jazz-rock groups Vertigo Records artists Musical groups established in 1969 Musical groups disestablished in 1989 1969 establishments in the United Kingdom 1989 disestablishments in the United Kingdom