Larry Stabbins (born 9 September 1949) is a British

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 ...

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

flutist 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 ...

and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

Biography

Larry Stabbins learned

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

at school from the age of eight, when his musical idol was

Acker Bilk Bernard Stanley "Acker" Bilk, (28 January 1929 – 2 November 2014) was an English clarinetist and vocalist known for his breathy, vibrato-rich, lower-register style, and distinctive appearance – of goatee, bowler hat and striped waistco ...

. He started playing

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

at the age of eleven. He was soon playing in local dance bands, doing his first paid gig aged twelve, and later also playing in

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

bands such as Bristol group The Strange Fruits, particularly the music of

Junior Walker Autry DeWalt Mixon Jr. (June 14, 1931 – November 23, 1995), known professionally as Junior Walker, was an American multi-instrumentalist (primarily saxophonist) and vocalist who recorded for Motown during the 1960s. He also performed as a sess ...

and

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

. He started working with pianist

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 ...

when he was sixteen and later contributed to various Tippett projects such as

Centipede Centipedes (from Neo-Latin , "hundred", and Latin , "foot") are predatory arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda (Ancient Greek , ''kheilos'', "lip", and Neo-Latin suffix , "foot", describing the forcipules) of the subphylum Myriapoda, ...

, Ark, Tapestry and the Keith Tippett Septet. In addition the two also worked for a time in a trio with South African percussionist

Louis Moholo Louis Tebogo Moholo (10 March 1940 – 13 June 2025) was a South African jazz drummer. He was a member of several notable bands, including The Blue Notes, the Brotherhood of Breath and Assagai. Biography Born in Cape Town, Moholo formed The ...

. In London in the early 1970s, after a brief period in the

Chris McGregor Christopher McGregor (24 December 1936 – 26 May 1990) was a South African jazz pianist, bandleader and composer born in Somerset West, South Africa. Early influences McGregor grew up in the then Transkei (now part of the Eastern Cape Prov ...

’s

Brotherhood of Breath The Brotherhood of Breath was an English-South African big band established in the late-1960s by South African pianist and composer Chris McGregor, an extension of McGregor's previous band, The Blue Notes. History The Brotherhood of Breath in ...

, he played with John Stevens’ Spontaneous Music Orchestra, and occasionally with the

Spontaneous Music Ensemble The Spontaneous Music Ensemble (SME) was a loose collection of free improvising musicians, convened in 1965 by the late South London-based jazz drummer/trumpeter John Stevens and alto and soprano saxophonist Trevor Watts. SME performances and ...

(SME). During this period he also worked as a freelance commercial musician, playing studio sessions, nightclubs and West End shows, as well as playing in more jazz-based situations such as

Mike Westbrook Michael John David Westbrook (born 21 March 1936) is an English jazz pianist, composer, and writer of orchestrated jazz pieces. He is married to the vocalist, librettist and painter Kate Westbrook. Early work Mike Westbrook was born in Hig ...

’s 'Solid Gold Cadillac'. In the 1980’s he joined the

Tony Oxley Tony Oxley (15 June 1938 – 26 December 2023) was an English free improvisation, free improvising drummer and electronic musician. Born in Sheffield, Oxley moved to London in 1966 and became house drummer at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club where he ...

Quintet and played in various versions of the band and also with the Celebration Orchestra, for many years. Around the same time he joined the London Jazz Composers Orchestra as well as

Peter Brötzmann Peter Brötzmann (6 March 1941 – 22 June 2023) was a German jazz saxophonist and clarinetist regarded as a central and pioneering figure in European free jazz. Throughout his career, he released over fifty albums as a bandleader. Amongst his m ...

’s Alarm Orchestra and its successor the tentet 'Marz Combo'. He also worked with, among others, the Eddie Prevost Quartet,

Trevor Watts Trevor Charles Watts (born 26 February 1939) is an English people, English jazz and free improvisation, free-improvising alto and soprano saxophonist. Biography Watts was born in York, England. He is largely self-taught, having taken up the ...

’ Moire Music, Louis Moholo’s Spirits Rejoice,

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 ...

’s Ninesense and the Heinz Becker Quintet. He also played in the cult pop group

Weekend The weekdays and weekend are the complementary parts of the week, devoted to labour and rest, respectively. The legal weekdays (British English), or workweek (American English), is the part of the seven-day week devoted to working. In most o ...

and started writing with its guitarist Simon Booth. This later evolved into Working Week, a band that took a mix of Latin, soul, jazz and funk into the pop charts. From the Latin Jazz Dance scene in London clubs, the band mixed jazz with Latin dance rhythms and vocals by singers such as

Juliet Roberts Juliet Roberts (born 6 May 1962) is a British jazz, rock, soul and house music singer of Grenadian descent. Career Roberts was born in London, England. She originally recorded as Julie Roberts in 1982, and performed on the 1983 top 10 hit si ...

Julie Tippetts Julie Driscoll Tippett (born 8 June 1947) is an English singer and actress, known for her work with Brian Auger and her husband, Keith Tippett. Career Driscoll is known for her 1960s versions of Bob Dylan and Rick Danko's " This Wheel's on F ...

Robert Wyatt Robert Wyatt (born Robert Wyatt-Ellidge, 28 January 1945) is an English retired musician. A founding member of the influential Canterbury scene bands Soft Machine and Matching Mole, he was initially a kit drummer and singer before becoming para ...

and Tracy Thorn. The band toured extensively in Europe and Japan, performing at most of Europe's major Jazz Festivals and recording five albums for

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

. Following the breakup of Working Week he formed 'QRZ?' a fusion of jazz and rap which also recorded for

and for the German label Loud Minority. In recent years Stabbins has worked with Keith Tippett’s Tapestry Orchestra, in Louis Moholo’s Dedication Orchestra, in a quartet with Howard Riley, playing the music of Robert Wyatt in ''Soupsongs'', and in

Jerry Dammers Jeremy David Hounsell Dammers GCOT (born 22 May 1955) is a British musician who was a founder, keyboard player and primary songwriter of the Coventry-based ska band the Specials (also known as the Special A.K.A.) and later the Spatial AKA Orch ...

Spatial AKA Orchestra. The album ''Stonephace'' (2009) on Tru Thoughts Recordings, a collaboration with rave producer and DJ Krzysztof Oktalski, featured Portishead guitarist

Adrian Utley Adrian Francis Utley (born 27 April 1957) is an English musician, record producer, and a member of the band Portishead.Jurek, ThomAdrian Utley Biography, Allmusic. Retrieved 31 December 2016 Career Born in Northampton,Mejia, Paula (2015)In Sea ...

and Helm DeVegas on keyboards, plus a guest appearance by trumpeter

Guy Barker Guy Jeffrey Barker, (born 26 December 1957) is an English jazz trumpeter and composer. Early life Barker was born in Chiswick, London, the son of an actress and a stuntman. He started playing the trumpet at the age of twelve, and within a year ...

.''Wax Poetics'', No.34, The Jazz Issue, p.36 His latest project 'Stonephace Stabbins' features Mercury nominated pianist Zoe Rahman, Crispin "Spry" Robinson from 1990's Jazz/Rap band Galliano on percussion, Karl Rasheed Abel on bass and Pat Illingworth on drums, all of whom also play in Jerry Dammers’ Spatial AKA Orchestra.

Discography

* 1971 - '' Septober Energy'' -

(

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 ...

) * 1973 - ''Mouthpiece'' - Spontaneous Music Orchestra, ( Emanem 4039) * 1976 - ''Fire Without Bricks'' - Ashbury/Stabbins Duo, (Bead 4) * 1978 - ''Frames'' - Keith Tippett's Ark, (

Ogun Ogun or Ogoun ( Yoruba: Ògún, Edo: Ògún, Portuguese: Ogum, Gu; also spelled Oggun or Ogou; known as Ogún or Ogum in Latin America) is a Yoruba Orisha that is adopted in several African religions. Ògún is a warrior and a powerful spi ...

) * 1979 - ''Mama Lapato''- Mama Lapato, (Bead 20) * 1980 - ''Stringer'' - London Jazz Composers Orchestra, (FMP SAJ-41) * 1982 - ''Tern'' - Moholo, Stabbins, Tippett. *FMP SAJ-43/44, Unheard Music Series) * 1983 - ''Continuum'' - Eddie Prevost Quartet, (Matchless MR7, re-released with extra tracks as MRCD07 1999) * 1985 - ''A Loose Kite...'' - Keith Tippett Septet, (Ogun 007/008) * 1985 - ''Tomorrow Is Here'' -

Celebration Orchestra, (Dossier ST 7507) * 1985 - '' Working Nights'' - Working Week (

) * 1986 - '' Compañeros'' - Working Week, (Virgin Records) * 1987 - ''Surrender'' - Working Week, (Virgin Records) * 1989 - ''Fire In The Mountain '' - Working Week, (Virgin Records) * 1989 - ''Black and Gold'' - Working Week, (Virgin Records) * 1992 - ''The Marz Combo'' -

Tentet,(FMP CD47) * 1998 - ''Live at Le Mans'' - Keith Tippett Tapestry Orchestra, (Red Eye Music redeye008) * 1999 - ''Prayer'' - Larry Stabbins & Oktal (one track on ''Talking Drums''), (Unknown Public 12) * 2001 - ''Four In The Afternoon'' - Wren/Stabbins/Riley/Sanders, (Emanem 4067) * 2003 - ''Monadic'' (Emanem CD 4093) * 2009 - ''Stonephace (Tru Thoughts)'' - Stonephace * 2022 - ''

Unreleased 1974–2016 ''Unreleased 1974–2016'' is an album by drummer and electronic musician Tony Oxley. The first three tracks were recorded in 1974, and feature Oxley with trumpeter Dave Holdsworth, trombonist Paul Rutherford, pianist Howard Riley, and bassist Ba ...

'' -

, (Discus) recorded in 1974, 1981, and 2016

References

External links

* Latest project.
Biography
European Improvisers pages.
ABJ Biography
All About Jazz biography.

Article regarding Monadic. *

All Music Guide AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the data ...

Discography, biography.
Tru Thoughts
Brighton based record label for Stonephace.
Discogs
Discogs.com listing for Larry Stabbins. {{DEFAULTSORT:Stabbins, Larry 1949 births Avant-garde jazz musicians British jazz composers British jazz saxophonists British male saxophonists British jazz flautists Living people Emanem Records artists Centipede (band) members 21st-century saxophonists Working Week (band) members British male jazz composers 21st-century British male musicians 21st-century British flautists RCA Records artists FMP/Free Music Production artists Virgin Records artists Musicians from Bristol