Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club Returns
Author: jdeverall
Club's History
Friday October 30th, 1959 was probably the most important day in the history of the London jazz scene. It was the day that Ronnie Scott and fellow tenor saxophonist Pete King embarked on what would eventually become a life-long journey. It was the day that their Jazz club opened for business, in a basement premises at 39 Gerrard Street in London's famous Soho district.
The Big Apple
12 years before the opening of his club, a young and promising tenor saxophonist, Ronnie Scott, made a once in a lifetime trip to New York in search of the ultimate Jazz experience, where he would encounter the likes of Miles Davis, the Charlie Parker Quintet, the Three Deuces, and the Dizzy Gillespie Big Band. It was really his first chance to see the greats that before he had only heard on record, and its impact on
his enthusiasm for recreating the kind of clubs he witnessed on this trip to New York was important for the future. At the time, American unions banned musicians from travelling, starving the hopes of British jazz enthusiasts from seeing their heroes on home soil.
39 Gerrard Street
In early 1959 Ronnie Scott and Pete King began looking for suitable premises for their new club. They eventually found an old taxi driver's rest room and teahouse that musicians used to frequent, on Soho's Gerrard Street. The original intention was to simply provide a location for British jazz musicians to jam and share their love for their music. After getting a loan of £1,000 from his stepfather, Ronnie and Pete signed the lease and took out a small ad in Melody Maker to announce the grand opening performance: "Tubby Hayes Quartet; the trio with Eddie Thompson, Stan Roberts, Spike Heatley. A young alto saxophonist, Peter King, and an old tenor saxophonist, Ronnie Scott. The first appearance in a jazz club since the relief of Mafeking by Jack Parnell".
Unions Lift Ban in USA
Although the club was attracting all the best musicians of British jazz, the dream of booking the leading American talent was yet to be fulfilled due to the US Musician's Union's hard stance. After two years Pete and Ronnie decided to fight for their right to hear the greats of the US and King began negotiations with both the Musician's Union and the American Federation of Musicians. Eventually, King persuaded the MU and AFM to lift the ban and an exchange program was worked out whereby UK musicians could travel to the States and vice versa. The Tubby Hayes Quartet went off to play the Half Note Club in New York - and the great Zoot Sims was booked in for a four-week residency at Ronnie Scott's club in November 1961. Ronnie Scott's was the first to offer engagements to American musicians in a club setting and a new era in the British jazz scene was born.
Zoot Sims trail-blazing session paved the way for guest appearances by other American tenorists, including Johnny Griffin, Roland Kirk, Al Cohn, Stan Getz, Sonny Stitt, Benny Golson and Ben Webster. There were also visits by Bill Evans, Wes Montgomery, Freddie Hubbard, Donald Byrd and Art Farmer.
Moving to 47 Frith Street
With an influx of all the jazz greats, Ronnie Scott's was booming and was in need of bigger premises. In the summer of 1965 Scott and King discovered 47 Frith Street, also in Soho, and instantly knew it was the place they wanted, but it wasn't going to be cheap. They needed £35,000 to redecorate, so top promoter and friend Harold Davison stepped in to help finance the new club. However, Scott and King kept 39 Gerrard St. as a venue for young British jazz musicians to play and develop, until the lease ran out in 1967.
In spring 1968 Ronnie and Pete seized at the opportunity to extend the Frith Street premises to include the building next door, allowing them to add an upstairs room where pop acts could be showcased, and a downstairs bar. The extended club reopened with the Buddy Rich Band in October 1968, with an enlarged seating capacity of 250.
Ronnie Scott
Born as Ronald Schatt on 28th January 1927 in East London, Ronnie Scott became a leading figure on the British jazz scene, as both a tenor saxophonist and the owner of London's infamous jazz club bearing his own name.
His father, Jock Scott, was a dance band saxophonist and undoubtedly a major influence on Ronnie's love of music. He bought his first cornet from a local junk shop, before moving on to play the soprano saxophone. It wasn't until his teens, however, that he settled with the tenor sax. He performed at a local youth club with aspiring drummer Tony Crombie before starting to play the odd professional gig. After backing Carlo Krahmer, Scott went on tour with trumpeter Johnny Claes in 1945. In 1946 he joined the well-known Ted Heath Big Band, before making his way to New York to explore the latest sounds, talent, and venue first hand.
Scott regularly returned to New York after opting to play alongside alto saxophonist Johnny Dankworth on the transatlantic ocean liner, The Queen Mary. Despite his regular traveling, however, Ronnie continued to etch out his role as a vital figure of the growing London bop scene. In 1948 he co-founded Club Eleven, the first club in the UK to be entirely devoted to jazz. During these next years he developed the “lyrical but harmonically complex style that would remain the hallmark of his career”, backing drummer Jack Parnell in his orchestra before finally forming his own band in 1953.
The Scott band was a nine-piece group and included Pete King, who Ronnie would eventually open his club with. They made their fist public appearance in association with a performance by Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic touring revue. This debut was an important moment for British jazz, and the starting point of the post war era. After reaching great fame, Scott dissolved the band in 1956 and founded the Jazz Couriers with saxophonist Tubby Hayes, who would later headline with Scott at the opening of Ronnie Scott's jazz club. The pair reached further fame before eventually splitting in 1959 when Scott began dreaming up his plan to start a London jazz club of his own in the spirit and style of New York's iconic 52nd Street clubs.
Opening on October 31st, 1959 Ronnie Scott's Club soon outgrew his venue, especially when the American acts arrived following the lift of the union's ban in 1961. Following the first American act, Zoot Sims, the club was entertained by a whole host of American tenor icons including Dexter Gordon, Ronald Kirk, Stan Getz, Sonny Stitt, Ben Webster, and Sonny Rollins. Ronnie moved the club to its present venue in 1965 to accommodate its growing popularity.
Much of Ronnie's time was spent at the club entertaining the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, but he did still find some time to tour with a quartet featuring pianist Stan Stracey and his Charlie Parker-inspired playing style was admired in both the US and in Britain. In 1961 Charles Mingus commented that “of all the white boys, Ronnie Scott gets closer to the negro blues feeling, the way Zoot Sims does”. During the late 60's he also led an eight-piece group that allowed him to produce the most characteristic and experimental music of his extraordinary career. During this period Ronnie also did occasional session work, famously playing a solo of The Beatles' Lady Madonna.
In 1981 Ronnie Scott's efforts were officially recognised when he received an OBE for his ‘services to jazz'. On December 23rd 1996 at the age of sixty-nine Ronnie Scott tragically passed away, but his legacy remains and his extraordinary efforts and achievements will never be forgotten.
A New Era
After Ronnie's death, Pete King continued to run the club for nine further years before it ran into financial difficulty. Pete sold the club in June 2005 to well-known businessman Robert Bourne and his wife, theatre impresario Sally Greene, both famed for their love and patronage of the dramatic arts. Bourne and Greene were responsible for restoring the Old Vic, Richmond Theatre, and Criterion Theatre. They spent months refurbishing the club with the help of world-famous designer Jacques Garcia. In June 2006 it reopened with Pete as the club's honorary lifetime President.
Thank you Robert Bourne and Sally Greene
I have been going to Ronnie Scott's Club for forty years and when Ronnie died I was worried about its future. My concerns grew when I heard that Pete was selling the club but when I went along to check it out for the first time after it reopened I breathed a huge sigh of relief. They have managed to update it without ruining the original charm that others and I have enjoyed for so long. It still has a great vibe and now a freshness and new energy to it that sent shivers up my spine. I was especially pleased with the crowd it is attracting. As well as the old timers like myself and the tourists, there were loads of young people that gave me hope for the club's future. The food was great, and the music was fantastic. My wife and I have a newfound love for the club that has been an important part of our lives (I took her there on our first date in 1967) and I now make it a regular fixture when I come up to London. I would like to thank both Robert Bourne and his wife Sally Greene for staying true to the great history of this important establishment and for giving it the new lease of life that will hopefully make certain that the club remains and can be enjoyed by future generations.
Ronnie's Bands
- Alan Dean's Beboppers - 1949
Ronnie Scott (ts), Johnny Dankworth (as), Hank Shaw (tp), Tommy Pollard (p), Pete Chilver (g), Joe Muddel (b), Laurie Morgan (d), Alan Dean (vocal).
- Ronnie Scott Orchestra - 1954, 1955
Ronnie Scott (ts), Derek Humble (as), Pete King (ts), Hank Shaw (tp), Ken Wray (tb), Benny Green (bs), Victor Feldman (p), Lennie Bush (b), Phil Seamen (d).
- Ronnie Scott Quintet - 1955
Ronnie Scott (ts), Hank Shaw (tp), Victor Feldman (p), Sammy Stokes/Lennie Bush (b), Phil Seamen (d).
- Ronnie Scott Big Band - 1955
Ronnie Scott, Pete King, (ts), Joe Harriott, Doug Robinson (as), Benny Green (bs), Stan Palmer, Hank Shaw, Dave Usden, Jimmy Watson, (tp) Jack Botterill, Robin Kaye, Mac Minshull, Ken Wray (tb), Norman Stenfalt (p), Eric Peter (b), Phil Seamen (d).
(On April 7th, 1957, The Jazz Couriers co-led by Tubby Hayes and Ronnie Scott, debuted at the new Flamingo Club in Wardour Street, Soho. The group lasted until August 30th, 1959.)
- The Jazz Couriers
Ronnie Scott (ts), Tubby Hayes (ts, vib), Terry Shannon (p), Phil Bates (b), Bill Eyden (d).
- Ronnie Scott Quartet (1964)
Ronnie Scott (ts), Stan Tracey (p), Malcolm Cecil (b), Jackie Dougan (d).
- Ronnie Scott Quintet (1990)
Dick Pearce (tp), Ronnie Scott (ts), John Critchinson (p), Ron Mathewson (b), Martin Drew (d).
Selected Discography
1948: Boppin' at Esquire (indigo)
1958: The Couriers of Jazz! (Carlton/Fresh Sounds)
1965: The Night Is Scott and You're So Swingable (Redial)
1965: When I Want Your Opinion, I'll Give it to You (Jazz House)
1969: Live at Ronnie Scott's (Columbia)
1977: Serious Gold (Pye)
1990: Never Pat a Burning Dog (Jazz House)
1997: If I Want Your Opinion (Jazz House)
1997: The Night Has a Thousand Eyes (Jazz House)
2000: Boppin' at Esquire (Indigo)
2002: Ronnie Scott Live at the Jazz Club (Time Music)
Friday October 30th, 1959 was probably the most important day in the history of the London jazz scene. It was the day that Ronnie Scott and fellow tenor saxophonist Pete King embarked on what would eventually become a life-long journey. It was the day that their Jazz club opened for business, in a basement premises at 39 Gerrard Street in London's famous Soho district.
The Big Apple
12 years before the opening of his club, a young and promising tenor saxophonist, Ronnie Scott, made a once in a lifetime trip to New York in search of the ultimate Jazz experience, where he would encounter the likes of Miles Davis, the Charlie Parker Quintet, the Three Deuces, and the Dizzy Gillespie Big Band. It was really his first chance to see the greats that before he had only heard on record, and its impact on
his enthusiasm for recreating the kind of clubs he witnessed on this trip to New York was important for the future. At the time, American unions banned musicians from travelling, starving the hopes of British jazz enthusiasts from seeing their heroes on home soil.
39 Gerrard Street
In early 1959 Ronnie Scott and Pete King began looking for suitable premises for their new club. They eventually found an old taxi driver's rest room and teahouse that musicians used to frequent, on Soho's Gerrard Street. The original intention was to simply provide a location for British jazz musicians to jam and share their love for their music. After getting a loan of £1,000 from his stepfather, Ronnie and Pete signed the lease and took out a small ad in Melody Maker to announce the grand opening performance: "Tubby Hayes Quartet; the trio with Eddie Thompson, Stan Roberts, Spike Heatley. A young alto saxophonist, Peter King, and an old tenor saxophonist, Ronnie Scott. The first appearance in a jazz club since the relief of Mafeking by Jack Parnell".
Unions Lift Ban in USA
Although the club was attracting all the best musicians of British jazz, the dream of booking the leading American talent was yet to be fulfilled due to the US Musician's Union's hard stance. After two years Pete and Ronnie decided to fight for their right to hear the greats of the US and King began negotiations with both the Musician's Union and the American Federation of Musicians. Eventually, King persuaded the MU and AFM to lift the ban and an exchange program was worked out whereby UK musicians could travel to the States and vice versa. The Tubby Hayes Quartet went off to play the Half Note Club in New York - and the great Zoot Sims was booked in for a four-week residency at Ronnie Scott's club in November 1961. Ronnie Scott's was the first to offer engagements to American musicians in a club setting and a new era in the British jazz scene was born.
Zoot Sims trail-blazing session paved the way for guest appearances by other American tenorists, including Johnny Griffin, Roland Kirk, Al Cohn, Stan Getz, Sonny Stitt, Benny Golson and Ben Webster. There were also visits by Bill Evans, Wes Montgomery, Freddie Hubbard, Donald Byrd and Art Farmer.
Moving to 47 Frith Street
With an influx of all the jazz greats, Ronnie Scott's was booming and was in need of bigger premises. In the summer of 1965 Scott and King discovered 47 Frith Street, also in Soho, and instantly knew it was the place they wanted, but it wasn't going to be cheap. They needed £35,000 to redecorate, so top promoter and friend Harold Davison stepped in to help finance the new club. However, Scott and King kept 39 Gerrard St. as a venue for young British jazz musicians to play and develop, until the lease ran out in 1967.
In spring 1968 Ronnie and Pete seized at the opportunity to extend the Frith Street premises to include the building next door, allowing them to add an upstairs room where pop acts could be showcased, and a downstairs bar. The extended club reopened with the Buddy Rich Band in October 1968, with an enlarged seating capacity of 250.
Ronnie Scott
Born as Ronald Schatt on 28th January 1927 in East London, Ronnie Scott became a leading figure on the British jazz scene, as both a tenor saxophonist and the owner of London's infamous jazz club bearing his own name.
His father, Jock Scott, was a dance band saxophonist and undoubtedly a major influence on Ronnie's love of music. He bought his first cornet from a local junk shop, before moving on to play the soprano saxophone. It wasn't until his teens, however, that he settled with the tenor sax. He performed at a local youth club with aspiring drummer Tony Crombie before starting to play the odd professional gig. After backing Carlo Krahmer, Scott went on tour with trumpeter Johnny Claes in 1945. In 1946 he joined the well-known Ted Heath Big Band, before making his way to New York to explore the latest sounds, talent, and venue first hand.
Scott regularly returned to New York after opting to play alongside alto saxophonist Johnny Dankworth on the transatlantic ocean liner, The Queen Mary. Despite his regular traveling, however, Ronnie continued to etch out his role as a vital figure of the growing London bop scene. In 1948 he co-founded Club Eleven, the first club in the UK to be entirely devoted to jazz. During these next years he developed the “lyrical but harmonically complex style that would remain the hallmark of his career”, backing drummer Jack Parnell in his orchestra before finally forming his own band in 1953.
The Scott band was a nine-piece group and included Pete King, who Ronnie would eventually open his club with. They made their fist public appearance in association with a performance by Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic touring revue. This debut was an important moment for British jazz, and the starting point of the post war era. After reaching great fame, Scott dissolved the band in 1956 and founded the Jazz Couriers with saxophonist Tubby Hayes, who would later headline with Scott at the opening of Ronnie Scott's jazz club. The pair reached further fame before eventually splitting in 1959 when Scott began dreaming up his plan to start a London jazz club of his own in the spirit and style of New York's iconic 52nd Street clubs.
Opening on October 31st, 1959 Ronnie Scott's Club soon outgrew his venue, especially when the American acts arrived following the lift of the union's ban in 1961. Following the first American act, Zoot Sims, the club was entertained by a whole host of American tenor icons including Dexter Gordon, Ronald Kirk, Stan Getz, Sonny Stitt, Ben Webster, and Sonny Rollins. Ronnie moved the club to its present venue in 1965 to accommodate its growing popularity.
Much of Ronnie's time was spent at the club entertaining the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, but he did still find some time to tour with a quartet featuring pianist Stan Stracey and his Charlie Parker-inspired playing style was admired in both the US and in Britain. In 1961 Charles Mingus commented that “of all the white boys, Ronnie Scott gets closer to the negro blues feeling, the way Zoot Sims does”. During the late 60's he also led an eight-piece group that allowed him to produce the most characteristic and experimental music of his extraordinary career. During this period Ronnie also did occasional session work, famously playing a solo of The Beatles' Lady Madonna.
In 1981 Ronnie Scott's efforts were officially recognised when he received an OBE for his ‘services to jazz'. On December 23rd 1996 at the age of sixty-nine Ronnie Scott tragically passed away, but his legacy remains and his extraordinary efforts and achievements will never be forgotten.
A New Era
After Ronnie's death, Pete King continued to run the club for nine further years before it ran into financial difficulty. Pete sold the club in June 2005 to well-known businessman Robert Bourne and his wife, theatre impresario Sally Greene, both famed for their love and patronage of the dramatic arts. Bourne and Greene were responsible for restoring the Old Vic, Richmond Theatre, and Criterion Theatre. They spent months refurbishing the club with the help of world-famous designer Jacques Garcia. In June 2006 it reopened with Pete as the club's honorary lifetime President.
Thank you Robert Bourne and Sally Greene
I have been going to Ronnie Scott's Club for forty years and when Ronnie died I was worried about its future. My concerns grew when I heard that Pete was selling the club but when I went along to check it out for the first time after it reopened I breathed a huge sigh of relief. They have managed to update it without ruining the original charm that others and I have enjoyed for so long. It still has a great vibe and now a freshness and new energy to it that sent shivers up my spine. I was especially pleased with the crowd it is attracting. As well as the old timers like myself and the tourists, there were loads of young people that gave me hope for the club's future. The food was great, and the music was fantastic. My wife and I have a newfound love for the club that has been an important part of our lives (I took her there on our first date in 1967) and I now make it a regular fixture when I come up to London. I would like to thank both Robert Bourne and his wife Sally Greene for staying true to the great history of this important establishment and for giving it the new lease of life that will hopefully make certain that the club remains and can be enjoyed by future generations.
Ronnie's Bands
- Alan Dean's Beboppers - 1949
Ronnie Scott (ts), Johnny Dankworth (as), Hank Shaw (tp), Tommy Pollard (p), Pete Chilver (g), Joe Muddel (b), Laurie Morgan (d), Alan Dean (vocal).
- Ronnie Scott Orchestra - 1954, 1955
Ronnie Scott (ts), Derek Humble (as), Pete King (ts), Hank Shaw (tp), Ken Wray (tb), Benny Green (bs), Victor Feldman (p), Lennie Bush (b), Phil Seamen (d).
- Ronnie Scott Quintet - 1955
Ronnie Scott (ts), Hank Shaw (tp), Victor Feldman (p), Sammy Stokes/Lennie Bush (b), Phil Seamen (d).
- Ronnie Scott Big Band - 1955
Ronnie Scott, Pete King, (ts), Joe Harriott, Doug Robinson (as), Benny Green (bs), Stan Palmer, Hank Shaw, Dave Usden, Jimmy Watson, (tp) Jack Botterill, Robin Kaye, Mac Minshull, Ken Wray (tb), Norman Stenfalt (p), Eric Peter (b), Phil Seamen (d).
(On April 7th, 1957, The Jazz Couriers co-led by Tubby Hayes and Ronnie Scott, debuted at the new Flamingo Club in Wardour Street, Soho. The group lasted until August 30th, 1959.)
- The Jazz Couriers
Ronnie Scott (ts), Tubby Hayes (ts, vib), Terry Shannon (p), Phil Bates (b), Bill Eyden (d).
- Ronnie Scott Quartet (1964)
Ronnie Scott (ts), Stan Tracey (p), Malcolm Cecil (b), Jackie Dougan (d).
- Ronnie Scott Quintet (1990)
Dick Pearce (tp), Ronnie Scott (ts), John Critchinson (p), Ron Mathewson (b), Martin Drew (d).
Selected Discography
1948: Boppin' at Esquire (indigo)
1958: The Couriers of Jazz! (Carlton/Fresh Sounds)
1965: The Night Is Scott and You're So Swingable (Redial)
1965: When I Want Your Opinion, I'll Give it to You (Jazz House)
1969: Live at Ronnie Scott's (Columbia)
1977: Serious Gold (Pye)
1990: Never Pat a Burning Dog (Jazz House)
1997: If I Want Your Opinion (Jazz House)
1997: The Night Has a Thousand Eyes (Jazz House)
2000: Boppin' at Esquire (Indigo)
2002: Ronnie Scott Live at the Jazz Club (Time Music)
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