My first recollections of British big bands were around 1939 when at the age of about four I used to listen to the bands played on my parents radio. (We called it the "wireless" in those days).

I used to blow a kazoo along with the tunes played by such names as Henry Hall, Ambrose, Roy Fox and Jack Hilton. American bands were not often heard then and it was usually the cinema (movies) that gave us a chance to see and hear those.

But, at that early age of four, that was still to come.

Soon after the end of World War II, many of the American big bands were then able to be heard on the American Forces Network (AFN), probably broadcasting from somewhere in Germany.

I recall skipping school (the only time I played truancy from school) so that I could get to listen one afternoon.

Meanwhile, the BBC broadcast such programmes as "Music While You Work" that featured most of the big bands working the dance halls, mostly Mecca Ballrooms, up and down the country.

So it was mainly the old 78's that I relied on to give me my big band and jazz buzz.

For me, it was always Ted Heath and his music that was at the top of my list. I shall never forget getting the chance to chat with him briefly when the band was playing at the Empire Rooms in London's Tottenham Court Road around 1957-1958.

More of my memories next time....

Lionel Leighton
Worthing, West Sussex
United Kingdom
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When I wrote my first part back in August I fully intended to write the next part soon after. But life can play tricks to mess up the best laid plans.

George, quite rightly, sent me an email reminding me that I was long overdue to write more. And so here it is.

Generally in the UK the music of the big bands was completely different to that of the USA. Ours had a distinct sound, a flavour if you like, that was unique.

Perhaps this was because in the 1930s there was less opportunity to hear the styles of the American bands. I suspect the make up of the bands might have been different or smaller.

Most of the large towns in the UK would have Dance Halls of which many would have been Palais owned by the Mecca group.

I believe the largest was the Hammersmith Palais in London which I was told had a sloping floor so that you would find yourself dancing uphill one way and then downhill the other.

Many of the bands were on the Mecca circuit much of the time with some taking up permanent residency. Names such as Lou Preager, Joe Loss, Ken Mackintosh, Harry Gold, Oscar Rabin and Johnny Howard spring to mind.

The BBC broadcasts had other well known names, possibly unheard of beyond our shores. There was Jack Hylton, Billy Cotton, Jay Wilbur, Roy Fox, Henry Hall, Ambrose, Geraldo, Edmundo Ross, Stanley Black, Lew Stone, Jack Payne, Harry Roy, Caroll Gibbons, Nat Gonella, Harold Geller, Nat Temple and countless others all with a recognisible style of their own.

They all had a profound effect on my own musical career which continues to the present time.

More from me next time and I'll try to make it sooner.

Lionel Leighton
Worthing, West Sussex
United Kingdom
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Well, once again George has had to give me a reminder that I've not posted for some time.

Sorry about that, but it's very difficult to find time as a working musician and looking after a home on my own, and at 73 years old, time seems to fly by. But enough of that.

It seems to me that perhaps US fans have a different perspective on big bands and swing than those of us living in the UK.

It was the Second World War that gave the UK the opportunity to hear Glenn Miller and other well known American bands. During the 30's and 40's, those of us in the UK enjoyed a distinctive big band sound of our own. In fac, we heard many different sounds.

Our big bands played in the dance halls across the land. Not many towns were without the Saturday night dance, even if some may have been held at very down-at-the heel-venues.

Halls were usually packed with dancers wanting to hear the latest music from across the pond and during the war it was this that kept our spirits up when things looked bleak. Dance Palais in bigger towns and cities would be part of large company circuits like the Mecca Group, who owned prestigious venues such as the Hammersmith Palais in the west of London and the Lyceum Ballroom in the heart of London.

It was in those that the big names would play weekly or longer. Joe Loss, Lou Preager, and Jack Parnell are names that come to mind.

Most of the bands had some very fine musicians and singers. It's probably true to say that none of these ever got known in the US except for a handful of lucky ones, such as Ted Heath and His Orchestra and much later the Syd Lawrence Orchestra.

The US had its service personnel bands like Glenn Miller. the only one that anyone would know in the UK, but British bands were often originally military ones. The RAF had "The Squadronaires" along with Navy and Army bands,. (Sorry, can only remember "The Squadronaires" at the moment)

Our big bands continued well into the late 50s and early 60s when everything was turned upside down with the power of the teenager and pop music. Flower Power, Beatles and the high cost of booking big bands saw a fast decline in them. My own band contributed to its own downfall. We went from seven to four, to a trio, to a duo -- and now I sit at my "all singing, all dancing" Yamaha keyboard on my own, still playing for dances and trying to re-create the big band sound.

Lionel Leighton
Worthing, West Sussex
United Kingdom
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