The Jazz Professional website was produced and presented by Ron Simmonds, a career trumpet player who played in very many of the great British, German and American jazz orchestras. For ten years he was Chief Editor (North America and the Far East) for the Deutsche Welle, Cologne and Studio Berlin.
Jazz Professional is a tribute to the great and famous of the jazz world, written by one who was there amongst them. To visit the original site go to www.jazzprofessional.com
A key feature of the site is the many interviews carried out by journalist, historian and record producer Les Tomkins. It is thanks to Les and to the legacy of Ron and Connie Simmonds, that the National Jazz Archive is able to keep this valuable resource online for new generations to discover.
The original site can be visited using the link on the right, while much of the material is presented here for the first time as a key part of the Story of British Jazz.
Les Tomkins
All of the interviews in the Jazz Professional website were taped over a period of some thirty years and transcribed by Les Tomkins, the English journalist, singer and jazz aficionado. Born on 31st October 1930 he quickly moved into the jazz world, running a jazz club near London in 1950 in which many British jazz stars performed. In 1957 he became the secretary of the Contemporary Jazz Society, and remained so until 1960. There he began interviewing jazz musicians, especially famous Americans visiting England. Some of these interviews were submitted to, and published by the contemporary jazz newspaper Melody Maker. In 1961-2 he freelanced as a contributor to Jazz News, then, in 1962 he began an association with Crescendo magazine that kept him occupied well into the 1980s. By 1966 he was the magazine's editor and art editor. From 1970 he continued as a freelance editor, contributor, and art director to the magazine.
From The Archive:
* Ronnie Scott - The Club and I
* Tubby Hayes Interview