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Funny how things work out...
Sep. 28th, 2012 11:52 pmBack in the early '70s I was pretty much obsessed with British dance bands of the 1930s and was heavily involved with a music magazine called Memory Lane which celebrated that particular genre of music. It was through Memory Lane that I got to meet a guy named Colin Brown and we struck up a bit of an unlikely friendship given the difference in our ages (I was 16 or 17, Colin was pushing 40). Colin had worked in the music industry all his life and had loads of fascinating stories to tell, but best of all from my point of view was the fact that he had grown up next door to my great idol, the jazz trumpeter Nat Gonella, and the pair had remained close friends.
Colin took me to meet Nat on two occasions - once in Rotherham (big adventure, I'd never been any further north than Hertfordshire at that time! *g*) and then again in Lewisham (not such a big adventure!). I remember watching Nat perform from the wings (I've still got the photos I took) and then going backstage to his dressing room for a chat. Both occasions were completely magical to me, and I'll never forget them.
I lost touch with Colin over the years, not for any particular reason, it just sort of seemed to happen. Anyway, tonight I suddenly had the fancy to listen to some Nat Gonella recordings and thought I'd take a look on YouTube. There was plenty of Nat's stuff on there - and also, to my great surprise, a short clip of an interview with my old friend Colin! I was amazed! And then I started to wonder if there was any way of contacting him, so off I went to the trusty Google...
Well, I found Colin alright, but I was six weeks too late. What I found was an obituary for him - he died last month following a fall at his home.
Considering I've had no contact with the man for almost 40 years I feel quite sad. What a pity that I didn't stumble across that YouTube clip two months ago.
I've got about 30 old Nat Gonella 78s stashed away in a cupboard that Colin gave me the first time I met him. I think I'll dig them out tomorrow and have a bit of session in his honour.
RIP Colin Brown 1934 - 2012
Colin took me to meet Nat on two occasions - once in Rotherham (big adventure, I'd never been any further north than Hertfordshire at that time! *g*) and then again in Lewisham (not such a big adventure!). I remember watching Nat perform from the wings (I've still got the photos I took) and then going backstage to his dressing room for a chat. Both occasions were completely magical to me, and I'll never forget them.
I lost touch with Colin over the years, not for any particular reason, it just sort of seemed to happen. Anyway, tonight I suddenly had the fancy to listen to some Nat Gonella recordings and thought I'd take a look on YouTube. There was plenty of Nat's stuff on there - and also, to my great surprise, a short clip of an interview with my old friend Colin! I was amazed! And then I started to wonder if there was any way of contacting him, so off I went to the trusty Google...
Well, I found Colin alright, but I was six weeks too late. What I found was an obituary for him - he died last month following a fall at his home.
Considering I've had no contact with the man for almost 40 years I feel quite sad. What a pity that I didn't stumble across that YouTube clip two months ago.
I've got about 30 old Nat Gonella 78s stashed away in a cupboard that Colin gave me the first time I met him. I think I'll dig them out tomorrow and have a bit of session in his honour.
RIP Colin Brown 1934 - 2012
