Mike Hadlow, formerly of Great Britain,
now resides in New Jersey in the USA.
Mike's an avid collector, especially of the
Modern Jazz Quartet, so when the MJQ
and RR got together at the Royal Festival
Hall, on November 21st in the sixties,
Mike was present.
Mike was helping the
Thurrock Jazz Society
at the time and managed to get back stage
and had a chat with his idol, John Lewis
of the MJQ.
"What a lovely man he was" said Mike.
The photos that appear on our site, taken at the Thurrock Jazz Society,
Grays in Essex, by Mike's English friend,
Bryan Ginns, brought
back vivid recollections of meeting Ronnie and Allan Ganley,
at the time
known as "The Jazzmakers". It was to be their last "gig"
before going
their separate ways. Mike remembers Ronnie as a quiet, dignified man.
During two years of National Service (1955-57)
Mike went to the Samson
and Hercules Ballroom in Norwich, Norfolk and danced to the
famous
Ronnie Scott nine piece band which included another one of
Mike's heroes,
Benny Green.
In retrospect, Mike recalls the days
in the mid-fifties when he went
to the Marquee and Flamingo jazz clubs and saw Ronnie Ross,
Phil Seaman, Joe Harriot along with Tubby Hayes, Ronnie Scott
and
Tony Kinsey. Mike said "I didn't think about it at the time
but when
I emigrated to the States and discovered how much respect
Americans
had for these musicians I realized how lucky I was to have
seen these
guys every week".
