Ayr man following in Lonnie’s footsteps

May 14 2008 By Edwin Lawrence, Ayrshire Post

AN Ayr man is the first Scot in a legendary band since the late great Lonnie Donegan.

Trombonist John Service has teamed up with the renowned Chris Barber.

Chris’s band changed the face of British popular music when Lonnie did his skiffle numbers in the 1950s.

And the The Beatles admitted it was Lonnie who inspired them to pick up guitars.

John Service was thrilled when Chris Barber phoned him with an invitation to join what is now The Big Chris Barber Band.

At 43, John is the youngest in the band, with Chris and trumpeter Pat Halcox both now 78.

One of John’s first gigs was in the band’s sensational appearance on a recent Later. . . with Jools Holland.

John’s early education was at Heathfield Primary School and later Mainholm Academy. He went on to study accountancy at Glasgow University.

But the jazz bug had bitten him long before then, and he was a regular at jazz sessions in Ayr, Kilmarnock and Glasgow when still in his teens.

John recalls playing with Ayrshire-based jazz musicians Allan Baillie, Jimmy Cosker, Dougie McDonald, Kenny McCracken and Duncan Whyte.

Venues included the old Labour Club and the Gartferry Hotel in Ayr. And John had residencies with his own band in Troon’s Marine and Piersland House hotels.

John also did stints in the pit at the Gaiety Theatre, for shows put on by Ayr Amateur and the Ayrshire Philharmonic opera societies.

He decided he wanted to go professional as a jazz musician, but that was virtually impossible in Scotland, and he moved to the continent.

John toured with various groups, returning to Scotland as a soloist at various festivals, including Edinburgh and Glasgow.

And he was a special guest at the opening night of Ayr Jazz Club a couple of years ago.

John’s parents, grandmothers and the rest of his family still live in Ayr, and his cousin Jamie, a pupil at Belmont Academy, is also a well-known trombonist.

Chris Barber formed his first jazz band as a 19-year-old in 1949.

And he made the big time in 1954 as Chris Barber’s Jazz Band.

The band featured a skiffle spot with Glasgow-born Donegan performing his unique take on American blues.

And the music world was turned upside down in 1956, with Donegan’s Rock Island Line a top 10 hit in the both the UK and the US, selling an amazing three million records.

John said: “Chris Barber told me ‘It’s about time we had another Scotsman in the band. We haven’t had one since Lonnie Donegan left in 1956’.”

Today’s Big Chris Barber Band has a very busy touring schedule, which takes them all over the world, despite the advanced years of Chris and some other members.

John said: “We often appear alongside stars from other musical genres, such as Van Morrison and Mark Knopfler.

“And in the Jools Holland show we were on a bill with The Kills, Diane Reeves, Supergrass, Vampire Weekend and Andy Fairweather-Low.”

The Big Chris Barber Band’s next Scottish appearance is at the Queen’s Hall in Edinburgh on July 25, as part of the Edinburgh Festival.

John fits in freelance work between Chris’s tours, and remains a member of the Piccadilly Six, who have Forrie Cairns, ex-clarinetist with the Clyde Valley Stompers, in their line-up.