Sitting here with a glass of red wine and the lights low firmly grasping my imaginary life rewind button and Chris Barber playing softly on the hi-fi I remember a night at the Jazz Club in an upstairs room over the Kings Arms in the Thoroughfare in Ipswich. My Gina who was a student at ArtCollege at the time was, as usual, with me. There was a craze in the club for bow ties as a sort of unofficial member’s badge and most of the young men sported a butterfly at their throat.
On this night Kenny who was, as was said at the time, simple but he loved his jazz.
During the playing of “down by the Riverside” someone, I think it was Tucker offered Kenny a mike whereupon Kenny proved himself vocally to be a damn good jazz singer in the George Melly mould. I remember after that Kenny had a vocal spot almost every week. Another lesson learnt everyone has a talent you’ve just got to look for it.