Don Weller (musician)
| Don Weller | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Donald Arthur Albert Weller |
| Born |
19 December 1940 Thornton Heath, Croydon, England |
| Genres | Jazz, post bop, hard bop, rock |
| Occupation(s) |
Musician Composer |
| Instruments | Tenor saxophone, clarinet |
| Associated acts | Hannibal Marvin Peterson, Alan Barnes, Cat Stevens |
Donald "Don" Arthur Albert Weller (born 19 December 1940 in Thornton Heath, Croydon, Surrey) is an English jazz musician, tenor saxophonist and composer.
Don Weller began learning clarinet at the age of 14, and was classically educated on it for four or five years, soloing in Mozart's Clarinet Concerto at Croydon Town Hall when aged 15. He began playing in Dixieland bands around the Croydon area, but later switched to tenor saxophone and played in Kathy Stobart's rehearsal band.
In the 1970s, his jazz-rock group Major Surgery played only Weller's compositions. This was followed by a quartet with drummer Bryan Spring. At the same time he worked regularly with pianist Stan Tracey, and also with Harry Beckett and in a quintet with Art Themen. Renowned for his versatility, he has played with artists such as Alan Price, Tina May and Charlie Hearnshaw.
He played saxophone on the 1973 album Allright on the Night by British hard rock band Tucky Buzzard. He appears as lead sax (with Tower of Power backing him on horns)on the instrumental track "Nascimento" of Cat Stevens' 1978 LP Back To Earth. He also played on the Alex Harvey album The Mafia Stole My Guitar released in 1979 delivering the solo on the track Wait For Me Mama and writing Don's Delight.
In 1981, he stood in for Michael Brecker when the Gil Evans Orchestra played at the Bracknell Jazz Festival, subsequently touring the UK and recording with one of the band's trumpeters, Hannibal Marvin Peterson, added on to the Weller–Spring Quartet. He also played and recorded with Evans' British Orchestra in 1983. Also in the 1980s, together with his friend and fellow tenor sax Dick Morrissey, Weller was a regular member of Rocket 88, the boogie-woogie fun band set up by Ian "Stu" Stewart and Bob Hall, appearing on the band's only album.
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