Leicester based trad jazz band who played around the Notts/Derby/Leicester region in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s.

Trevor Jones had been a member of the Mercia Jazz Band in the early 1950’s who were a dominant band in the region.

Trevor Jones – trumpet (a teacher) is mentioned on this informative page about Leicester jazz and skiffle.

“Another point of view is offered by a Leicester Evening Mail article from March 1955, which might point to why the authorities became interested in the jazz club at the Royal Standard. Visiting the club on a Wednesday night with a couple of young women who had never been before, the article reports that the atmosphere was ‘smoky and musically tense’. It added, ‘the music was boisterous, the mood of the audience exuberant and the smoke a trifle painful to the eyes’, but the girls were won over: ‘It’s wonderful. The music really gets a hold of you.’ For the record, the band that night was Owen Monk – piano; Doug Richardson – drums (worked at Imperial Typewriters); Maurice Coleman – guitar/banjo (a tailor); Trevor Jones – trumpet (a teacher); Pete Wells – trombone (a mechanic); Brian Woolley – clarinet (works in father’s hosiery factory).”

A gig from 1960 is mention on the Eel Pie website

Another gig below.

Another article, this time about pub the Royal Standard in Leicester where jazz thrived in the fifties. It features the picture below in which you can make out Trevor playing his trumpet.

“Leicester Jazz Men at the Royal Standard were in picture Pete Wells trombone, Maurice Coleman guitar, Trevor Jones trumpet, Owen Monk piano, Brian Woolley clarinet and Doug Richards drums.
Jazz had become really popular in the 1950’s pre Rock n Roll, It seemed that the Royal Standard attracted the largest crowd in their upstairs room, like rock n’ roll it attracted a bad press as it was attended by mainly the young, At the time an entertainment tax was due on all performances this led the Leicester Jazzmen to come under the attention of the police, A police superintendent visited the Royal Standard which resulted in a court case, Pete Wells deemed to be the organizer was charged with failing to pay the entertainment duty, he was duly fined £25 with £11 costs, The police report also claimed in a room licensed for 50 there were 137 people present also an entrance fee was being charged which was illegal the police told the court the music being played was VIOLENT JAZZ, the press reported the atmosphere as ‘smokey & mostly tense,-The Leicester Jazz men under various names would perform in many venues around the city and county during the next few years, tragically Pete Wells was killed together with his wife in an accident 1958.”

West Bridgford born John Crocker was in the Trevor Jones Jazzmen for about a year in 1959 before moving on to Len Baldwin and then Mike Cotton.