John Helliwell's Super Big Tramp Band

John was born in Todmorden, West Yorkshire, England (U.F.O. centre of the U.K.) After hearing Monty Sunshine play “Petite Fleur” with Chris Barber’s Jazz Band, he was inspired, and saved up for two years to buy a clarinet for £15 when he was thirteen. He soon began to appreciate “modern” jazz and bought a saxophone two years later.

 

When he left school he went to Birmingham to work as a computer programmer. There he played with various bands and groups including “The Dicemen” (“We wore ‘Beatle’ suits with trousers so tight we had to be lifted on to the stage”) and “Jugs O’Henry” with whom he turned professional in 1965. “Jugs..” was short-lived, and, after putting an advertisement in the “Melody Maker” music weekly which read “Have sax, will travel”, he joined “The Alan Bown Set” with whom he spent six years. They made several albums, played thousands of gigs, and had the singers Jess Roden, Gordon Neville and Robert Palmer. Their music progressed (or regressed, depending on your point-of-view) from soul music to quite free jazzy rock, calling in on flower-power and psychedelia on the way.

 

After the demise of “The Alan Bown!” (as it became) in 1971 he followed their bass player Dougie Thomson into “The Twilight Rooms” club in London to play non-stop music from 9pm to 3am for strippers and singers, and where the clientele would have to purchase vast quantities of Champagne for the “hostesses”. When he couldn’t stand that any more, he moved to the “Celebrity Club” a much more up-market, sophisticated place. Still plenty of semi naked women though!

 

After touring with the bands of Jimmy Ruffin, Arthur Conley and Johnny Johnson in England, and also a spell in Germany with Pete Lancaster playing mostly U.S. air bases, he got a call from Supertramp, asking him to come and play with them in July 1973. John was intrigued with, and excited by, the music, told a few good jokes, and stuck around (for over 50 years so far!).

They made the album “Crime of the Century” and began the long climb to international success, moving to California in the process.“Breakfast in America” was the biggest selling album in the world in 1979!

 

During a Supertramp hiatus in the nineties, he moved back to England to study at the Royal Northern College of Music in

Manchester. However, a scholarly life was to take a back seat in 1996 when he worked with ex-Supertramper Roger Hodgson, and then began recording and touring again with Supertramp. John now plays music based on his many inspirations - including jazz, funk, blues, soul and rock.

 

He has a jazz group - “Crème Anglaise” and also plays around Europe - lately with “Leslie ManDoki’s Soulmates” and “Rock Meets Classic” John’s latest projects include:

 1) “The Super Big Tramp Band” - an 18 piece big band playing the music of Supertramp instrumentally with John soloing and acting as master of ceremonies,

2) “Ever Open Door” (Challenge Records 73511) - a sextet playing folk tunes and ballads with saxophone and clarinet, The Singh String Quartet, and John Ellis on Hammond organ.

3) “Don’t Ever Leave Me” (Challenge Records 73536) - a quartet with 3 major Dutch jazz musicians: Jasper Somsen - bass, Marcel Seriese - drums, and Hans Vroomans - piano.

4) The Anglo/US/Italian quartet “Paul Wertico/John Helliwell Project” - “The Bari Session” (Challenge Records 73529) with Paul Wertico - drums, Raimondo Meli Lupi - guitar, and Gianmarco Scaglia - bass.

5) A duo project “esprit de corps” (RAM Records RMCD4540.1) with Raimondo Meli Lupi - guitar. (The CD features the the magical playing of the accordionist Fausto Beccalossi on three tunes)