Grotto ghost song puts Shields on map
INTERNATIONAL AWARDS ... for jazz musician Colin Dawson.
A SOUTH Tyneside jazz musician has picked up two international awards after composing a song about one of the borough’s most famous ghosts.
Trumpeter Colin Dawson wrote The Ghost Of Marsden Grotto for his jazz band Echoes of Storm, which is based in Germany and performs around the world.
The song was released on the band’s 2010 album, Message from Mars, which has won the prestigious French award Prix de l’Academie du Jazz, for swing jazz album of the year, and also the German Record Critics Award.
It’s quite a coup for Mr Dawson, 50, who grew up in South Shields before moving to Munich in Germany, 25 years ago.
He said: “We’ve won a few awards with the band, but these are two big ones for us, and it’s great that they have come from an album which includes a song inspired by Marsden.
“I spent a lot of time on the beach there, and at Camel’s Island when I was a child, and it’s a very inspirational place.”
The Ghost Of Marsden Grotto is based on the tale of John the Jibber, an 18th century smuggler who according to legend, was hanged by fellow criminals near the present lift shaft at the Grotto, for selling information to HM customs.
The song features ghost-like trumpet sounds played by Mr Dawson, using an instrumental technique previously inspired by the famous American jazz star Rex Stewart.
Mr Dawson said: “People have been asking about the song and about South Shields and the story of the Grotto.
“Hopefully, it has helped to put South Shields on the map.”
Mr Dawson said his love of jazz came from listening to his dad’s record collection at the family home in Coleridge Avenue, South Shields – the same street as X Factor star Joe McElderry.
He attended the now-demolished Westoe Senior School, and learned how to play the trumpet at Mortimer Road School from the age of 10.
He performed with a number of borough jazz bands before studying at the Newcastle School of Arts and Technology, and becoming a professional musician at 18. He moved to Munich in the mid-1980s, and played with the Ellotria band, which he continues to perform with today, and joined Echoes of Swing 14 years ago.
Although he lives in Munich with his Japanese wife Mayumi, and their son Leon, 10, Mr Dawson travels back to his native South Shields every year.
He said: “It’s lovely to come here and see my parents and family, and take in some of the familiar local sights again. I’ve spent a lot of years doing something that I love, and I am fortunate that it has taken me to different parts of the world, but it’s always nice to come back to South Shields.”
Mr Dawson has written other North East-inspired songs, including musical tributes to the late footballer Len Shackleton, and Sunderland’s former home Roker Park.
For more information, visit www.echoesofswing.com
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Friday 25 May 2012
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