Keith Tippett

Keith Graham Tippetts (25 August 1947 – 14 June 2020), known professionally as Keith Tippett, was a British jazz pianist and composer. According to AllMusic, Tippett's career "...spanned jazz-rock, progressive rock, improvised and contemporary music, as well as modern jazz for more than half-a-century". He held "an unparallelled place in British contemporary music,"

Early life Born in Southmead, Bristol, England, Tippett was the son of an English father who was a policeman and an Irish mother named Kitty. He wrote music dedicated to her after she died. He was the oldest of three siblings and went to Greenway Secondary Modern school in Southmead. As a child he played piano, church organ, cornet, and tenor horn. At fourteen he formed his first band, KT Trad Lads, with school friends Richard Murch, Mike Milton, Terry Pratt, and Bob Chard, and Eric Condell performing traditional jazz. He formed a modern jazz trio in Bristol and played regularly at the Dugout Club in Park Row, Bristol.

Music career In 1967, Tippett moved to London to pursue a career in music, taking menial jobs while performing in jazz clubs. He also contributed as a session musician to the band's subsequent two albums Lizard later in 1970 and Islands in 1971.

For his next album as a leader, Blueprint (1972), This enabled beginners, amateurs and professional musicians to play in a large ensemble and was "emblematic of his quest to unite music of all types in a non-elitist, open to all, friendly environment free of establishment restrictions." He became a "musician's musician when he first set up the Seedbed Orchestra where many Bristol musicians could benefit from his guidance."

Personal life and death He married singer Julie Driscoll in 1970.

In 2018, he had a heart attack and pneumonia but returned to performing in 2019. ) Ovary Lodge (Ogun, 1976) (different album than the 1973 release with the same name; with Julie Tippetts, Frank Perry, and Harry Miller ) TNT with Stan Tracey (Emanem, 1976) Cruel but Fair with Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean, Gallivan (Compendium, 1976) Warm Spirits Cool Spirits (Vinyl, 1977) Frames (Ogun, 1978) The Unlonely Raindancer (Universe, 1980) Mujician (FMP, 1982) No Gossip with Louis Moholo (FMP, 1982) Tern with Louis Moholo (FMP, 1983) In Focus with Howard Riley (Affinity, 1985) Mercy Dash with Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean (Culture Press, 1985) A Loose Kite in a Gentle Wind Floating with Only My Will for an Anchor (Ogun, 1986) Low Flying Aircraft (Red Hot, 1987) Mujician II (FMP, 1987) Couple in Spirit with Julie Tippett (EG, 1988) Mujician III (August Air) (FMP, 1989) Mr. Invisible and the Drunken Sheilas (FMP, 1989) 66 Shades of Lipstick with Andy Sheppard (EG, 1990) The Dartington Concert (EG, 1992) The Bern Concert with Howard Riley (FMR, 1994) Une Croix Dans L'Ocean (Victo, 1995) Twilight Etchings (FMP, 1996) Wild Silk with Peter Fairclough (ASC, 1996) Couple in Spirit II with Julie Tippett (ASC, 1997) Friday the 13th (Nrl, 1997) The First Full Turn with RoTToR (Paul Rutherford, Julie Tippett, Keith Tippett, Paul Rogers) (Emanem, 1998) Linuckea (FMR, 2000) First Encounter with Howard Riley (Jazzprint, 2001) Imago with Peter Fairclough (Jazzprint, 2003) Another Part of the Story with Howard Riley (Emanem, 2003) Pianoforte with Howard Riley (Slam, 2004) Mahogany Rain with Julie Tippetts (DUNS, 2005) Dartington Improvising Trio Live at the Priory with Julie Tippetts (FMR, 2005) Live at Le Mans (Red Eye Music, 2007) Viva La Black Live at Ruvo with Julie Tippetts (Ogun, 2007) Supernova with Stan Tracey (Resteamed, 2008) Nostalgia 77 Sessions Featuring Keith & Julie Tippett (Tru Thoughts, 2009) Live at the Purcell Room (Ogun, 2010) From Granite to Wind (Ogun, 2011) Two for Joyce (Long Song, 2013) Mujician Solo IV - Live in Piacenza (Dark Companion, 2015) The Nine Dances of Patrick O'Gonogon (Discus, 2016) Four Quartets with Jackson, Long, Taylor (Confront, 2016) Live in Triest (Klopotec, 2018) A Mid Autumn Night's Dream with Julie Tippetts, Lino Capra Vaccina and Paolo Tofani (Dark Companion, 2019) Noise in Your Eye with Adrian Chivers, Daniel Pennie (April 2020) The Monk Watches The Eagle (Discus, 2020) Aeolian with Matthew Bourne, (Discus, 2021) Music For Labyrinths with Roberto Musci and Claudio Gabbiani) (Dark Companion, 2024)

As band member or sideman With Company Epiphany (Incus, 1982) Epiphanies I-VI (Honest Jon's, 2019) Epiphanies VII-XIII (Honest Jon's, 2019)

With Elton Dean Oh! for the Edge (Ogun, 1976) They All Be on This Old Road (Ogun, 1977) Happy Daze (Ogun, 1977) Boundaries (Japo, 1980) Duos (Elton Dean Tapes, 1988) Trios (Elton Dean Tapes, 1989) The Vortex Tapes (Slam, 1992) Two's and Three's (Voiceprint, 1995) Bladik (Cuneiform, 1997) Live at The BBC (Hux, 2003) Ninesense Suite (Jazzwerkstatt, 2011)

With Paul Dunmall Desire and Liberation (Slam, 1997) Bebop Starburst (Cuneiform, 1999) Onosante (DUNS, 2000) The Great Divide (Cuneiform, 2001) Bridging (Clean Feed, 2003) I Wish You Peace (Cuneiform, 2004)

With King Crimson In the Wake of Poseidon (Island, 1970) Lizard (Island, 1970) Islands (Island, 1971)

With Harry Miller Family Affair (Ogun, 1977) In Conference (Ogun, 1978) Which Way Now (Cuneiform, 2006) Full Steam Ahead (Reel, 2009) Different Times, Different Places (Ogun, 2013) Different Times Different Places Vol. Two (Ogun, 2016)

With Mujician The Journey (Cuneiform, 1990) Poem About the Hero (Cuneiform, 1994) Birdman (Cuneiform, 1996) Colours Fulfilled (Cuneiform, 1998) Spacetime (Cuneiform, 2002) There's No Going Back Now (Cuneiform, 2006)

With others Arthur Brown, Dance (Gull, 1975) Harry Beckett, Passion and Possession (ITM, 1991) Mark Charig, Pipedream (Ogun, 1977) Keith Christmas, Fable of the Wings (B & C, 1970) Julie Driscoll, 1969 (Polydor, 1971) Dennis Gonzalez, Catechism (Daagnim, 1988) Jack Lancaster & Robin Lumley, Peter and the Wolf (RSO, 1975) Iain Matthews , If You Saw Thro' My Eyes (Vertigo, 1971) Harold McNair, The Fence (B & C, 1970) Louis Moholo, Spirits Rejoice! (Ogun, 1978) Louis Moholo, Mpumi (Ogun, 2002) Shelagh McDonald, Album (Polydor, 1970) Dudu Pukwana, Diamond Express (Arista, 1977) Dudu Pukwana, Black Horse (1201 Music, 2012) Daryl Runswick, Set of 5 (ASC, 2000) Peter Sinfield, Still (Manticore, 1973) David Sylvian, Everything and Nothing (Virgin, 2000) Julie Tippetts, Sunset Glow (Utopia, 1975) Toyah, Ophelia's Shadow (Demon, 1991) Working Week, Fire in the Mountain (10 Records, 1989) Larry Stabbins, Louis Moholo, Live in Foggia (Ogun, 2025)