Joe Daniels born 9 March 1905

 

Joe Daniels ( born Zeerust, Transvaal 9 March 1905; died Northwood, Middlesex 1 July 1993) was a British drummer and bandleader.

Born in the Transvaal, Daniels was brought to London by his parents when he was two and took up drums there when he was 11. That same year he played jobs in Frascati's Restaurant. He took to the drums naturally, being uninfluenced by other players. 

As a teenager he played for Al Kaplan's band in the London clubs, most often at Moody's in Tottenham Court Road. He worked in revue and toured the dance-hall circuit. He led his first band for Kaplan at the Glasgow Palais when he was 16 and was one of the first musicians to play 'the boats' when he worked on the RMS Majestic. In later years Ronnie Scott and others were to follow him playing in the bands which worked on the liners sailing between Southampton and New York.
 

During a residency at the Belfast Palais, Daniels spotted a man waving agitatedly at him from behind a glass panel in the hall. It was only then that Daniels discovered that his band had been broadcasting regularly from the hall each night and that the agitated gentleman was a technician trying to tell him that they needed him to fill an extra half-hour. It was the beginning of a fruitful broadcasting career.


Harry Roy and his Band (1934) with Joe on drums.

In 1930 Daniels worked with Billy Mason's band at the Cafe de Paris. After work with the trumpeter Max Goldberg and the bandleader Fred Elizalde during the Twenties, Daniels joined Harry Roy in 1931 and stayed with him for six years.  

 

                                    

 

Daniels formed his Hot Shots whilst he was still with Roy and began a long series of records for Parlophone where the recording manager, Oscar Price, asked him for 'any titles so long as they've got some drums on them'. Daniels obliged with a vengeance. He turned down the chance of royalty payments in favour of a fee. He regretted that when the records were later issued in Russia, Japan, China and the US. The Hot Shots continued until 1951 (Daniels served in the RAF where he ran a quintet during the war), touring dance halls and music halls.

 

When they disbanded, Daniels immediately formed a band to play more orthodox jazz, being rewarded with an instant booking at the legendary 1951 Festival Hall jazz concert where he joined Humphrey Lyttelton, Mick Mulligan, Freddy Randall and other band leaders who played for the then Princess Elizabeth.  

The later band was quite good and included some good improvising soloists but had only modest success until its demise in 1959. Because of Daniels' show business connections the band was scorned as 'Archer Street jazz' by the fans. (Archer Street was the centre for professional musicians who, unlike real jazz musicians, were actually well paid for their music.) The dignity of the true jazz lover was perhaps offended when Daniels recorded in 1955 as Washboard Joe and the Scrubbers. Eventually Daniels returned to the show business side of the music and led a regular band at one of Butlin's Holiday Camps. 
 

He continued to play until 1990 when one of his last jobs was at the Savoy Hotel.  (Info edited from Independent obit)