Courtney Pine facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Courtney Pine
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| Background information | |
| Origin | London, England |
| Genres | Jazz |
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| Years active | 1986–present |
Courtney Pine is a famous British jazz musician. He is best known for playing the saxophone. But he is also a talented multi-instrumentalist, meaning he plays many different instruments. These include the flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, and keyboards. In the 1980s, he helped start an important British band called the Jazz Warriors.
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Who is Courtney Pine?
Courtney Pine was born in London, England. His parents came from Jamaica. When he was a child, he dreamed of becoming an astronaut!
He grew up in London and went to Kingsbury High School. There, he learned to play the classical clarinet. When he was 14, he taught himself how to play the saxophone. He started his music journey playing reggae music. In 1981, he even toured with a reggae group called Clint Eastwood & General Saint.
Courtney Pine's Music Career
In 1986, Courtney Pine released his first album, Journey to the Urge Within. It became very popular and reached the UK Top 40 music chart. He also played with a band called Grand Union Orchestra.
The Jazz Warriors
Courtney Pine was the main person who started the Jazz Warriors in 1985. This was a big band made up of talented black British musicians. The band grew from a community music group.
The Jazz Warriors recorded two albums with Courtney Pine as their leader. The first was Out of Many, One People in 1987. The second was Afropeans, released in 2007 for the band's 20th anniversary. This project was created to remember the 200th anniversary of the law that ended the slave trade.
Years later, Courtney Pine formed a special all-female jazz band called "Venus Warriors." They performed to raise money for a statue of Mary Seacole. She was a brave British-Jamaican nurse and businesswoman from the Crimean War.
Modern Music and Radio
Courtney Pine's newer music mixes traditional jazz with modern British styles. These include drum and bass and UK garage music. He leads his own band and often plays with many other musicians.
He also hosts a radio show called Jazz Crusade on BBC Radio 2.
Other Appearances and Awards
In 1988, Courtney Pine appeared as himself in an episode of the TV show Doctor Who called Silver Nemesis. He was part of a jazz quartet in the show.
He also played saxophone for the famous pop group Pet Shop Boys in 1989. He performed with them at Wembley Arena.
Courtney Pine has received special honors for his contributions to jazz music. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2000. Then, in 2009, he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). These are important awards from the British government.
He has also received honorary doctorates from the University of Westminster and the University of Southampton. This means these universities recognized his great achievements.
In 2018, he appeared on a BBC Two Christmas show with singer Gregory Porter.
Courtney Pine's Family Life
Courtney Pine lives in London with his wife and their four children.
Courtney Pine's Albums
Here are some of the albums Courtney Pine has released:
- Journey to the Urge Within (1986)
- Destiny's Song + The Image of Pursuance (1988)
- The Vision's Tale (1989)
- Closer to Home (1990)
- Within The Realms of Our Dreams (1991)
- To the Eyes of Creation (1992)
- Modern Day Jazz Stories (1995)
- Underground (1997)
- Another Story (1998)
- Back in the Day (2000)
- Devotion (2003)
- Resistance (2005)
- Transition in Tradition: En Hommage a Sidney Bechet (2009)
- Europa (2011)
- House of Legends (2012)
- Song (The Ballad Book) (2015)
- Black Notes from the Deep (2017)
See also
- Jazz Warriors
In Spanish: Courtney Pine para niños
