[Dixielandjazz] Dave Dallwitz

[Gail Kingston]

I was Dave's vocalist up until he died a few years ago.  He called us the
Dave Dallwitz Southern Syncopators and each week he would compose and
arrange new tunes for us.  He was a great guy to work with and had a wicked
sense of humour.  

 

During rehearsals at his house I would sit listening to the fabulous music,
looking at his paintings which adorned every wall and think "it doesn't get
much better than this".  He was a very inspiring man and his output was
phenomenal.  I spoke to him every few days and he was always just completing
a new arrangement, composing a new tune or was in the middle of a painting
for someone.  I think he's written over 600 compositions.  When I asked him
how composed all that music and worked out all the arrangements, he said
that he could just sit and hear the tunes and arrangements in his head then
when it was ready he would write it all down.  The music would wake him up
at night and he would have to sit and scribble things down while in bed.

 

My favourite tunes of his were "I Left My Heart in Coomandook (country town
Aust) My Knickers in LA" and his extremely irreverent tune that I'm told he
used to sing for all his friends at parties called "If You See Kay, Tell Her
I Love Her".  If you can't tell from the title why it's irreverent email me
off list.

 

Anyhow he died while watching television one night.  We had a concert coming
up in a week or so and he'd been working on a new tune for us.  He didn't
get to finish it but he was 86 and I'm glad he passed so peacefully.  We did
the concert in his honor and a Kanga Bentley (his longtime friend and
trombone player) and Tas Brown (long time friend and clarinet player)
completed the new tune for him which the band performed.  

 

Whenever I asked him how he was he'd say "I'm still here so it's a great
day".  I remember him with great fondness and respect and recognize that I
was very lucky to get to know him, he's another great jazzer that I'm hoping
to work with again on the other side.

 

Warm regards

Gail.