FIRST - Leader of the Notting Hill Carnival - Tavistock Road, London, UK
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member Master Mariner
N 51° 31.096 W 000° 12.364
30U E 693839 N 5711161
This Nubian Jak Community Trust plaque is dedicated to the musician and first leader of the Notting Hill Carnival, Russell Henderson. The plaque is attached to a building on the south east side of Tavistock Road.
Waymark Code: WMW6N0
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 07/17/2017
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Zork V
Views: 0

The wording on the Nubian Jak Community Trust plaque reads:

Nubian Jak Community Trust

Russell
Henderson
1924
Musician and pioneering
pan artist
Led the first ever carnival
parade on the streets
of Notting Hill
in 1965

UK Centre for Carnival Arts
Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea

Wikipedia has an article about Russell Henderson that tells us:

Russell Audley Ferdinand "Russ" Henderson MBE (7 January 1924 – 18 August 2015) was a jazz musician on the piano and the steelpan. He is most widely recognised as one of the founding figures of the Notting Hill Carnival in London, United Kingdom.

Russell Henderson was born in Belmont, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, where he grew up. He founded the Russell Henderson Quartet in the 1940s and was soon well known in Trinidad, accompanying calypsonians such as Lord Pretender, Mighty Growler and Roaring Lion. He was also pianist for Beryl McBurnie's dance troupe at the Little Carib Theatre in Woodbrook, and taught melodies to the steelpan pioneer Ellie Mannette of Invaders Steelband.

In 1951, Henderson travelled to England to study piano tuning at the North London Polytechnic.

He settled in England and founded Britain's first steelband combo (The Russ Henderson Steel Band) with Mervyn Constantine and Sterling Betancourt in late 1952. They played their first gig at The Sunset Club at 50 Carnaby Street. Other compatriots Henderson worked with in the early London days were calypsonians Lord Kitchener and Young Tiger.

Henderson was vitally involved in building up Notting Hill Carnival, having played at the first Children's Carnival there in 1964. He was a friend of the 606 Club in London, where he performed a monthly show with his revised jazz quartet, sharing the evening with the Al Whynette Band. In his retirement he gave numerous interviews with BBC Radio 4 and BBC Four on his Notting Hill past.

Russell Henderson died on 18 August 2015 at the age of 91.

FIRST - Classification Variable: Person or Group

Date of FIRST: 01/01/1965

More Information - Web URL: [Web Link]

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