The Jazz Police - Jim Knowler
Ever since I can remember music has been a key part of my life, from the family parties to hours spent in my bedroom listening to records.
At about the age of thirteen I was taught to play the harmonica by my uncle and this inspired me to learn more about music. After teaching myself to play the ukulele, I decided that another instrument might have more street cred, so after seeing my cousin Andy play guitar, decided that was the instrument for me.
Heavily influenced by my cousin I listened to Eddie Cochran, Scotty Moore and Cliff Gallup (to name but a few), spending hours in my room trying to decipher the solos and chords. It was a slow process but after a year I was ready to play in a band. After a brief period with The Rocking Trio, myself Jarrod and Cliff Marshall got together to form The Keytones. We started out as a rockabilly trio- however, we gradually developed a unique three part harmony and jive/swing style. After a number of different line ups we split in 1992.
In 1994 I played in a pop band called Ouch who were heavily influenced by The Beatles, the highlight being a tour of Japan, then a year later played with The Stargazers (a Bill Haley and the Comets Style band). Then, following the split of Jarrod's band Ronnie Scott’s Rejects, I joined forces with Jarrod, Niall Oates, and Roger Diamond to form Hullabaloo, which has now transformed into the current band featuring Shaun O'Keeffe and Ivan Thompson.
My main musical influence these days is the gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt who I discovered in my Keytones days. He played such melodic runs with ease, despite having only two fingers on his left hand. The music of Django, along with Les Paul, Jimmy Bryant and Barney Kessell, gave me the challenge I was looking for and still does today. My love of music and of playing the guitar is still stronger than ever, so I hope you enjoy listening to The Jazz Police as much as I love playing in it.