[Harp-L] Tommy Reilly with Judith Durham

[phil...@aol.com]

Over the years, many people have mentioned the name of the Canadian/British classical harmonica player Tommy Reilly, but I've never seen too many -- if any -- videos of Tommy playing. After Judith plays the Minute Waltz on the piano, Tommy points out that the waltz is not a minute long, but minute as in little waltz.

For those who never heard of Tommy. He was a Canadian violinist taking a travel/music education tour in Europe when the Second World War broke out, He was arrested and held by the Germans for being an alien. Then when Canada joined the war, he was declared an enemy alien. The Canadian Red Cross provided him a monthly provision package, which included a pound of coffee. He was able to trade the real coffee (which did not exist in Europe at the time) for a bunch of chromatic harmonicas. Since he had nothing but time for the duration of the war he concentrated on transferring his violin skills to the harmonica. By the time the war ended, he had not only mastered the harmonica but become a virtuosos. He went onto a fantastic European concert and broadcast career.

One of my favorite early jazz singers, Judith Durham (of the Seekers fame) did a TV show in the 70's that featured Tommy. Australian singer piano player Judith Durham did about a half-dozen years with the Seekers and later had a solo career that included old time jazz (Cake Walking Babies from Home is my favorite) and pop songs. She's in her early 70s and still going strong. Her voice sounds just as good as it did in the 60s.




Tommy appears at about the 20 minute mark in the video.

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lplHF3k_xJk>

[Vern]

Chandos Records LTD of England offers eight Tommy Reilly CDs.

See: https://www.chandos.net/searchresults.asp?zoom_query=tommy+reilly&x=0&y=0 <https://www.chandos.net/searchresults.asp?zoom_query=tommy+reilly&x=0&y=0>

Vern

[Rick Dempster]

Reilly is great. I have an album with him and Indian harpist Skaila Kanga,
which is beautiful.
As for our hometown gal Judith Cox (sorry, Durham) I'll just say beauty is
in the eye (and ear) of the beholder
RD

[MARK BURNESS]

In addition to Phil's brief biog of Tommy Reilly, it should be noted that he was already an accomplished harmonica player before being interned, winning regional awards for harmonica in Canada in the 30's.

[Winslow Yerxa]

Tommy Reilly was already a harmonica player when he went to Germany. His father, Captain James Reilly, led harmonica bands and wrote one of the books I learned from.

Judith Durham was married to Tommy Reilly's son, composer David Reilly. His granddaughter Georgina Reilly is an actress who was featured for several seasons on the Canadian television series Murdoch Mysteries.

Winslow Yerxa
Producer, the Harmonica Collective
Author, Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition: ISBN 978-1-118-88076-0
Harmonica Basics For Dummies, ASIN B005KIYPFS
Blues Harmonica For Dummies, ISBN 978-1-1182-5269-7
Resident Expert, bluesharmonica.com
Instructor, Jazzschool Community Music School
President emeritus, SPAH, the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica




________________________________

From: Vern <jev...@fea.net>
To: Phil...@aol.com
Cc: Harp-L Harp L <har...@harp-l.com>

Sent: Tuesday, January 12, 2016 12:06 PM

Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Tommy Reilly with Judith Durham

[Joseph Leone]

How convenient. Looks like a 'Head Start' program going on here. Maybe his mom was also a chanteuse? lolol

smo-joe

[phil...@aol.com]

Dept of Corrections. FWIW: Edith Durham was born Judith Mavis Cock (not Cox). It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why she used her mother's maiden name for show business starting in 1963 when she started singing with Frank Traynor"s Jazz Preachers. Judith met Athol Guy who was in the folk group The Seekers that performed in a coffee lounge on Monday nights on her first day on the job as a secretary of J.Walter Thompson.

I have no idea who Tommy Reilly's son, composer David Reilly, married. Judith Durham married her music director, British pianist Ron Edgeworth in 1969.

Tommy Reilly's father, Captain James Reilly conducted symphony orchestras and launched one of the earliest jazz bands in Canada, as well as the Elmdale Harmonica Band. Under the military tradition, wind players often learn string instruments. Tommy started learning violin at the age of 8 and harmonica at 11 as a member of his father's band.

So was Tommy Reilly a violin player who doubled on the harmonica or the other way round? I could be wrong, but I don't think Tommy was studying harmonica at the Leipzig. I also strongly suspect that without his enforced concentration (5 years?) on the harmonica he never would achieved such mastery. Remember, he was already playing harmonica professionally when he was a teen. I get the sense that he played classical on violin and pop/marching band music on the harmonica early on.

The real significance of the violin in his life was that Tommy based his ideas of phrasing and interpretation on the playing of Jascha Heiftz -- not on the playing of other harmonica players. (Judith calls the instrument a mouth organ but Tommy calls it a harmonica in the video.) Tommy was a student at the Leipzig Conservatory when World War II started.

Now back to our regular programming.

[Winslow Yerxa]

Evidently I was mistaken about Judith Durham and David T. Reilly being married. They were songwriting partners in the late 1960s and Tommy Reilly recorded some of their songs, including the title tune of his album "Colours of My Life," which is also the title of Judith Durham's biography. Tommy Reilly also played harmonica on some recordings by Durham's pop group, the Seekers.

My point about pre-war Tommy was that he wasn't introduced to the harmonica by his wartime incarceration; it was already an old friend.

Winslow Yerxa
Producer, the Harmonica Collective
Author, Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition: ISBN 978-1-118-88076-0
Harmonica Basics For Dummies, ASIN B005KIYPFS
Blues Harmonica For Dummies, ISBN 978-1-1182-5269-7
Resident Expert, bluesharmonica.com
Instructor, Jazzschool Community Music School
President emeritus, SPAH, the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica




________________________________

From: "phil...@aol.com" <phil...@aol.com>
To: har...@harp-l.com
Sent: Thursday, January 14, 2016 1:03 PM

[Winslow Yerxa]

A bit more on Tommy Reilly, David Reilly, and Judith Durham (from Durham's Facebook page at
https://www.facebook.com/judithdurhamofficial/photos/a.302711233082984.76839.287932804560827/480540841966688/?type=1&theater

DAVID REILLY

When David Reilly co-wrote “Colours Of My Life” with Judith in 1967, neither of them had any idea of the pivotal role that song would play in Judith’s life.

The song was recorded by The Seekers on their final studio album in 1967, Seekers Seen In Green (along with another Reilly/Durham composition, “Can’t Make Up My Mind”).

Many years later, Graham Simpson chose “Colours Of My Life” as the title of the biography he was writing about Judith’s life, The Judith Durham Story – Colours Of My Life.

More recently, Universal Music released a commemorative compilation celebrating Judith’s 50th anniversary in music, and called it Colours Of My Life, and it was also the name of Judith’s recent Australian tour, her first in more than a decade.

Together, David and Judith wrote 19 songs. Three of them featured on Judith’s 1967 solo singles for EMI; “The Non-Performing Lion Quickstep”, “Again and Again” and “Memories”.

David was born in the UK, but has dual UK/Canadian citizenship. He is the son of famed harmonica player, the late Tommy Reilly, who played harmonica on several Seekers recording (including the hit single “When Will the Good Apples Fall?”). David’s daughter is the talented Canadian/Hollywood actress and director, Georgina Reilly.

He has an Honours Degree in Political Science. He was a singer/songwriter for DJM and MCA LA, and a jingle writer with George Martin's Air Edel.

Over the years, David has been creator and head writer on both live action and Emmy-nominated animated series. He is often commissioned to develop and screenplay animated and live action material for theatrical and TV.

Judith and David stay in touch by phone and email. The last time they saw each other was in 1997, when David was a surprise guest on an episode of ‘This Is Your Life’ paying tribute to Judith (see photos).

As well as screen writing and film scoring, David continues to write songs. Two of his recent recordings can be see on You Tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6Ob-ckEkuc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkESffxdKgo

[Winslow Yerxa]

Here's "Paper Hearted Friend" (not Paper Hearted Me as given in the Youtube clip),a Judith Durham-David Reilly composition from Tommy's "Colours of My Life" LP.

https://youtu.be/QNGAyDlpGjk

This brief, spirited romp (under 2 minutes) shows off his staccato ability and also his ability to let loose with an almost raspy tone. Tommy Reilly is often thought os as a lyrical player with a pearl-smooth phrasing - which is true; it's just nice to hear that he had other abilities as well.

Winslow Yerxa
Producer, the Harmonica Collective
Author, Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition: ISBN 978-1-118-88076-0
Harmonica Basics For Dummies, ASIN B005KIYPFS
Blues Harmonica For Dummies, ISBN 978-1-1182-5269-7
Resident Expert, bluesharmonica.com
Instructor, Jazzschool Community Music School
President emeritus, SPAH, the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica

----- Original Message -----
From: Winslow Yerxa <winslo...@yahoo.com>
To: "phil...@aol.com" <phil...@aol.com>; "har...@harp-l.com" <har...@harp-l.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 14, 2016 7:25 PM
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Tommy Reilly with Judith Durham