Billy Law (drums)

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BANDS:

• Clyde Valley Stompers
• The Jazz Cardinals [May 62-Nov 62]
• Long John Baldry Band [1964-Oct 64]
• Alex Harvey Band [1965]
• Alan Elsdon Group [1966]
• Edmond Hall Group [1966]

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BIOGRAPHY:

Billy Law was born William Alexander Law, in Edinburgh, Lothian, Scotland. The first band I´ve been able to trace by him is the Clyde Valley Stompers.

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CLYDE VALLEY STOMPERS

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Clyde Valley Stompers was a Scottish traditional jazz band. Led by the late Ian Menzies since 1954, it had many different lineups.

Billy Law was a member of the band, probably circa 1962 or maybe 1963, but can´t find the complete info, so if someone can help, it would be welcomed, please.

CLYDE VALLEY STOMPERS #?			?
Ian Menzies † trombone	Lindsay Cooper bass	Norrie Brown banjo	Billy Law drums	+ others unknown to me.

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THE JAZZ CARDINALS

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In May 1962, Billy Law emmigrated to Denmark, in order to join a dixieland jazz band called The Jazz Cardinals:

THE JAZZ CARDINALS #?				May 62-Aug 62
Jack Brunckhorst banjo	Alfred Lauridsen bass	Dieter Kock trumpet	Jorgen Jacobsen clarinet	Goffi Rasmussen trombone	Billy Law drums

In August 1962, Dieter Kock leaves:

THE JAZZ CARDINALS #?				Aug 62-Nov 62
Jack Brunckhorst banjo	Alfred Lauridsen bass	Per Hansen trumpet	Jorgen Jacobsen clarinet	Goffi Rasmussen trombone	Billy Law drums

They recorded an album during summer 1962, but I cannot be sure if Billy appears there. Does anybody know?

Finally, Billy left the band around November 1962 (being replaced by none other than the mythical Viv Prince).

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LONG JOHN BALDRY & THE HOOCHIE COOCHIE MEN

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Ernie O'Malley was replaced by Billy Law, sometime late in 1964:

LONG JOHN BALDRY BAND #?				1964 - Oct 64
Long John Baldry † vocals	Rod Stewart vocals	Geoff Bradford guitar	Cliff Barton † bass	Johnny Parker piano	Billy Law drums

They remained together until October 1964, when the band changed and Billy Law left.

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ALEX HARVEY SOUL BAND

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Next thing I know about Billy Law is that he joins Alex Harvey Soul Band in 1965:

ALEX HARVEY BAND #?			1965
Alex Harvey † vocals, guitar	Wally Stewart vocals	Jimmy Grimes bass	Bill Patrick sax, flute	Billy Law drums

I don't know if Billy appears in any of their albums, so any additional info would be very welcomed.

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ALAN ELSDON GROUP

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Later, Billy Law was a member of Alan Elsdon's Band, a jazz combo:

ALAN ELSDON GROUP #?							?
Edmond Hall † clarinet	+	Alan Elsdon trumpet	Johnny Barton guitar, banjo	Mick Gilligan bass	Colin Bates piano	Andy Cooper clarinet, sax	Phil Rhodes trombone	Billy Law drums

They played backing different jazz players, appearing in album by clarinet players Edmond Hall or Albert Nicholas.

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EDMOND HALL GROUP

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Billy Law was also a member of Edmond Hall Quartet (all of them taken from Alan Elsdon Band):

EDMOND HALL GROUP #?		?
Edmond Hall † clarinet	Mick Gilligan bass	Colin Bates piano	Billy Law drums

They released the album Edmond Hall Quartet.

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AND THEN...

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And then, I haven´t been able to find more info or credits about Billy Law. Does anybody know why? Maybe he retired from music business?

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DISCOGRAPHY: (7 albums known to me - Status: Quite advanced)

ALBUMS AS A BAND MEMBER (5 credits)

• Long John´s blues - Long John Baldry And The Hoochie Coochie Men (12/1964)


• Members: Geoff Bradford, Billy Law, Rod Stewart (RIP: Ian Armit, Long John Baldry, Cliff Barton)
• Guests: Ottilie Patterson (RIP: Charles Blackwell)
• Comments: CD reissue contains 11 bonus tracks: singles (some of them, unreleased) as well as a session for Ottilie Patterson in March 1964.
• Edmond Hall Quartet - Edmond Hall Quartet (1966)


• Members: Billy Law (RIP: Edmond Hall)
• Guests: (RIP: Art Hodes)
• Albert Nicholas with Alan Elsdon´s Band volume two - Albert Nicholas (1967)


• Members: Billy Law (RIP: Albert Nicholas)
• Albert Nicholas with Alan Elsdon´s Band volume one - Albert Nicholas (1995)


• Members: Billy Law (RIP: Albert Nicholas)
• Comments: Live album recorded in 1967, but unreleased until 1995.
• The Reunion sessions - Ian and his Clyde Valley Stompers Menzies (09/2007)


• Members: Billy Law (RIP: Ian Menzies)

COMPILATIONS AS A BAND MEMBER (1 credit)

• Looking at Long John Baldry - the UA years 1964-1966 - Long John Baldry (05/2006)


• Members: Geoff Bradford, Billy Law (RIP: Ian Armit, Long John Baldry, Cliff Barton)
• Producer: George Martin

COLLECTIVE ALBUMS (1 credit)

• Rock generation volume 5 - VVAA (1965)


• Guests: Geoff Bradford, Eric Clapton, Spencer Davis, Chris Dreja, Mike Hart, Billy Law, Jim McCarty, Paul Samwell-Smith, Rod Stewart, Muff Winwood, Steve Winwood, Pete York (RIP: Ian Armit, Long John Baldry, Cliff Barton, Sonny Boy Williamson)
• Comments: This French sampler has the subtitle ´The First Rhythm & Blues Festival in England (Birmingham Town Hall, 28th February 1964)´. It contains live tracks by Spencer Davis R&B Quartet, Long John Baldry and The Hoochie Coochie Men, The Yardbirds and the Liverpool Roadrunners.

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THANKS:

Special Thanks to:

John H W: for lots of biographical infos (sorry, don´t know your name).

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WHAT'S NEW:

17/June/2010 - Page added to the blog.
17/September/2003 - Original page written by me (in the old site).

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RELATED MUSICIANS:

Billy Law mostly worked with these musicians: (name + number of credits)
Ian Armit (3)
Long John Baldry (3)
Cliff Barton (3)
Colin Bates (3)
Geoff Bradford (3)
Mick Gilligan (3)
Johnny Barton (2)
Andy Cooper (2)
Alan Elsdon (2)
Barry Martyn (2)

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Page created by Miguel Terol on: 17/September/2003 - Last modified on: 17/June/2010. If you want to contribute with info, please write to: molympus1@gmail.com

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Please, note than you can check the indexes (musicians, bands, obituaries) at the top of this page.