James Morrison

About James Morrison

The Australian jazz musician James Morrison was born in Boorowa, New South Wales on November 11, 1962. He is one of the most talented and popular musicians of Australia and is the recipient of the Australian Order - Member of the Order of Australia or AM. James Morrison is a multi-instrumentalist. Though better known for his trumpet playing, he also plays the piano, tuba, euphonium, trombone, saxophones and the flugel horn. This multi talented artist is also talented when it comes to composing, song arranging and even creating jazz charts for ensembles with a range of sizes and ability levels. James Morrison hails from a family with deep musical roots. His brother, John Morrison was a renowned jazz drummer with whom James worked on a number of recordings and projects in his teens. In 1983 James created the Morrison Brothers Big Bad Band together with his brother. During this time the brothers performed together regularly. At the age of seven he was offered his first musical instrument and this was in fact his introduction to the field. He created his own group when he was nine years old; he formed his first gigs at thirteen. At the age of 16 after the incredible success of his jazz concert during the Monterey Jazz Festival, his international musical career began. Neshuhi Ertegun, the music celebrity and jazz admirer, happened to record this concert. Thus Morrison became the first musician to be recorded for East-West, Neshuhi Ertegun's jazz label. In 1989 he signed with a band called Gene Harris' Philipp Morris Superband that helped him to tour worldwide as well as gave him the opportunity to work with the world's popular jazz musicians including Jeff Hamilton, Ray Brown, B. B. King, Woody Shaw, Red Rodney, Herb Ellis and more. In 1990 he released the album Snappy Doo that gained him the title "The Best Big Band in the World." He was also awarded the Australian Performer of the Year MO award the same year. In 1994 he held a show at the prestigious Royal Albert hall with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Apart from playing instruments, he has also created customized trumpets, mouthpieces and trombones. He is currently involved in cutting-edge digital trumpet creation.