Clark Tracey
Clark Tracey (born 5 February 1961) is a British jazz drummer, band leader and composer.
Life and career
Tracey first played piano and vibraphone before switching to drums at age 13, studying under Bryan Spring. Tracey played in several ensembles with his father Stan Tracey from 1978 until 2013, including a quartet called Fathers and Sons with John and Alec Dankworth in the 1990s. In addition to his extensive work with his father, Tracey has played with many visiting American musicians such as Scott Hamilton, Johnny Griffin, Red Rodney, Barney Kessell, John Hicks and Pharoah Sanders throughout his career. He also worked and recorded with Buddy DeFranco and Martin Taylor from 1984–86, then with Charlie Rouse (1988), Alan Skidmore in Hong Kong (1989), Tommy Smith (1989), and Guy Barker (1992).
He has led his own ensembles since the early 1980s; in these combos he has played with Django Bates, Iain Ballamy, Guy Barker, Jamie Talbot, Mark Nightingale, Dave O'Higgins, Steve Melling, Nigel Hitchcock, Gerard Presencer, Mornington Lockett, Jean Toussaint, Simon Allen, Kit Downes, Zoe Rahman and Alan Barnes. As a bandleader he has had two tours of the Far East, Yugoslavia, France, Gibraltar and Finland as well as many national UK tours. Following his reputation for hiring highly talented youngsters, his current quintet includes luminaries Chris Maddock, Henry Armburg Jennings, Harry Bolt and Daniel Casimir.
