Jeff England -- Trombone -- Banjos, Buckets and Brass and Dixieland Rascals
Born in Clinton, MO in 1947. Started playing trombone in 7th grade. It quickly became a passion, and I played in PEP band, stage band, and attended band camp at University of Missouri at Columbia in the early 60's. I also played in town bands at Deepwater, Lowry City, and Cole Camp, Missouri during the summer months. Those old guys could really play, and I formed a strong bond with many of them playing under the summer stars in rural Missouri. Those town bands regularly played "South" and that exact version is what we play today at our Shingle Shaker reunions........same key, same intro, same everything!
In 1965 I attended UMC and was a member of Marching Mizzou. I marched directly behind Dr. Jim Roller that first year, so I have known Jim for quite a while. We had the pleasure of riding the train from Kansas City, Missouri down to New Orleans, Louisiana where the UMC Tigers put a whuppin' on Florida State. We got turned loose on Bourbon Street for 2 hours. I had already acquired a love for Dixieland, and I got to hear some way down yonder in New Orleans.
I started playing with Banjos, Buckets, and Brass at the Village Inn in 1968........George Gilmore, Jim Roller, Larry Graebner, & Boogie (Bob Streibel). Later, I was at the 18th Amendment with the Dixieland Rascals. That group included Roller, Boogie, Larry Garrett, Rich Howard, Bill Dineen, and others.
I am married to Laura Lea (Creber) England. She is the mother of our two sons Scott and Matt. Scott teaches legal writing at Alabama. Matt and his family have moved back to Columbia where he will be managing a restaurant that we are partners in. The restaurant is named JAZZ, a Louisiana Kitchen. I invite everyone to give it a try for authentic Cajun Creole cuisine.
I look forward to more events with the Shingle Shakers.