The midlands based Millennium Eagle Jazz Band emerged as a direct result of the demise of the very popular Eagle Jazzband in 2005.  Matt Palmer had recently folded his Millennium Jazz Band in order to join the Eagles, so it was thought appropriate to include Millennium in the name of this new venture. The original Eagle Jazz Band was formed by Ken Ingram and Bob Smith in 1951 and continued to delight audiences worldwide for an amazing fifty-four years, one of the longest formed bands in the UK. The Millennium Eagle Jazz Band sports a healthy combination of youth and experience,  Pete Brown (trumpet and valve trombone) and Brian Lawrence (bass) were both long serving members of the Eagle Jazz Band after initially forging their musical partnership in the Potteries based Mardi Gras Society Band during the 1970s.  Matt Palmer (clarinet & saxes) joined in 2004, having worked extensively with Pete at Alton Towers theme park in Staffordshire.  Young Drummer Jack Cotterill has added youthful vigour to the engine room to allow the band to fire on all cylinders when required, along with Chris Etherington (banjo) and Andy Holdorf (trombone).The collective experience amassed by the current line-up includes top UK theme parks, cruise liners, major UK and European Jazz Festivals and Radio and Television broadcasts. The wide repertoire is drawn from popular songs from the 1920s, 30s, and 40s; Classic Jazz compositions by King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton and Sydney Bechet plus New Orleans Marches, Rags, Stomps, Blues, Swing and instrumental features .Some band members are multi-instrumentalists, enabling us to play a variety of different sounds and styles each played in a happy, entertaining manner, many featuring vocals.  Whatever we play, the major priority is to entertain the audience but to always maintain a high standard of musicianship and presentation.The Millennium Eagle Jazz Band have made their mark in several UK jazz clubs and at society functions (where they are equally at home) and have a healthy diary for the coming months.  The band are able to perform acoustically and therefore are suitable for outdoor events and for strolling.

Peter Brown             (trumpet, valve trombone & vocals)

Andy Holdorf           (trombone & vocals) 

Matt Palmer             (clarinet, saxophones & vocals) 

Chris Etherington   (banjo, guitar& vocals)

Brian Lawrence       (bass & sousaphone) 

Jack Cotterill            (drums)

MATT PALMER  Clarinet   saxophones   vocals

Matt joined the Eagle Jazz Band in 2004.at 38 he is still considered one of the younger musicians playing traditional jazz in Britain today. He started learning clarinet at the age fifteen having become a keen jazz fan through listening to his father's records, which included sessions from the 50's and 60's by Chris Barber, Alex Welsh and the Dutch Swing College Band. His first experience of playing jazz came in 1988 when he started to sit in with a few bands that played in pubs around the Nottingham area. In 1990 (at the age of twenty) Matt formed the 'Knights of Jazz' who enjoyed a great deal success in the early 1990's. Matt's full-time career in  music began in 1995 when he became a member of the resident jazz band at Alton Towers theme park, Staffordshire and became bandleader in his final season (1997). During his time there he worked many of the countries leading traditional jazz musicians including Pete Brown, Terry Brunt, Mike Dexter and Arthur Brown. When the theme park contract came to an end Matt formed the Millennium Jazz Band who became firm favourites in several leading jazz venues. Other activities have included several visits to Puerto de Mogan, Gran Canaria where Matt hosted star-studded jam sessions featuring musicians appearing at the jazz festival held on the island. These sessions have included such notables as the late Kenny Baker and clarinet star Pete Allen.

PETER BROWN Trumpet, Valve Trombone, vocals

Pete is a renowned Midlands musician having held the trumpet chair in the Eagle band since 1979.His musical career started in military service with the North Staffordshire Regiment. On his return to civilian life he joined Stoke-on-Trent's premier band The Ceramic City Stompers. He then spread his wings to join the famous Manchester band the Zenith Six. Five years later he left to join the Old Fashioned Love band. In 1969 he decided to form his own band The Mardi Gras Society Jazz Band which enjoyed great success throughout Europe backing many famous visiting American jazz greats including Bud Freeman Gene Connors and Wild Bill Davidson. During his career he has also been band manager at the Alton Towers and American Adventure theme parks.

BRIAN LAWRENCE     Double bass  Sousaphone

Brian started to play bass in a Small dance and Big bands, then Rock & Roll onto skiffle then an old time sequence band which was the hardest working band he has ever played in.  His first jazz band, The Three Spires Jazzmen was in 1960, then on to the strangely named Duff Campbell's Goodnight Band where he first met Mike Turner. After this he joined the Zenith Hot Stompers leaving them in 1971 to join Pete Browns Mardi Gras Society Jazz Band. When this band ceased in 1980 he renewed his ties with Mike Turner to form the band which has become Swing Parade, leaving in 1991 to join the Cutty Sark Band which he left in 1997  to join the Eagle Band. 

 CHRIS ETHERINGTON    Banjo & vocals

Chris has been in the Millennium Eagle for since 2005. Fifty years ago he followed the generational path from Lonnie Donegan to Chris Barber, then back to the Hot Fives, Morton, Bix, Oliver and Ellington. While running continuous successions of bands at Shrewsbury School (where he taught language's), he joined the Severnside Jazz Band in 1975 (and today runs it.)  Twenty-five of the 30 Severnside years were spent in the company of pianist Jon Penn, and the late cornettist Dick Wharton. So the repertoire was extensive and scholarly! Guests with the band during that time included Roy Williams, Digby Fairweather, John Barnes, Pat Halcox,  Alex Revell  both Masons (Rod & Phil!)  plus all the best known Midlands icons of the time. Chris is grateful to all those banjoists who have promoted the instrument beyond its usual "plink-plink" role - notably Johnny McCallum, Paul Seeley and "Gentleman" Jim McIntosh, Thomas "Spatts" Langham   great role-models  all

ANDY HOLDORF     Trombone & Vocals

Leaving West Bromwich and Leeds Universities in 1957 intending to take up a career in Physics!! he was side tracked into that year’s Rhythm Club Jazz Band, Cassey’s Hot 7, a fabled inter-faculty band of jazz hopefuls. After failing his degree with honours he escaped to London taking up a position as laboratory technician at a college in Kensington. He Joined the Back O’ Town Syncompators  in 1964. After several years touring England and aboard he settled in Stockport and joined the local brassband. Next came Shep’s Banjo Boys who were co-opted onto the Comedians Show for Granada TV. An off shoot of this then played at the Skyline Hotel Heathrow,  they were ‘head-hunted’ for a two year contract at ‘Your Father’s Moustache Banjo Bar’ in South Africa, on expiry of his work permit he was deported back to England as an alien!  He then took to the Hills of Rochdale supporting himself by busking, after several forays aboard with legendary Sidney Pye (aka Kate & Sidney Pye) he was then incarcerated at Alton Towers with the Al Potts Jazz Band for ten years, during which time he met Pete Brown who had come up through the ranks in a more traditional way but with the same end result. Donning Lederhosen und Stein there followed nearly two decades of Um-pah’ing only to be rescued by the Millennium Eagle Jazz Band at the beginning of 2005.

JACK COTTERILL       Drums