Tony Osborne

Trumpet player, pianist, composer, arranger and conductor. Born: June 1922 nr Cambridge, England. Died: March 1st 2009 in Sydney, Australia. In the 1950's Tony Osborne was musical director, with his band the Brass Hats, for Britain's first pop music television show, the BBC’s Six-Five Special. When this was superceded by Juke Box Jury in 1959, he wrote and recorded its theme song "Juke Box Fury" as Ozzie Warlock and the Wizards. Melavano, Sordo Gomez and Laszlo Tabor are other noms de plume he sometimes used. Amongst the many artists he worked with, Tony Osborne wrote and arranged for Shirley Bassey, was musical director for Judy Garland's final concerts in 1969, made two albums with Eartha Kitt in 1984, and in the mid-1990's, aged 74 and the baby of the band, he came out of retirement to lead the last genuine Glenn Miller Orchestra on a tour of Australia, featuring the six surviving members of the bands led by Miller himself. His son is songwriter Gary Osborne, his daughter Jan was married to Kenny Jones of the Small Faces and The Who.