Heining/Trad Dads, Dirty Boppers and Free Fusioneers, 8. Rivers of Babylon, Rivers of Blood

The British jazz scene can be described as “sexist” in its attitude and behaviour towards women performers. With respect to racism, the wider British society in the fifties and sixties was most certainly racist. It is probable that non-white jazz musicians were not always treated equally in the fifties and the sixties. This chapter seeks to understand how immigration contributed to British jazz, and the different experiences of white and black musicians coming to Britain to work.