JOHN CLARE
This section is dedicated to the work of John Clare, who began writing in the early 70s, and has long been regarded as the doyen of Australian jazz writers. Helen Garner, in her preface to Clare's book Take Me Higher, describes how she used to cut out his writings under his Gail Brennan pseudonym and paste them into her diary. Originally she thought the articles were written by a woman. She describes his writing as "superbly literate and articulate, deeply informed, yet completely ordinary in tone, even at their most elated. A relaxed freedom flowed through everything he wrote. He was fearless. He rejoices. He celebrated. Years later, an art critic who admired him said to me: John Clare’s an ecstatic.” Many of John Clare's articles that were published previously in various publications are collected here. Click on the INDEX button for a list of articles in this folder.
Keith Stirling
OBITUARY: KEITH STIRLING 1938-2003
by John Clare
Sydney Morning Herald, August 15, 2003
Keith Livingstone Stirling, who has died of heart failure related to a diabetic condition, was a unique Australian trumpet stylist, recognised internationally by musicians. His network of local fans was devoted, but he was hardly a household name. Stirling had no urge towards self-promotion...
DAVID ADES: A LIFE IN A DAY
CD Review by John Clare
Loudmouth, Music Trust of Australia, February 1, 2016
You may have gathered that over the past couple of years a group of highly important Australian musicians have died. As they all played predominately in the area of jazz, the presumption might be made that drug overdoses or drunken falls from rooftops could have been involved Nothing of the sort…
Duke Ellington
INSIDE THE MUSICIAN: JOHN CLARE AT 75
by John Clare
Loudmouth, Music Trust of Australia, June 5, 2016
To come in from a wide or oblique angle, I need to apologise briefly that my writing is not what it was. There is no excuse, but a reason of sorts. Over the past few years I have lost a son and a sister, the wonderful old Chinese lady upstairs who died and was replaced by a crazy and nasty woman who fire bombed my flat while I was visiting my daughter in Brisbane. And more, but we’ll leave that…