henry parsons

why couldn’t you, fox-trot, percy chandler and his band (vocal: al bowlly), piccadilly 789, london, late april, 1931.

“Most Bowlly fans are familiar with the fact that Al sang on a few sides issued on the Piccadilly record label with Percy Chandler and his Band during late April of 1931. Chandler went on to record a further dozen or so sides for Piccadilly in May, June and August 1931. (He) seems to have been something of a dilettante on the music scene as his first love as will become clear was yachting. The first reference to him in a musical context is the fact that he led a quartette at Quaglino’s restaurant during 1930. Quaglino’s at the time was a restaurant for high society which would have included the yachting fraternity and this was the sphere Chandler seemed to be at home in. The Piccadilly label was the budget line of Metropole Records and is an interesting one as it rarely obtained the services of any of the bigger name British bands. As such some of the smaller and more obscure outfits such as Chandler’s managed to make a mark on posterity and for that we should be thankful. Chandler completed three more sessions using Harry Bentley and Jimmy Mesene for his vocals. Chandler never recorded again after August 1931 and although he remained on the periphery of the dance band scene he seems to have devoted more and more of his time to the sea. By 1933 as a member of the London Corinthian Yacht Club he was competing on his yacht, ‘Sancho Panza’, on the River Crouch for the British Championship Trophy. In March 1934 his yacht, ‘Echo’ retired from the International Class competition at Raneleigh Sailing Club. The same happened in April 1934 at the Thames Club Easter meet in Teddington. But as said before Chandler remained associated with dance music albeit I suspect as a ‘fixer’ for his society friends. Thus we find at the High Sherrif of Surrey’s Appeal Fund, ‘Jarrow Ball’, at the Ace of Spades, Kingston By-pass on 18th January 1935, Percy Chandler’s Band providing the music.”