Harold McNair's Eclectic Jazz Rock Folk Legacy
- George
- Nov 3
- 2 min read
Updated: Nov 4
From jazz to rock to rnb to dance music, Harold 'Little G' McNair was playing it.
Flute player, vocalist, and saxophonist Harold "Little G" McNair was born 5 November 1931. After leaving Alpha Boys School, McNair migrated to the UK in the 50s. His first UK album as a leader, Affectionate Fink, was made for the fledgling Island Records in 1965. The session saw him team up with Ornette Coleman's then current rhythm section of David Izenzon (bass) and Charles Moffett (drums), for a set of standards played with hard swinging intensity.
Listen to McNair performing live at the BBC Jazz Club...
The late Quincy Jones included Mr McNair in his "Birth of a Band" orchestra that toured Europe in 1960 and can be seen and heard on saxophone in this video from the Municipal Theatre in Lausanne, Switzerland.
McNair's unique phrasing on the flute led to demand for his services among non-jazz musicians, especially during the late 1960s. His flute was featured on the soundtrack for Ken Loach's film Kes (1969), with music written by regular McNair collaborator John Cameron.
Work With Donovan
His best-known sideman role came via his regular participation (with Cameron) on Donovan's mid-to-late 1960s recording sessions, and as a member of Donovan's touring band. McNair arranged the hit single "There Is a Mountain" (1967) and played the flute riff.
Folk & Progressive Rock Recordings
Throughout the 1960s, Mcnair also contributed to a slew of jazz-inflected folk and progressive rock albums, including Martyn's The Tumbler and Davy Graham's Large as Life and Twice as Natural. During a visit to Mami, he recorded his first all-jazz album, Up in the Air with Harold McNair, after which he returned to the UK and released Affectionate Fink in 1965 for Island Records. The recording ‘The Hipster’ comes from his second UK album, the self-titled Harold McNair, and was issued on RCA as a 45 in 1968.
