The Service this morning was attended by a good 200 musicians and friends, with band-leaders Don Lusher, Barry Forgie, Alan Ganley and Stan Reynolds, and instrumentalists Duncan Lamont, Gordon Campbell, Cliff Hardie, and Dave Hancock amongst the mourners. Dave Hancock gave the eulogy, more in the style of "The Alan I Knew", passing over Alan's brilliant trumpet playing and his genius at arranging, to tell in a series of fascinating stories the depth of Alan's generosity and humanity, his ability to organise when required, and his sense of enjoyment and fun which he displayed throughout his career. Alan's mental illness in recent years, which Dave characterised as "the demons inside" was mentioned, as was his apparent recovery this year when he started arranging again and his trumpet playing returned to its former standards.
Several of Alan's arrangements were played during the Service, starting with Derek Watkin's wonderful rendition of "We've Only Just Begun", and ending with the Maynard Ferguson band playing "Give it One".......
What a way to go!
Report from Colin Stuart