Taking the lead from his older brother Ben an 8 year Jamie took up guitar, piano
and eventually singing. It wasn’t untill deep into his A Level studies where
Jamie seemed to be moving swiftly towards an academic career, that he became frustrated
with the inability to concentrate on music. He decided to take a year off to continue
teaching himself music and develop his increasing interest in Jazz Piano which
his older brother was fuelling with an introduction to records by Oscar Peterson
and Dave Brubeck. A long stint of travelling and an extended stay in Paris where
Jamie not only saw a massive amount of live music but also started to play piano
in cafes and bars only strengthened this desire. Returning to England Jamie started
playing piano in hotels and weekly at a local Jazz pub whose regular appearances
encouraged him to learn more tunes. It was only one week when he ran out of tunes
at the local pub that he decided to sing and play the tune Do You Know What it
Means to miss New Orleans where he realised that he might have a professional
career. This first piano/vocals moment lead to countless meetings with influential
local musicians and Jamie started to appear prolifically on a growing local Jazz
scene learning his craft with some of the most experienced musicians in Britain.