Skip Beckwith

Bass / Arranger / Producer / Composer, Jazz, Pop - Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. b Sydney, NS, 1 Oct 1939 --Snapped tunes with Brian Browne and Charles Coleman in groups during the mid-60’s --Recorded and performed with Oliver Jones, Duane Andrews, Anne Murray, and his Brazilian group JazznSamba --Skip is a producer as well as a bassist and composer, e.g. Dutch Mason, Joe Sealy and maritimers Paul Donat and Maritime Jazz Orchestra --Ray Brown is often cited as Skip’s primary influence --Was Anne Murray’s music director for almost all of her mega-hit years --Made sure the shows at CBC and CTV were sounding fine as a studio musician or music director (John Allen Cameron, Irish Rovers, Denny Doherty, etc) --Studied with Oliver Jones in Toronto --Became an integral part of St. Francis Xavier University’s music department --Winner of Stompin’ Tom Award at the East Coast Music Awards in 2007, which honoured “people in the music industry who have inspired, influenced or helped you artists along the way”