Denis Preston

Denis Preston
Preston at work in Lansdowne Studios
Preston at work in Lansdowne Studios
Background information
Birth nameSidney Denis Prechner
Also known asSidney Denis Preston
Born(1916-11-16)16 November 1916
Stoke Newington, London, England
Died21 October 1979(1979-10-21) (aged 62)
Hove, Sussex, England
GenresJazz, skiffle, blues
Occupation(s)Record producer, critic
Years active1940-1970s
LabelsLansdowne Records

Sidney Denis Preston[1] ( Prechner, 16 November 1916 – 21 October 1979) was a British record producer, recording studio owner, radio presenter and music critic. He was particularly influential in the British jazz and associated skiffle scenes from the 1940s to the 1960s.[1]

Preston worked independently;[2] he was not contracted to a particular record label and would often risk cutting a record before pitching for a deal.[3] He has been described as "Europe's first independent record producer",[2] and as "probably the most important figure to emerge from the British jazz business".[4] Neil Ardley described him as "a rare Diaghilev like figure" who steered many of the key figures of the British jazz scene into the studio when nobody else would record them.[5]

  1. ^ a b Wilmer, Val. "Preston, (Sydney) Denis". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/75566. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ^ a b Reetze, Jan. "RGM Sound Ltd". Joe Meek - A Portrait. The Joe Meek Page. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  3. ^ "BIOGRAPHY - Later recording". amanciodsilva.com. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference adams was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Higgins, Tony (2021). Journeys in Modern Jazz: Britain Archived 26 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine, Decca CD and booklet 0600753935866