Hello, I'm Kesti Young, and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Discs Archive for rights reasons we've had to shorten the music.

The program was originally broadcast in 1999, and the presenter was Sue Lawley.

My cast away this week is a jazz musician. Back in the 60s on the nightbuster Stretem South London, he composed what's been called perhaps the greatest of all British jazz albums, his undermilkwood suite.

But the man who had started his career performing in the RAF gang show with Tony Hancock and had become the celebrated mainstay of Ronnie Scott's Club, hit a personal and creative crisis from which he nearly didn't recover.

Then in 1973, a concert to celebrate his 30 years in the business restored his confidence and his fortunes. Since then, he's won most of the accolades jazz can offer and an OBE too.

I only care about the now, he says, in his 73rd year, and it still feels good. He is Stan Tracy.

But the then had some terrific parts, didn't they Stan? Not least Ronnie Scott's in the 60s. What was it like? Tell me about it.

It was tremendous fun. The atmosphere in the old place was something I'd never encountered before or since. It was all about the music, the people who came there. It was just a great time.

Because it was the first time really, jazz enthusiasts had had somewhere to go of their own, wasn't it?

Of that sort of place, yeah. There were various little clubs in the West End at that time, mostly hotels or restaurants which devoted one night a week to jazz.

But this was the first, as far as I can remember, seven nights a week, jazz club. What time did it get underway?

I think we started around 839. Oh, early. Yeah, I suppose. But at the weekend, it went on till about four o'clock in the morning. And that was a bit of a strain.

But like minded people gathered together and you were the resident pianist? Yes, it was. For seven years. Well, six and a bit, I think. For six and a bit years, how many nights a week?

Six of times seven. Sometimes we would do a Sunday concert in the afternoon and maybe I'd have my own gig Sunday evening. Yeah, it was very intensive.

And you loved it. You've said before now it was like Christmas every day. That's right. Why? Tell me why. What did it mean to you?

I was playing the music that I love to play with quality musicians. We had a stream of American players coming through all different styles.

Johnny Rollins, Stan Getz, Ben Webster, Donald Bird, JJ Johnson, Sonny Stitt. And I learned a lot during that period, who know about the music.

Tell me about your first record on this desert island. Well, this was recorded down at the old place. It's a night with Zoot Sims. It's a nice reminder of those times.

And I think listen to me having a good time.

Zoot Sims playing Stompin at the Savoy with Kenny Nappa, Jackie Dugan and Mike Castaway, Stan Tracy. Tell me about writing your undermilk wood suite. Obviously it was inspired by Dylan Thomas' work itself. Where would you come across it?

Well, my wife was working at Decker at that time. She was an exploitation manager for London Records. And one of the albums she brought home was this serve recording by Dylan Thomas in New York.

And it had an American cast, which sort of strangulated Welsh accents, but didn't affect the words luckily. And I just fell in love with the play.

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