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Jazz is often seen as an African-American musical genre. This may be essentially true, at least in its origins, but it sent ripples out, at first affecting white American music culture and eventually Europe. One of those ripples was Gordon Stretton. Gordon Stretton was born in Liverpool as William Masters. His father was of African, probably African-Caribbean. His mother was Welsh, Ann J Masters Nee Williams (1862- ). He came from from a poverty-stricken childhood. This was not unudual in Liverpool among the working class, but William's childhood was also racially marginalized. he was an unrcognized child prodigy. The prodigies we are familiar with are parents with means or who found patrons. The young William had no such advantages. He cerainly had no drum set. His talentbemtged as a yiung dancer and singer. He proved to be a pioneer. Liverpool today is known as a hot bed of popular nusic. It is of course where the Beatles emerged. Stretton was interestingly the first important international music figure to energe from Liverpool. As a child, he played with Charlie Chaplin in the 'Lancashire Lads Dancing Troupe'. He toured Britain as a member of a Jamaican choir (1908). He performed in locales including London and Paris, eventualy settling in Buenos Aires. He gained fame as a spectacular jazz drummer (1910s). He recorded in New York Ciuty with the Syncopated Jazz Band ('Satanic Blues'/'Lucky Dog Blues' (1921). He led the Orchestre Syncopated Six in Paris, recording 'Fate' and 'Tu Verras'. (1923). He founded Gordon Stretton's Symphonic Jazz Band in Buenos Aires (1929).
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