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James (Jim) Beatty (June 9, 1934, Jamestown, NY - March 12, 2019, Portland, OR) was an American jazz musician who specialized in the clarinet and soprano saxophone. A career musician, Beatty played on both American coasts and toured the world in countries such as China, Russia, and the United Kingdom. He appeared on over 50 recordings, 17 of his own, and was a guest of honor at Bulgaria's King Simeon's 80th birthday in 2017.[1]

Jim Beatty
Birth nameJames William Beatty
Also known asJim Beatty
BornJune 9, 1934
Jamestown, New York
DiedMarch 12, 2019 (84 years)
Portland, OR
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Clarinet (Primary), Soprano Saxophone
Years active1950's to 2010's
Websitejimbeattyjazz.com

Life[edit]

Beatty was a first generation American born to a Swedish mother and English father. He was given a clarinet for his eighth birthday and fell in love with New Orleans Jazz shortly after. Growing up in Jamestown, NY allowed Beatty to travel to New York City and other nearby locations to listen to Jazz greats. As a teenager, Beatty would find entrance into bars and clubs and listen to and introduce himself to musicians such as Omer Simeon, "Wild" Bill Davidson, Henry "Red" Allen, George Lewis, Sidney Bechet, and Louis Armstrong. Bechet was Beatty's idol growing up, and Omer Simeon became a close friend and mentor of Beatty's.[2]

Beatty started playing in bands and traveling to hear jazz in places such as New Orleans and Los Angeles. With the onset of the Korean War, he was drafted into the U.S. Army. Due to his playing experience, Beatty was invited to try-out to attend the Army Band School. After doing well in the try-out and finishing basic training, Beatty was sent to the Army School of Music. After training at Fort Dix in Trenton, NJ, he was assigned to the 184th Army Band stationed in Fort Eustis, VA. Beatty and the 184th played for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip of England during their tour of Jamestown and Williamsburg, where he was a featured soloist.[2]

After being discharged in 1958, Beatty headed back to Jamestown where he started playing daily and weekly gigs in Jamestown and western New York. He was hired in 1961 to perform with a band in Nassau, Bahamas for the winter season. While there he became friends with Bulgaria's King in exile, King Simeon, while also meeting his future wife, Pauline. After the Bahamas, Beatty travelled throughout the U.S. and Canada playing a variety of jobs. In 1964, he moved back to Jamestown and formed his own band, The Dixielads. The band became popular in western New York and consistently played in cities such as Buffalo, Syracuse, and Rochester. During this time Beatty became close friends with trumpet legend "Wild" Bill Davidson, who would occasionally join The Dixielads in their performances.[3]

The late 1960's saw Beatty move his family to Portland, OR, where he became a fixture of Portland night life. He played with famous bands, such as Monte Ballou’s Castle Jazz Band, until forming his own band: The Jim Beatty Jazz Band. The 70's saw Beatty playing for nightclubs, parties, and jazz clubs in Portland and throughout the west coast. He also played in concerts with the Turk Murphy Jazz Band, continued to play gigs with "Wild" Bill Davidson, trumpet legends Jim Goodwin and Ernie Carson, and was hired by the U.S. Government to present "jazz lectures and concerts" to local schools in Oregon and Washington. Beatty's night life on the west coast intersected with many celebrities of the time, playing for and spending time with the likes of Andre the Giant, Forrest Tucker, and Sam Elliot. During Robert Kennedy's Presidential Campaigning for the Oregon Primary in 1968, Beatty spent an evening with Kennedy after playing for his campaign party.[2][3]

As jazz night club life declined in the 1980's, Beatty spend the rest of his career traveling the world and west coast to play gigs and producing albums with his band. Beatty became a fixture in England and Wales in the 1990's, becoming a yearly guest of the Bude Jazz Festival and other locations in the United Kingdom. He also played and toured in China and had stints throughout Europe. In 2009, Beatty was invited by the U.S. State Department to teach at a jazz academy in Yekaterinburg, Russia. At the academy, Beatty taught, played for, and judged young Russian jazz musicians. The stint also saw Beatty perform in the Urals Estrady Theater in front of a packed Russian house. Russian jazz critic, Victor Bainov, wrote of the concert, "(Jim Beatty) is a serious musician who plays only his favorite music. He is not excessively showy. However, to the attentive listener, he is very expressive in his movements and poses. Jim is one of the Last Mohicans of jazz. The difference between Beatty and the last of Fenimore Cooper's warrior Mohicans is that the type of jazz musician he exemplifies will never grow old."[2][3]

Even as he aged, Beatty continued to play locally in Portland and travel, most notably in Palm Springs, CA and being a guest of honor at his old friend King Simeon's birthday party in 2017 in Bulgaria. In March of 2019 he passed away due to complications from a stroke.[4]

Reception[edit]

  • "Beatty plays with a broad tone emphasizing the lower and middle registers with a texture of Creole delicacy and fiery imagination. Played to to standing ovations throughout and was a true show stopper." - London Times[2]
  • The eminent clarinet soloist of the 20th-21st century, Beatty leads his band to heights seldom reached in the every day life of musical entertainment." - Jan Scobey's HOT JAZZ Publication[2]
  • "Jim Beatty plays a magical clarinet. He offers a 'tour de force' in style and technique with solos that speak of the great New Orleans players. His playing brings back that 'inspired abandonment' of jazz's forefathers. He should be included among the ranks of the great soloists of the decade." - Jazz Scene[5]
  • “He’ll go anywhere, anytime to make music and play until there is no one left to keep up with him. Jim’s a special person, a special musician, and a joy." - Jazz Soundings Magazine[3]

Discography[6][edit]

  1. Jim Beatty - The West Coast Years: 1968-1993 - 25th Anniversary
  2. Jim Beatty - Clarinet and Rhythm
  3. Jim Beatty and The Big Bear Stompers - Together Live
  4. Jim Beatty - Jim Beatty's Christmas Clarinet
  5. The Jim Beatty Jazz Band - Strictly Dixie and Blues
  6. Jim Beatty - Song of Songs
  7. Jim Beatty with Wild Bill Davidson and Jim Goodwin - Just Jazz
  8. Jim Beatty in Concert - That's a Plenty
  9. Jim Beatty in Concert - At the Portland Art Museum
  10. The Jim Beatty Quartet - Unforgettable
  11. Jim Beatty - The Premier Ball
  12. The Jim Beatty Quartet - Holly Jolly Jazz
  13. The Jim Beatty Band - We'll Meet Again
  14. Jim Beatty - Memories
  15. Jim Beatty - Old Time Religion


  1. ^ Stites, Sam. "A clarinet fit for a king". https://joomlakave.com. Retrieved 2019-07-28. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  2. ^ a b c d e f Beatty, Jim (2017). Still Ramblin': The Life and Times of Jim Beatty. JB Records. pp. 1–605. ISBN 1542448972.
  3. ^ a b c d "About, Jim Beatty Jazz". Jim Beatty Jazz. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
  4. ^ Bebco, Joe (2019-04-16). "Jim Beatty, Jazz Clarinetist and Author has died at 84". The Syncopated Times. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
  5. ^ Randall, Barb. "Local clarinetist Jim Beatty dies after stroke". https://joomlakave.com. Retrieved 2019-07-28. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  6. ^ "Discography, Jim Beatty Jazz". Jim Beatty Jazz. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
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