The Highwayman, Camberley

The Highwayman, Old Dean, Camberley is another lost venue, replaced by a block of flats. On opening night in ’66 Dudley Moore and Peter Cook were there, and The Dudley Moore Trio played here regularly in the late 60’s with many of the audience sat on the floor. Tuesday night was Modern Jazz Night where you could have caught Tubby Hayes, Don Rendell, Michael Garrick and Jimmy Witherspoon.

There is a recording of Neil Ardley directed New Jazz Orchestra’s performance at The Highwayman, Camberley in March ’66 floating about somewhere. At the time the orchestra featured Ian Carr (flugelhorn), Don Rendell (sax), Michael Garrick (piano), John Mumford (trombone), Les Carter (flute), Dave Gelly (tenor sax), Henry Lowther (trumpet), Jack Bruce (double bass), and Jon Hiseman (drums).

The next year, on 17 January ’67, Highwayman regulars, The Garrick Trio were joined by drummer and pianist Bill Le Sage. Pianist Garrick’s Trio was often formed or augmented by guest musicians such as singer Bobby Breen and saxophonist/clarinetist Olaf Vas who joined him on 31 January ’67 at The Highwayman. Six weeks later, on 14 March, tenor saxophonist Danny Moss and his wife, singer, Jeanie “Miss Disc” Lambe joined the Garrick Trio at the venue. The St. Vincent emigree Ellsworth McGranahan “Shake” Keane on a visit from his German home, where he was the featured soloist with the Kurt Edelhagen Radio Orchestra played sax with Garrick’s combo on 8 August ’67 and on 19 September ’67, Humphrey Lyttleton and Tony Coe played the Highwayman with Garrick. Little known tenor player Jimmy Philip bought The Jimmy Philip Quintet to the pub on 3 October ’67.

Humphrey Lyttleton and Tony Coe were with The Garrick Trio once again on 26 March ’68, and The Rendell-Carr Quintet held forth on 11 June ’68. Joe Harriott, who’d made several albums and EPs with Garrick in the mid-’60s, joined The Garrick Trio on 20 August ’68 at the Highwayman.

The Highwayman, with its nod to the highwaymen who frequented Bagshot Heath such as Claude Du Vall and William “Golden Farmer” Davis, developed a bit of a reputation in the ’70s/’80s but still featured the odd night of live music. It was demolished in 1990.

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