Instantly identifiable for his unique style of bowler hat, goatee beard and
waistcoat, the Somerset clarinetist Acker Bilk will always be remembered for his
atmospheric and evocative instrumental Stranger On The Shore. Bilk took up
playing the clarinet in 1948 while serving in the British Army in Egypt, and
subsequently became a key part of the traditional jazz boom in Britain, along
with Kenny Ball and Chris Barber. He joined The Ken Colyer Band in 1954, before
fronting his own outfit called the Bristol Paramount Jazz Band two years later,
achieving a top ten record with Summer ...