Evergreen

72 EVERGREEN Autumn
Discovering what
became of
personalities
from the past
Steve Race Hubert Gregg
Benny Green Alan Dell
Malcolm Laycock & David Jacobs
Barry Kinder asked about
several former BBC music
broadcasters.
Steve
Race
Steve Race (1921-2009), was one
of our finest who embraced every
form of the genre with enthusiasm.
A composer and raconteur, his
informative but gentle approach put
everyone at ease. He was the perfect
chairman of My Music (see Evergreen,
Winter 2009), amalgamating
earnestness with amusement, and
enjoyed telling the story when he
mistakenly awarded second prize
in a young composer competition
to a girl who cheated by submitting
an obscure piece by Mozart! His
autobiography Musician at Large is an
excellent read.
Hubert Gregg (1914-2004) was
a writer, singer and actor who
composed the popular song “Maybe
It’s Because I’m a Londoner” (see
Evergreen, Spring 2001). Among his
nostalgic BBC radio programmes
were A Square Deal and, latterly,
Thanks for the Memory.
Benny Green (1927-1998, see
below), was a proud Londoner and a
jazz saxophonist whose easy manner
endeared him to an army of fans. His
expert knowledge of jazz and popular
song composers was a feature of his
Sunday afternoon programme which
ran for many years right up until
his death. Also a cricketing guru, he
wrote several Wisden Anthologies.