Acker Bilk (often referred to as Mr. Acker Bilk) is one of the world's leading Jazz Clarinetists. His trademarks are his goatee beard, bowler hat and striped waistcoat. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... A goatee A goatee is a beard formed by a tuft of hair on the chin resembling that of a billy goat. ... The bowler hat is a hard felt hat created for an Englishman William Coke II, who later became Thomas William Coke, 2nd Earl of Leicester, in 1850. ...

Acker Bilk.

Born Bernard Stanley Bilk, in Pensford, Somerset South West England, on 28 January 1929, he obtained the stage name Acker from the Somerset slang or dialect term for friend or 'mate'. Download high resolution version (713x710, 236 KB) This is an album cover. ... Download high resolution version (713x710, 236 KB) This is an album cover. ... Pensford is a village 7 miles north of Bristol and 8 miles west of Bath. ... Somerset is a county in the south-west of England. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the British Isles Languages English (de facto) Capital London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001 Census) – Density Ranked 1st... January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Somerset is a county in the south-west of England. ...

During his upbringing in Pensford, his parents attempted to have him taught to play the piano, but he found this to be too restricting of his desire for outdoor pursuits, which included football. A grand piano A piano is a keyboard instrument, which is widely used in western music for solo performance, chamber music, and accompaniment, and also as a convenient aid to composing and rehearsal. ... Football (soccer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Two front teeth lost in a school fight and half a finger lost in a sledging accident have had a significant influence over Bilk's style of playing (at least according to Bilk himself).

He became a household name in the United Kingdom during the 1960s with 11 top 50 singles, including a massive number one hit record, the plaintive "Stranger on the Shore", the theme tune from a contemporary television serial. At one point, his public relations workers were known as the 'Bilk Marketing Board', a play on the then Milk Marketing Board. The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The Top 50 refers to a list of weekly hit singles, or albums. ... The hit record of Stranger on the Shore on Columbia Records DB 4750 Stranger on the Shore is a piece for clarinet written by Acker Bilk for his young daughter and originally named Jenny after her. ... Public relations is, simply stated, the art and science of building relationships between an organization and its key audiences. ...

He has been described as Great Master of the Clarinet in this lengthy article.

Bilk is often said to be the originator of 'Hyung-Tiger' playing, often copied by such artists as Johnny Range and Ted Morton.

See also

• West Country accents
• Django Reinhardt, another influential jazz musician whose dexterity seemed unimpaired by finger-damage

This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Django (left) & Grappelli (right). ...

External links

• Agency for booking Acker Bilk concerts, also contains further information about Acker Bilk
• Scrumpy & Western Acker Bilk