About Alison

Alison Kerr is an award-winning journalist whose passion for jazz ignited her career as a writer.  

For 20 years, Alison was a contributor of jazz reviews and features to The Herald newspaper, in her hometown of Glasgow. She also wrote regularly on the subject for The Scotsman and Scotland on Sunday.

Other publications for which Alison has covered jazz include The Guardian, the Sunday Herald, Jazz Journal International, JazzWise and Jazz Review. For 10 years, she was a regular guest on BBC Radio Scotland’s flagship jazz show, Bebop to Hiphop,  covering such topics as Jazz on Film and classic jazz and contributing packages of interviews recorded at jazz parties and festivals.

In 2011, Alison programmed a Jazz on Film strand for the Glasgow Jazz Festival and presented a talk on the subject.

Alison has penned liner notes for several CDs on the Arbors Records label – among them Warren Vaché’s Don’t Look Back and Ruby Braff/Scott Hamilton’s For the Last Time (a recording of Braff’s last concert, given in Nairn, Scotland)  – and for albums by such diverse musicians/bands as the Hot Antic Jazz Band, Carol Kidd, John Allred and Alan Barnes.

The jazz stars whom Alison has interviewed include Annie Ross, Doc Cheatham, Marty Grosz, Dick Hyman, Humphrey Lyttelton, Carol Kidd, Diana Krall, John Bunch, Harry Connick Jr, Curtis Stigers, Gene Harris, Warren Vache, Kenny Davern, Dave Brubeck, Wynton Marsalis, Tony Bennett, Scott Hamilton, Bob Wilber and Bucky Pizzarelli.

In 1986, she held the door open for Milt Hinton.

RECENT PRAISE FOR ALISON’S WORK

Curtis Stigers: “one of my favorite music writers”

Emma Thompson: “What gorgeous articles!”

Michael Winner: “Thank you so much for sending me the article. I thought it was excellent.”

John Byrne: “Great piece! Enjoyed it hugely. My warmest thanks.”