Edward Thornton better known as "Tan Tan", is a Jamaica

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

n trumpet

Trumpet

The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...

er whose career began in the 1950s.

Biography

Thornton was born in 1932 and attended the Alpha Boys School

Alpha Boys School

Alpha Cottage School is a school on South Camp Road in Kingston, Jamaica, run by Roman Catholic nuns...

. In the 1950s, he played in the Roy Coulton band (the first band to play live on Jamaican radio) along with Don Drummond

Don Drummond

Don Drummond was a Jamaican ska trombonist and composer. He was one of the original members of The Skatalites, and composed many of their tunes....

. He toured worldwide with the group, backing a number of jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 stars, and settled in Europe, where he played with several bands including Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames

Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames

Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames were a noted British rhythm and blues/soul/jazz/ska/pop group of the 1960s. They had been the backing band for Billy Fury but, after being dismissed at the end of 1961, their pianist Georgie Fame took over as vocalist and they went on to enjoy great...

 in 1964, playing on several of their hits. He went on to play on The Beatles

The Beatles

The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

' "Got to Get You into My Life

Got to Get You into My Life

"Got to Get You into My Life" is a song by The Beatles, first released in 1966 on the album Revolver. Written by Paul McCartney , it made prominent use of a brass section...

", and performed with Boney M

Boney M

Boney M. is a Eurodisco group created by German record producer Frank Farian. Originally based in Germany, the four original members of the group's official line-up were Jamaicans Liz Mitchell and Marcia Barrett, Maizie Williams from Montserrat and Bobby Farrell from Aruba...

. In the late 1970s and early 1980s he was part of the horn section for Aswad, as well as playing with King Sounds

King Sounds

Roy Livingstone Plummer , better known as King Sounds, is a Jamaican reggae musician who released several albums from late 1970s onwards.-Biography:...

. He released a self-produced solo album in 1981, on which he was backed by The Cimarons

The Cimarons

The Cimarons were a UK reggae band formed in 1967. They were the UK's first self-contained indigenous reggae band.-History:Jamaican natives, the Cimarons migrated to Britain in 1967 with a lineup consisting of Franklyn Dunn , Carl Levy , Locksley Gichie , and Maurice Ellis ; vocalist, Winston Reid...

. More recently he has played with Jazz Jamaica

Jazz Jamaica

Jazz Jamaica is a jazz/reggae music group formed by musician Gary Crosby in London.-History:In 1991, inspired by the rhythms of traditional Jamaican music and the largely improvisational nature of jazz, original Jazz Warrior, jazz double bassist, and nephew of veteran Jamaican guitarist Ernest...

, and Ska Cubano

Ska Cubano

Ska Cubano is a London-based group which combines ska and Cuban music such as son and mambo, with elements of other genres including cumbia and calypso.-History:...

.

Solo discography

• Musical Nostalgia for Today LP (1981), Maccabees/Rainbow
• "Theme From A Summer Place" 12"-single (1981), Rough Trade
  Rough Trade Records
  Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
  
  

External links

• Eddie Thornton recording credits at Allmusic
• Eddie 'Tan Tan' Thornton at Roots Archives