Don “D.T.” Thompson

Career Highlights

Don Thompson played saxophone and clarinet at 12. He began promoting his own jazz concerts under the banner Jammin’ the Blues in Edmonton at age 17. He moved to Toronto in 1952, then toured in Canada and the US with Anne Marie Moss from 1954 to 1958.

Save for a period in 1965–66 with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra in the US, Thompson was a mainstay of the Toronto jazz scene throughout the 1960s. During the early 1960s, he led singer Tommy Ambrose in a big band ensemble. Thompson appeared regularly at the First Floor Club with small groups and a big band (1959–65), and was seen performing with a quintet in the NFB’s Toronto Jazz (1962). He also performed on many CBC TV pop music shows (e.g., Club Six and Music Hop) and played in several Toronto studio orchestras.

In 1961, Thompson recorded as a member of the Pat Riccio big band in Ottawa and in 1963 with pianist Wray Downes and trombonist Rob McConnell. He also released a record as part of a quintet that included trumpeter Fred Stone.

After touring and recording with Anne Murray as her musical director between 1971 and 1981, Thompson returned to jazz. By then, he had moved from his early bebop-based style to a simpler, full-toned, melodic approach in the manner of a Stanley Turrentine. His bonhomie as a performer brought him annual Christmas and New Year's engagements during the 1980s at George’s Spaghetti House.

Thompson also wrote and recorded several jazz themes. His pop song arrangements appear on albums by Murray, John Allan Cameron and Gordon Lightfoot.

Family Connections

Thompson's brother Lloyd (born 4 November 1933 in Drumheller) worked during the late 1950s in Europe as a bassist with such noted jazz musicians as Dizzy Reece and Don Byas.

A version of this article originally appeared in the Encyclopedia of Music in Canada.