At 90 years of age, clarinettist Nick Polites could be forgiven for running out of puff and slowing down a bit; but it was the talented jazz musician who took his audience’s breath away during a recent performance at East Malvern RSL.
Nick and his band the Louisiana Shakers performed during a concert in July hosted by the Victorian Jazz Club in celebration of his 90th birthday on July 2.
Nick’s love affair with jazz traces back to 1938 when a footy mate loaned him some jazz records and told him to have a listen.
A little over a decade later, in 1951, he started his performing and recording career with Frank Johnson’s Dixielanders.
Nick’s career has taken him to many places around the world. He has toured Europe extensively and was a regular performer in New Orleans from the early 1960s.
During his time in “The Big Easy”, he was embraced by the jazz community, performed at famous venues such as Preservation Hall in the French Quarter, and befriended, performed with and stood in for his hero clarinettist, George Lewis.
Jazz club member Con Pagonis said his personal highlight of the performance was Nick’s rendition of Varka Gialo – a song that has deep sentimental value to him in traditional Greek
“My parents told me this tune was performed by Frank Johnson’s Dixielanders at their wedding on October 1, 1950 – just a few months before Nick joined the band,” he said.
“There is a Dixielanders recording of it from later in the 1950s with Nick, Frank and Smacka Fitzgibbon – all singing in Greek.”
Far from slowing down as he enters his 10th decade, Nick still performs with The Louisiana Shakers every Sunday afternoon at the Clyde Hotel in Carlton.
He also recently donated 30 volumes of scrapbook memorabilia from his career to the Australian Jazz Museum, with the public welcome to view it.
