Ron Falson
Ron Falson’s musical career covers the history of Australian popular entertainment during his lifetime.
When he was 14, and a student at Sydney Technical High School, his father bought him a trumpet. “One of my mates played a clarinet, another drums, another played piano and we set up a group”. So came into existence a band of four players from Tech High and three from Sydney High.
They started playing for school and surf club dances, lacking a repertoire but high in confidence. It was wartime Sydney and a chance for young untried musicians to get a break, with so many regular players away at the war. They were soon playing American Red Cross shows for servicemen six nights a week. Ron began arranging for the group by trial and error, and bt the time the Red Cross engagements finished in 1946, Ron’s trumpet playing and arranging had begun to assume the definite pattern that constituted his highly individual, recognisable style.
During the 1946-47 trombone player Ralph Mallen formed a big swing band for regular Saturday night and Sunday afternoon jazz concerts. Ron did his first jazz concert at Sydney Town Hall with Mallen, a show that included the ‘Ron Falson and His Be-Boppers’.
By 1948 Ron was playing at such society rooms like Romano’s, Prince’s, the Roosevelt at Kings Cross and the Celebrity. This era also marked a long broadcasting association with the ABC and commercial radio. Dance band circuits were booming. In 1951, Ron joined up with Warren Gibson to form the Metronome Dance Syndicate for a Two run on lead trumpet and arranger, plating a weekly round at Parramatta, Hurstville,The Albert Palais, Drummoyne and Bankstown.
He played at the Trocadero, and with Bob Gibson’s band played at the hugely popular swing dances at the Gaiety and Surryville.
Finally, he went back to Joe Taylor’s Celebrity Club where he and Don Burrows made up the ‘front line’ of a crack band that saw out the last years this niterie that had featured so many international celebrities in its post-war history.
Ron’s next episode took him touring with Lee Gordon’s ‘Big Shows’. His elevation to big time status was heavily underscored when he was a featured soloist with bands lead by Buddy Rich, Stan Kenton, Lionel Hampton and Mel Torme.
Played in bands accompanying Johhny Ray, Louis Armstrong, Frankie Lane, Billy Eckstine, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jnr, Dave Brubeck, Teddy Wilson, Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughn Ella Fitzgerald.
And then came Television!
Having arranged music for and played on the official openings of TCN9 and ATN 7 television became the focus of Ron’s music output and energy as well as the major income provider. He either played on or provided arrangements for Six O’clock Rock, The Johnny O’Keefe Show, The Barry Crocker Show Sound of Music and all the Revue shows on ATN 7; Bobby Limb’s Sound of Music and TCN9, The Mobile Limb Show; Bandstand; the Lorrae Desmond Show ABN 2,Sydney Tonight Shows fronted by Dave Allen, Don Lane, Bob Rogers, Tommy Leonetti, John Singleton, Stuart Wagstaff, Mike Walsh and more; Norman Gunstan Show ABN 2; Melbourne shows included In Melbourne Tonight, The Graeme Kennedy Show and The Don Lane Show.
And then there was over 25 years of Midday Shows fronted by Mike Walsh, Ray Martin, Derrin Hinch and Kerrie-Anne Kennerly.
At one time there were eleven Live Tonight Shows running on Sydney television. Ron either played on or arranged music for all of them.
View Ron’s profile in a 1958 edition of ‘Music Maker’.