Death of an icon - James Last

LOVE him or loathe him, there is little doubt that the big band maestro James Last, who died yesterday, was a phenomenal worldwide success, both commercially and artistically.

For 60 years he enjoyed enormous popular acclaim, often jousting with The Beatles and The Rolling Stones for chart success. The ‘king of easy listening’ sold 80 million records worldwide, his repertoire ranging from Abba to Zappa.

A man of many titles, The Emperor of Elevator Music, as he was also known, was born Hans Last in Bremen, Germany, in 1929 to an English father and a German mother.

Like Mantovani before him and Andre Rieu after him, Last confounded his detractors by remaining perennially popular.

Each were responsible for bringing classical music to the masses. Each enjoyed enormous popular and commercial success and each were reviled by the critics.

Last rarely took a breather and in March this year he toured 21 European cities at the age of 86, proof that almost to his dying day, he remained trendy and in demand.

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