Banks, Tommy Orchestra

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Origin: Calgary - Edmonton, Alberta, 🇨🇦
Biography:

Tommy Banks (1936–2018) was a celebrated Canadian pianist, conductor, composer, arranger, television personality, and Senator whose influential career spanned over six decades. Based in Edmonton, Alberta, he became a central figure in Canadian jazz and an enduring champion of the arts across Canada.

Born Thomas Benjamin Banks in Calgary and raised in Edmonton from 1949, Banks began performing professionally as a pianist at the age of 14. By the 1960s, he had emerged as a leading light in Edmonton’s music scene. He gained national recognition as the host of The Tommy Banks Show, a popular CBC television variety program that aired from 1968 to 1974 and again from 1980 to 1983. The show showcased a wide array of Canadian and international talent, cementing his role as a cultural ambassador.

Banks was not only a virtuoso jazz pianist but also a highly regarded conductor and arranger. He served as music director for several major events, including the 1978 Commonwealth Games and the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary. He conducted orchestras across North America and Europe, working with luminaries such as Aretha Franklin, Tom Jones, and Glen Campbell.

His big band performance at the 1978 Montreux Jazz Festival resulted in the Juno Award-winning live album Jazz Canada Montreux 1978. In 1983, his quintet became the first foreign jazz group to perform in post-revolution China during a groundbreaking tour of Asia.

Locally, Banks anchored the house band at Edmonton’s Embers Steakhouse through the 1960s and early 1970s. Known as Tommy Banks and the Banknotes, the ensemble included P.J. Perry (saxophone), Bobby Cairns (guitar), Bob Miller (bass), Harry Pinchin (trumpet), Tom Doran (drums), and vocalist Evelyn Quaife. Together, they played hundreds of shows, recorded rare singles—including “We’re All We’ve Got” for the United Way—and became a cornerstone of Edmonton's nightlife.

Evelyn Quaife, a key collaborator during these years, transitioned from jazz and soul music to a successful operatic career in New York City, where she became known as Evelyn La Quaif. As co-founder of the Verismo Opera Company, she earned acclaim as a singer, stage director, and vocal coach. Tommy Banks once remarked, “People don’t usually succeed in moving from pop/rock music into grand opera – but she did.”

In 2000, Banks was appointed to the Canadian Senate, representing Alberta as a member of the Liberal Party. He served until his retirement in 2011, championing cultural, environmental, and legislative causes, and notably introducing the Statutes Repeal Act.

Among his many honors, Banks was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada (1991), inducted into the Alberta Order of Excellence (1993), and awarded the Juno Award for Best Jazz Album. He also received honorary doctorates from the University of Alberta and MacEwan University.

Tommy Banks passed away on January 25, 2018, in Edmonton. His legacy continues to resonate through his vast contributions to music, broadcasting, and public life in Canada.
-Robert Williston