Nick McCabe pays tribute to Jazz Summers

Verve guitarist Nick McCabe, 2008

A great man passed last night after battling lung cancer for a miraculous 4 years. Jazz Summers was the man who helmed Big Life management during The Verve's breakthrough year of 1997 and a legend in the UK's music industry circles.

Personally I have a chequered history with Jazz. We hadn't always seen eye to eye but we reached an accord some time ago. He helped me through a particularly dark time and for that I will always be grateful.

In the last few years I've come to understand his motivations and machinations as being fundamentally good hearted if sometimes taking issue with the deployment.

Jazz was capable of great kindness as well as being known as an abrasive personality. Those lucky enough to have seen this side of him know that his heart was most definitely in the right place. I can count myself amongst those and claim honestly that once all the skirmishes of business were wrapped up, he cared about every member of our band and through his care he effectively changed my personal life for the better. I know several people for whom this is also true.

Thinking of all those who knew him.

Much love and respect.
Nick McCabe.