The saxophonist Kathy Stobart, who has died aged 89, was one of the finest jazz soloists of her generation. "Always possessed of a robust tone and forthright style," in the words of the critic Brian Priestley, she was best known for extended periods with the Humphrey Lyttelton band, but was as likely to turn up in touring big bands as she was to play in tightly organised modern jazz combos or freewheeling mainstream groups. Whatever the situation, it was her musicianship and co-operative disposition that carried her through, these qualities also enabling her to develop a successful parallel career as a teacher of the saxophone.
Daughter of Jessie and Matthew, she was from South Shields, Co Durham, born into a musical family. Both her brothers, Ralph and Billy, were saxophonists and her mother an experienced pianist. This doubtless prompted Kathy to study the piano and to tackle the alto saxophone. As a teenager, she spotted an advertisement calling for a tenor saxophonist/vocalist for Don Rico's Ladies Swing Band. Borrowing her brother's instrument, she survived a month's trial, wearing her "pretty pink dungarees", and toured wartime Britain for a year, supporting entertainers such as the comedian Nat Jackley while singing, dancing and doing impressions, including of the hugely popular Gracie Fields.
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