Pete Cater spent his early years in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, by coincidence less than a mile away from Ian Palmer. Since 1995, The Pete Cater Big Band has been thrilling UK audiences with its no-nonsense hard swinging approach to big band jazz music. Pete Cater describes his musical policy as "present day, high energy big band jazz."



They draw inspiration from the great bands of the past without falling into the nostalgia trap, and at the same time keep an eye in a forward direction without losing sight of the core values that made big band music great in the first place.



As well as showcasing some of the top young professionals on the London scene, Pete Cater also employs a team of outstanding arrangers who take his outlines and ideas and turn them into superbly crafted scores. The band has toured throughout the UK and has appeared at many of the country's top jazz festivals. In 2001 they were voted "Band of the Year" in the British Jazz awards and "Critics Choice" the following year.



Pete Cater's band has broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and released three albums "Playing With Fire" (Jazzizit records 1998) "Upswing" (Vocalion records 2001) "The Right Time" (Vocalion records 2006)