Way back in the late sixties Charlie was rehearsing with Pete Brown's Battered Ornaments in Studio 51 in Covent Garden, when Lyn Dobson sidled up to him in a break and said: 'psssst! Do you wanna play some REAL music?' A few days later Charlie found himself in the back room of a house in Southgate where Mel Davis and Terry Day were playing the most amazing music he had ever heard: fast, complex, lyrical, technically incredible, spiritually rich and seriously FREE! Essentially the London cousins of the likes of Ornette, Cecil Taylor, Sunny Murray, Pharaoh Saunders and Sun Ra, the People Band was the band that convinced Charlie that music is the only way.

Ever since the sixties the People Band has been a legendary name in British improvised music, and it's influence has been felt by many younger musicians.

This was recognized when Emanem rescued the Transaltlantic album (The People Band, produced by Charlie Watts) from oblivion and followed it up with the release of People Band 69/70.

Following this, the band regrouped to play various London shows at the Café Oto, Shunt Lounge, Vortex, King’s Place, and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, as well as appearing in Berlin.

The People Band featured in Mike Figgis' first feature film Stormy Monday as the Krakow Jazz Ensemble. Mike Figgis also has been in the band since early days.

Three of the People Band - Davey Payne, Charlie Hart and Terry Day - worked with Ian Dury in Kilburn and the Highroads, and Davey Payne went on to be an outstanding member of the Blockheads, bringing free music to the world of Rock and Roll.

There were also various spin-off groups – Mummy – with Davis, Payne, Day, Jolly, Hart; Ommu -  Day, Hart, Payne; and The Loverly Band, involving Davis and Jolly joined by the singer Maggie Nichols.

In 2022, George Khan, Mike Figgis, Terry Day and Charlie got together and did some recording at Mike’s studio.  The group became known as GK4 and released the album7, Improvisations 1-7, described by Richard Williams as ‘pieces of marvellously vivid and subtle collective invention’.

The People Band are a musical collective and musicians who over the years have included:

MEL DAVIS: piano, thrumb piano, perc. TERRY DAY: percussion, reed pipes etc. TONY EDWARDS: percussion MIKE FIGGIS: pocket trumpet, guitar ADAM HART: piano, trombone CHARLIE HART: bass, violin TERRY HOLMAN: bass PAUL JOLLY: saxes, bass clarinet GEORGE KHAN: saxes, flute. TONY MARSH: drums DAVEY PAYNE: saxes;  LYN DOBSON: saxes; AL KOVITZ: clarinet.