After receiving piano lessons from an early age, Simon Fell took up double bass in 1973. Although originally inspired by R&B, he took the classical path, sitting in with the Kirklees Youth Orchestra and the Huddersfield Philharmonic for a number of years. A marked preference for emotional involvement (as against free improvisation) led him to form a jazz band called Persuasion A in the mid-'80s. In 1989, he formed a trio, with Leeds-based drummer Paul Hession and saxophonist Alan Wilkinson, characterized as ‘punkjazz’ for its ferocity and monumental attack. Fell’s other collaborations include the trio Something Else with Mick Beck, the Arc with Orphy Robinson, and duets with Peter Brötzmann, Butch Morris and Derek Bailey. Fell is a founder member of London Improvisers Orchestra.