Florence Kathleen "Kathy" Stobart was an English jazz saxophonist, primarily known for her tenor saxophone work and as an influential mentor to younger musicians. Born in South Shields, County Durham, she began on piano as a child and took up saxophone, performing at age 14 with Don Rico's all-female band. In 1942, she moved to London, playing with Denis Rose, Ted Heath, and Jimmy Skidmore, and later collaborating with Art Pepper, Peanuts Hucko, Vic Lewis, Humphrey Lyttelton, Johnny Griffin, Al Haig, Earl Hines, Buddy Tate, Zoot Sims, Marian McPartland, and Dick Hyman. She led her own groups from the 1950s onward and released albums including Arbeia (1978) and Saxploitation, appeared regularly on BBC Radio 1’s Sounds of Jazz, and headlined Britain’s first women’s jazz festival in 1982. Stobart performed professionally until 2007 at age 82 and passed away on 6 July 2014.
