RIP Ignatius Jones AM from Jimmy and the Boys and Pardon Me Boys

Ignatius Jones, best known as the singer of Jimmy and the Boys, jazz cabaret act ‘Pardon Me Boys’ and later director of major events including the City of Sydney Millennium Celebrations segment and opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games (horses), died at home. In Philippines.

Jones was born in Manila, Philippines in 1957. He became an Australian citizen in 1971.

Iggy’s sister, Mónica Trápaga, announced his death by issuing the following statement:

IGNATIUS JONES, ARTIST, WRITER, EVENT DIRECTOR, HAS DIED It is with immense sadness that we announce the passing of Ignatius Jones AM, after a brief illness.

He died peacefully at 9.30pm Sydney time last night (May 7) in Iloilo City, Philippines. Known professionally as Ignatius Jones, to his friends as ‘Iggy’ and to his family as ‘Nacho’, Juan Ignacio Trápaga y Esteban was born in the Philippines in 1957, before the family moved to Wahroonga, Sydney. Iggy had immense creative energy and spent over 50 years contributing to the arts, both in Australia and internationally. He was one of the world’s most important event directors, advisors and designers. He contributed to the arts in Australia as a director, performer and author, first achieving success as a singer with his shock rock band ‘Jimmy And The Boys’ and later forming the swing band ‘Pardon Me Boys’, with his sister, Monica Trápaga.

For six years he was director of Sydney’s New Year’s Eve Celebrations (1996-2002) and personally led the City of Sydney’s Millennium Celebrations. He was artistic director of the Sydney Olympic Games Opening Ceremony (horse) segment and the spectacular Harbor Closing Ceremony, and the City of Sydney Federation’s New Year’s Eve and centenary celebrations. Further afield, he directed productions for Dolly Parton in Tennessee and organized the East Timor Independence Ceremonies in May 2002. He co-directed the Doha 2006 Asian Games Ceremonies, the 2010 Shanghai World Expo Opening Ceremonies, and the the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. From 2011 to 2019, Jones was creative director of Vivid Sydney and artistic director of the Sydney Mardi Gras Parade (2011-2015).

Iggy was immensely proud in 2018, when Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II awarded him Full Membership of the Order of Australia, General Division, as part of the Australia Day Honors for his contribution to entertainment and literature. In October 2018 he married his long-time partner, Novy Berber, a Filipino-Australian choreographer from Iloilo City. She retired to the Philippines with her husband, Novy, in 2022.

His friends and family will remember Iggy as a bon-vivant, a lively storyteller and a true Renaissance man, immensely and passionately knowledgeable about history and the arts. Australia’s arts community has lost a champion and dinner parties will now be less interesting with his passing.

She is survived by her husband Novy, her mother Margot Martín, her brother Luis Miguel, her sisters Rocío and Mónica, and a group of nieces and nephews.

Iggy Jones fronted the Sydney shock rock band Jimmy and the Boys in the 1970s and 1980s. They had several hits, including a cover of The Kinks’ ‘I’m Not Like Everybody Else’ (1979) and ‘They Won’t Let My Girlfriend Talk To Me’ (1981), written for them by Tim Finn.

After Jimmy and the Boys broke up, Iggy signed a solo deal with WEA (Warner) Records and released the single ‘Like A Ghost’, written by Steve Kilbey of The Chruch.

Iggy then entered Jazz/Cabaret by forming Pardon Me Boys with her sister Mónica Trapaga. Mónica has been a presenter of Play School.

In the 1992 film Strictly Ballroom she sang ‘Yesterday’s Heroes’ by John Paul Young.

Jones worked with David Atkins on the opening and closing ceremonies of the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000. They also worked together on the opening ceremony of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo and the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

In 2017, Iggy received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Australian Event Awards. Jones was awarded the Order of Australia for his contribution to the arts as a writer, director, performer and author in 2019.

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Tagged as: 70s, 80s, alternative, Australia, Ignatius Jones, Jimmy and the Boys, Pardon Me Boys, pop, rock