[4] Shepherd's career was centred in the UK, and he worked regularly with trombone player Roy Williams, Len Skeat and many more.
He was a frequent guest with his line up called The Dave Shepherd Quintet on BBC Radio 1's Sounds of Jazz, introduced by the presenter Peter Clayton during the mid 1970s and broadcast on Sunday evenings.
Shepherd based his style on Benny Goodman and was praised for his accuracy and "unfailing swing and a quality of musical elegance".
Shepherd continued to solo and make guest appearances until shortly before his death on 15 December 2016, in the Macmillan Unit of Christchurch Hospital, Hampshire.
Shepherd has been described by fellow jazz musician Digby Fairweather as "Britain's greatest swing clarinettist since 1948".