He played with visiting American jazz bands at the Birmingham Palais during the early 1920s, including the Southern Rag-a-Jazz Orchestra in 1922, before moving to London in 1925.

I think we must all agree that it does its job well, and that anything it may at times lack in modern rhythmic stylishness is amply compensated by other qualities more important from the public's viewpoint, such as musical ability and versatility".

[4] After leaving the BBC in 1932, when he was succeeded by Henry Hall, he returned to playing hotel venues and switched labels to Imperial, followed by Rex from 1934.

[1] Payne had three successful waltzes – "Blue Pacific Moonlight", "Underneath the Spanish Stars" and "Pagan Serenade", which he composed and later published in the 1930s.

[1] He engaged two young teenagers to sing with his orchestra: they were Carole Carr and Lizbeth Webb, the star of the musical comedy Bless The Bride.

During his final years, Payne ran a hotel, The Middle House, in Mayfield, East Sussex, which was not a successful financial venture.