As a young man, he could have had a career in opera but preferred to stay with his family and be engaged politically. Also a talented painter, his activities for the Communist Party in the 1930s included campaigning for aid to Spain and organising the Birmingham tenants strike of 1939.

In 1940, he became a founding member of Birmingham's Clarion Choir. Along with his wife, Elsie (see separate entry), he was an active and leading member, indeed Chair, until his death in 1984.