Alton Purnell (April 16, 1911 – January 14, 1987) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

pianist. He was a longtime performer in

Dixieland jazz Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ...

Early life

Purnell was born in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

on April 16, 1911. His brother, Theodore, became a reed player.

Later life and career

Purnell sang before playing piano professionally, beginning to do so locally in New Orleans in 1928.Yanow, Scot
"Artist Biography"
AllMusic. Retrieved August 8, 2015. He played in the 1930s with Isaiah Morgan,

Alphonse Picou Alphonse Floristan Picou (October 19, 1878 – February 4, 1961) was an important very early American jazz clarinetist of New Orleans, Louisiana, who also wrote and arranged music. Early life and education Alphonse Picou was born into a prosper ...

, Big Eye Louis Nelson,

Sidney Desvigne Sidney Desvigne (September 11, 1893 – December 2, 1959) was an American jazz trumpeter. Desvigne played in a large number of noted 1910s and 1920s-era New Orleans Jazz ensembles, including Leonard Bechet's Silver Bell Band, the Maple Leaf Orc ...

, and

Cousin Joe Pleasant Joseph, known as Cousin Joe, (December 20, 1907 — October 2, 1989) was a New Orleans blues and jazz singer, famous for his 1940s recordings with Sidney Bechet and Mezz Mezzrow. Life He was born in Wallace, Louisiana, United States, an ...

, and with

Bunk Johnson Willie Gary "Bunk" Johnson (December 27, 1879 – July 7, 1949) was an American prominent jazz trumpeter in New Orleans. Johnson gave the year of his birth as 1879, although there is speculation that he may have been younger by as much as a dec ...

in the middle of the 1940s. Purnell joined

George Lewis George Lewis may refer to: Entertainment and art * George B. W. Lewis (1818–1906), circus rider and theatre manager in Australia * George E. Lewis (born 1952), American composer and free jazz trombonist * George J. Lewis (1903–1995), Mexica ...

's band after Johnson's broke up in 1946, and remained there well into the 1950s, including for international tours. In 1957 Purnell relocated to Los Angeles. There he worked with

Teddy Buckner Teddy Buckner (July 16, 1909 in Sherman, Texas – September 22, 1994 in Los Angeles, California) was an American jazz trumpeter associated with Dixieland music. Early in his career Buckner played with Sonny Clay. He worked with Buck Clayton ...

, Young Men from New Orleans,

Joe Darensbourg Joe Darensbourg (July 9, 1906 – May 24, 1985) was an American, New Orleans-based jazz clarinetist and saxophonist, notable for his work with Buddy Petit, Jelly Roll Morton, Charlie Creath, Fate Marable, Andy Kirk, Kid Ory, Wingy Manone, J ...

Kid Ory Edward "Kid" Ory (December 25, 1886 – January 23, 1973) was an American jazz composer, trombonist and bandleader. One of the early users of the glissando technique, he helped establish it as a central element of New Orleans jazz. He was ...

Barney Bigard Albany Leon "Barney" Bigard (March 3, 1906 – June 27, 1980) was an American jazz clarinetist known for his 15-year tenure with Duke Ellington. He also played tenor saxophone. Biography Bigard was born in New Orleans to Creole parents, Ale ...

, and

Ben Pollack Ben Pollack (June 22, 1903 – June 7, 1971) was an American drummer and bandleader from the mid-1920s through the swing era. His eye for talent led him to employ musicians such as Benny Goodman, Jack Teagarden, Glenn Miller, Jimmy McPartland, ...

. He also recorded extensively as a leader, including for

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

GHB ''gamma''-Hydroxybutyric acid (or γ-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), also known as 4-hydroxybutanoic acid) is a naturally occurring neurotransmitter and a depressant drug. It is a precursor to GABA, glutamate, and glycine in certain brain areas. ...

, and Alligator Jazz. He toured internationally as a guest soloist from 1964. Purnell died in

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

on January 14, 1987.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Purnell, Alton 1911 births 1987 deaths American jazz pianists American male pianists Jazz musicians from New Orleans 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians