Robert "Bob" French (c. December 27, 1938 – November 12, 2012) 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 ...

drummer and

radio show A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio networ ...

host at

WWOZ WWOZ (90.7 FM) is a non-profit community-supported radio station in New Orleans. It is owned by the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation. The station specializes in music from or relating to the cultural heritage of New Orleans and the sur ...

, from

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

. French led The Tuxedo Jazz Band from 1977 until his death in 2012. (The Tuxedo Jazz Band was formerly led by

Oscar "Papa" Celestin Oscar Phillip Celestin (January 1, 1884 – December 15, 1954) better known by stage name Papa Celestin was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader. Life and career Celestin was born in Napoleonville, Louisiana, to a Creole family, son of a ...

and later by French's father, Albert "Papa" French from 1958 to 1977).

Career

As a child French took drumming lessons from

Louis Barbarin Louis Barbarin (nickname Lil Barb; October 24, 1902 – May 12, 1997) was a New Orleans jazz drummer. Early life Barbarin was born in New Orleans on October 24, 1902. His father was Isidore Barbarin, and his brothers Paul, Lucien, and William all ...

. He organized an R&B band in high school that included

James Booker James Carroll Booker III (December 17, 1939 – November 8, 1983) was a New Orleans rhythm and blues keyboardist born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Booker's unique style combined rhythm and blues with jazz standards. Musician Dr. J ...

Art Neville Arthur Lanon Neville Jr. (December 17, 1937 – July 22, 2019) was an American singer, songwriter and keyboardist from New Orleans. Neville was a staple of the New Orleans music scene for over five decades. He was the founder of the funk band ...

, Charles Neville (of

The Neville Brothers The Neville Brothers were an American R&B/soul/funk group, formed in 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana. History The group notion started in 1976, when the four brothers of the Neville family, Art (1937–2019), Charles (1938–2018), Aaron (b. 19 ...

), and

Kidd Jordan Edward "Kidd" Jordan (born May 5, 1935) is an American jazz saxophonist and music educator from New Orleans, Louisiana. After completing a music degree at Southern University in Baton Rouge, he relocated to New Orleans. He taught at Southern Uni ...

, and

Alvin Batiste Alvin Batiste (November 7, 1932 – May 6, 2007) was an American avant-garde jazz clarinetist born, who was in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. He taught at his own jazz institute at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Hi ...

. In the 1960s he recorded with

Earl King Earl Silas Johnson IV (February 7, 1934 – April 17, 2003),
known as Earl King, was an American singer, guit ...

Snooks Eaglin Fird Eaglin Jr. (January 21, 1936 or 1937 – February 18, 2009), known as Snooks Eaglin, was an American guitarist and singer based in New Orleans. In his early years he was sometimes credited under other names, including Blind Snooks Eaglin, ...

and

Fats Domino Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American pianist, singer and songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New O ...

. He has also played and recorded with

Dave Bartholomew David Louis Bartholomew (December 24, 1918 – June 23, 2019) was an American musician, bandleader, composer, arranger, and record producer. He was prominent in the music of New Orleans throughout the second half of the 20th century. Originally ...

, who is a relative on his mother's side. Bob French & Friends played often on

Frenchmen Street Frenchmen Street is in the 7th Ward of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is best known for the three-block section in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood which since the 1980s has developed as the center of many popular live-music venues, including Cafe ...

at the D.B.A. nightclub. French's best-known gig was the long-running Monday night jam session at Donna's, across from

Louis Armstrong Park Louis Armstrong Park is a park located in the Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, just across Rampart Street from the French Quarter. In the 1960s a controversial urban renewal project leveled a substantial portion of the Tremé neigh ...

. French is interviewed on screen in the 2005 documentary film '' Make It Funky!'', which presents a history of

New Orleans music The music of New Orleans assumes various styles of music which have often borrowed from earlier traditions. New Orleans, Louisiana, is especially known for its strong association with jazz music, universally considered to be the birthplace of th ...

and its influence on

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

and

Death

French died on November 12, 2012, after a long illness. He was 74 years old.

References

External links

Bob French
at MySpace
Bob French's Original Tuxedo Jazz Band
* Bob French profile, at Allmusic*
Bob French biography
at

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by Al ...

(pdf file)
Video: Chris Rose Show featuring: Bob French
{{DEFAULTSORT:French, Bob 1930s births 2012 deaths Jazz musicians from New Orleans American jazz drummers