Curtis J. Mosby (July 7, 1895 (or 1892) in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

– June 25, 1957 in San Francisco) was an American jazz drummer, bandleader, and businessman.

Bio

Mosby toured with the Tennessee Ten in the 1910s, and also led his own ensemble in Chicago. He then moved to California early in the 1920s, where he opened a record store and then toured with

Mamie Smith Mamie Smith (née Robinson; May 26, 1891 – September 16, 1946) was an American vaudeville singer, dancer, pianist, and actress. As a vaudeville singer she performed in multiple styles, including jazz and blues. In 1920, she entered blues histor ...

. He also led a band called the Blue Blowers in California and appeared with them in the 1929 film ''

Music Hath Harms ''Music Hath Harms'' is an American film released in 1929. A two-reel short it was produced by Al Christie. The film stars Spencer Williams and Roberta Hyson with musical performances by Curtis Mosby and the Blues Blowers. It was part of the ''Flori ...

''. He took an extended residency in 1924 at Solomon's Dance Pavilion in Los Angeles; this ensemble recorded privately, and some of these cuts have survived. The band recorded for

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

in 1927, and included

Jake Porter Jake Vernon Haven Porter (August 3, 1916 – March 25, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter and record producer. Born in Oakland, California, Porter started playing violin at age seven and switched to cornet at nine. He played locally in the ...

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, and

Henry Starr Henry Starr (1873–1921) was an American criminal of the wild west and an American actor of the silent film era. Biography Starr’s parents were Mary Scott Starr and George Starr. Distantly related to Sam Starr, husband of Belle Starr, he was ...

as sidemen. In 1927 they played at the Bronx Palm Gardens and in 1928 at the Lincoln Theater. Mosby opened his own nightclub, the Apex, in 1928, and his band appeared in the films ''Thunderbolt'' and

King Vidor King Wallis Vidor (; February 8, 1894 – November 1, 1982) was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter whose 67-year film-making career successfully spanned the silent and sound eras. His works are distinguished by a vivid, ...

's ''

Hallelujah ''Hallelujah'' ( ; he, ''haləlū-Yāh'', meaning "praise Yah") is an interjection used as an expression of gratitude to God. The term is used 24 times in the Hebrew Bible (in the book of Psalms), twice in deuterocanonical books, and four tim ...

'' the next year. Late in 1929 a police raid shut the club down, but he reopened after an acquittal soon after. He opened another club in San Francisco at the end of 1930. He went bankrupt in 1931, and moved to San Francisco. Over the course of the 1930s he opened several clubs, not all of them successful, along the California coastline; musicians who appeared in his bands included Lawrence Brown,

Marshal Royal Marshal Walton Royal Jr. (December 5, 1912 – May 8, 1995) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and clarinetist best known for his work with Count Basie, with whose band he played for nearly twenty years. Early life and education Marshal Royal ...

Wilbert Baranco Wilbert Baranco (15 April 1909 – October 1983) was an American jazz pianist and bandleader. Baranco played with Curtis Mosby in the early 1930s and then put together his own bands in the 1930s and 1940s, including several military bands during W ...

Baron Moorehead Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

, and

Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record "Confessin' That I Love You" ...

. His successful Club Alabam featured

Harlan Leonard Harlan Leonard (July 2, 1905 – November 10, 1983) was an American jazz bandleader and clarinetist from Kansas City, Missouri, United States. Leonard was born in Kansas City in 1905. A professional musician from the age of 17, he joined Bennie M ...

in 1943,

Roy Milton Roy Bunny Milton (July 31, 1907 – September 18, 1983) was an American R&B and jump blues singer, drummer and bandleader. Career Milton's grandmother was Chickasaw. He was born in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, and grew up on an Indian reservation bef ...

in 1944, and

Johnny Otis Johnny Otis (born Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes; December 28, 1921 – January 17, 2012) was an American singer, musician, composer, bandleader, record producer, and talent scout. He was a seminal influence on American R&B and rock and roll. He ...

in 1945, all in succession. He was jailed for

tax evasion Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...

from 1947 to 1949 and lost control of his clubs; after serving his time, he reopened some of them and then permanently moved to San Francisco. He declared bankruptcy in the late 1940s, but he had hidden the part ownership of Club Alabam and other assets from the creditors and bankruptcy court. As a result he served a short prison term.

References

Curtis Mosby Curtis J. Mosby (July 7, 1895 (or 1892) in Kansas City, Missouri – June 25, 1957 in San Francisco) was an American jazz drummer, bandleader, and businessman. Bio Mosby toured with the Tennessee Ten in the 1910s, and also led his own ensem ...

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

*Howard Rye, "Curtis Mosby". '' Grove Jazz'' online. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mosby, Curtis 1890s births 1957 deaths American jazz drummers American jazz bandleaders Jazz musicians from Missouri 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians