The Eureka Brass Band was a
brass band from
, active from 1920 to 1975, that recorded prolifically for
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...
,
Pax
Pax or PAX may refer to:
Peace
* Peace (Latin: ''pax'')
** Pax (goddess), the Roman goddess of peace
** Pax, a truce term
* Pax (liturgy), a salutation in Catholic and Lutheran religious services
* Pax (liturgical object), an object formerly kiss ...
, Alamac,
Folkways,
Jazzology
Jazzology Records is an American jazz record company and label. It is part of the Jazzology group of labels owned and operated by the George H. Buck Jr. Jazz Foundation.
Jazzology Records was founded in 1949 by George H. Buck, Jr. That year he ...
, and Sounds of New Orleans.
The group's membership varied at any given time, usually holding between nine and eleven members. The typical instrumentation was three trumpets, two trombones, two reeds, tuba, snare drum, and bass drum.
The group was founded by trumpeter Willie Wilson, and its early members included clarinetists Willie Parker,
John Casimir,
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 ...
and cornetist
Kid Rena
Henry "Kid" Rena (August 30, 1898 – April 25, 1949) was an American jazz trumpeter, who was an early star of the New Orleans jazz scene.
Biography
He was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.
Rena may have taken lessons from Manuel ...
. In the 1930s Wilson became ill, and trumpeter Alcide Landry retained nominal control over the band. After 1937, when Wilson's condition forced him to leave, sousaphonist Joseph "Red" Clark briefly became the group's leader, followed by Dominique "T-Boy" Remy (1937-46), and then
Percy Humphrey
Percy Gaston Humphrey (January 13, 1905 – July 22, 1995) was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader in New Orleans, Louisiana.
In addition to his band, Percy Humphrey and His Crescent City Joymakers, for more than thirty years he was leader ...
, who led the group for the remainder of its existence.
Line-ups
A 1951 album ''New Orleans Parade'' features the players Humphrey, trombonists Charles "Sunny" Henry and Albert Warner, and saxophonist
Emanuel Paul.
A mid-1950s line-up comprised Robert Lewis (bass drum); Percy Humphrey, Kid Sheik Colar, and Charlie Love (trumpets); Sonny Henry and Albert Warner (trombones); Ruben Roddy (alto sax); Emanuel Paul (tenor sax), and Red Clark (sousaphone), while another, from 1954, included Willie Pajeaud on trumpet.
Charters, Samuel Barclay (2008) ''A Trumpet Around the Corner: The Story of New Orleans Jazz'', p. 54. Univ. Press of Mississippi
At Google Books. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
Their 1962 sessions ''Jazz at Preservation Hall, Vol. 1: the Eureka Brass Band of New Orleans'', issued on Atlantic Records
Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...
, features Humphrey and his brother, clarinetist Willie Humphrey, trumpeters Kid Sheik Cola and Pete Bocage, trombonists Albert Warner and Oscar "Chicken" Henry, Emanuel Paul on tenor sax, Wilbert "Bird" Tillman on sousaphone
The sousaphone ( ) is a brass instrument in the tuba family. Created around 1893 by J. W. Pepper at the direction of American bandleader John Philip Sousa (after whom the instrument was then named), it was designed to be easier to play than ...
, snare drummer Josiah "Cie" Frazier, and bass drummer Robert "Son Fewclothes" Lewis.
The group disbanded after 1975, but Humphrey occasionally revived the name for festival performances and other appearances.
References
Bibliography
*Bruce Eder, Eureka Brass Bandat 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 ...
*Schafer/Kernfeld, "Eureka Brass Band". '' Grove Jazz'' online.
{{Authority control
American jazz ensembles from New Orleans
Brass bands from New Orleans
Musical groups established in 1920