Frank Froeba or Froba (August 1907,

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

- February 16, 1981,

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

) 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 and

bandleader A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or ...

. Froeba held jobs in the bands of

Johnny Wiggs Johnny Wiggs (born John Wigginton Hyman, July 25, 1899 - October 10, 1977) was a jazz musician and band leader. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, Wiggs started his music career on the violin. He soon adopted the cornet and moved ...

and

John Tobin John Tobin may refer to: People * Sir John Tobin (1763–1851), Liverpool merchant * John Tobin (dramatist) (1770–1804), author of ''The Honey Moon'' * John F. Tobin (1880–1954), American football player and coach * Jack Tobin (1892–1969 ...

while still in his teens. He played with Johnny de Droit in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1924-1925, then led his own band in

Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, Boardwalk (entertainment district), boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020 United States censu ...

in the latter half of the decade, in addition to moonlighting in other dance ensembles. He recorded with

Jack Purvis John Purvis (December 11, 1906 – March 30, 1962) was an American jazz musician.''The Classic Jazz'', Backbeat Books, Scott Yanow, 2001 Purvis was best known as a trumpet player and the composer of ''Dismal Dan'' and ''Down Georgia Way''.''Rhy ...

in 1930 and with

Jack Bland Jack Bland (May 8, 1899 – August 1968) was an American jazz banjoist and guitarist. Born in Sedalia, Missouri, Sedalia, Missouri, Bland co-founded the Mound City Blue Blowers with Red McKenzie in 1924 in St. Louis. Their first hit record was "A ...

in 1932, then worked with

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

in 1933-1935. From 1935 to 1944, he led his own band, including on recordings for Columbia and

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

. Among his sideman were

Bunny Berigan Roland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan (November 2, 1908 – June 2, 1942) was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader who rose to fame during the swing era. His career and influence were shortened by alcoholism, and ended with his early demise at the ...

, Jack Purvis,

Bobby Hackett Robert Leo Hackett (January 31, 1915 – June 7, 1976) was an American jazz musician who played trumpet, cornet, and guitar with the bands of Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Hackett was a featured soloist o ...

and

Joe Marsala Joseph Francis Marsala (January 4, 1907 – March 4, 1978) was an Italian-American jazz clarinetist and songwriter. His younger brother was trumpeter Marty Marsala and he was married to jazz harpist Adele Girard. Music career He was born in Ch ...

. He was a house pianist for Decca in the 1930s and 1940s, playing behind Bob Howard and

Lil Armstrong Lillian Hardin Armstrong (née Hardin; February 3, 1898 – August 27, 1971) was an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, singer, and bandleader. She was the second wife of Louis Armstrong, with whom she collaborated on many recordings in ...

, among others. In 1955, he moved to Miami and performed as Frank Froba, moving more into popular performance. One of his more popular tracks, "Jumpin' Jive", which Froeba co-wrote with

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocalist ...

, was recorded by Joe Jackson on his ''

Joe Jackson's Jumpin' Jive ''Joe Jackson's Jumpin' Jive'' is the fourth studio album by Joe Jackson. Released in 1981, it is a collection of covers of classic 1940s swing and jump blues songs originally performed by musicians such as Louis Jordan and Cab Calloway, ...

'' album.

References

Other sources

*"Frank Froeba". '' The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz''.

External links

Frank Froeba recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Froeba, Frank 1907 births 1981 deaths American jazz pianists American male pianists American jazz bandleaders Jazz musicians from New Orleans 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians