J. (Jack) C. Higginbotham (May 11, 1906 – May 26, 1973) 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 m ...

trombonist The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

. His playing was robust and swinging.

Biography

He was born in Social Circle, Georgia, United States, and raised in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. In the 1930s and 1940s, he played with some of the premier swing bands, including

Luis Russell Luis Russell (August 5, 1902 – December 11, 1963) was a pioneering Panamanian jazz pianist, orchestra leader, composer, and arranger. Career Luis Carl Russell was born on Careening Cay, near Bocas del Toro, Panama, in a family of African-Car ...

's,

Benny Carter Bennett Lester Carter (August 8, 1907 – July 12, 2003) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. With Johnny Hodges, he was a pioneer on the alto saxophone. From the beginning of his career ...

's,

Red Allen Henry James "Red" Allen, Jr. (January 7, 1908 – April 17, 1967) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist whose playing has been claimed by Joachim-Ernst Berendt and others as the first to fully incorporate the innovations of Louis Armst ...

's, Chick Webb's, Fletcher Henderson's, and

Mills Blue Rhythm Band The Mills Blue Rhythm Band was an American big band active during the 1930s. The band was formed in New York City, United States, in 1930 by drummer Willie Lynch as the Blue Rhythm Band, and then briefly operated as the Coconut Grove Orchestra. ...

. He also played with Louis Armstrong, who had taken over Russell's band from 1937 to 1940. From 1947 on, he chiefly led his own groups. He recorded extensively both as a sideman and as a leader. He played for a long period in the 1940s with his ideal partner Red Allen, and then disappeared from the scene for several years. Higginbotham led several bands in the 1950s in Boston and Cleveland, appeared regularly at the Metropole in New York between 1956 and 1959, and led his own Dixieland band there in the 1960s. He also appeared on the DuMont series ''

Jazz Party 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 f ...

'' (1958), aired on

WNTA-TV WNET (channel 13), branded on-air as "Thirteen" (stylized as "THIRTEEN"), is a primary PBS member television station licensed to Newark, New Jersey, United States, serving the New York City area. Owned by The WNET Group (formerly known as the ...

. During the tenure with Luis Russell on February 5, 1930, a single session was issued under the name of J.C. Higgenbotham and His Six Hicks was issued on OKeh 8772, featuring "Give Me Your Telephone Number" and "Higgenbotham Blues." Musicians included Henry Allen, Higgenbotham, Charlie Holmes, Luis Russell, Will Hognson, Pops Foster and Paul Barbarin, all member of Russell's band. He went on his first European tour with

Sammy Price Samuel Blythe Price (October 6, 1908 – April 14, 1992) was an American jazz, boogie-woogie and jump blues pianist and bandleader. Price's playing is dark, mellow, and relaxed rather than percussive, and he was a specialist at creating the ...

, appearing in Scandinavia, and worked once again briefly in 1964 with Louis Armstrong. He died on May 26, 1973 in Manhattan, New York City at

Harlem Hospital Harlem Hospital Center, branded as NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem, is a 272-bed, public teaching hospital affiliated with Columbia University. It is located at 506 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City and was founded in 1887. The hosp ...

Discography

As leader

* '' Callin' the Blues'' with ''

Tiny Grimes Lloyd "Tiny" Grimes (July 7, 1916 – March 4, 1989) was an American jazz and R&B guitarist. He was a member of the Art Tatum Trio from 1943 to 1944, was a backing musician on recording sessions, and later led his own bands, including a rec ...

'' (Prestige, 1958) * ''Higgy Comes Home '' (Jazzology, 1979)

As sideman

, '' Red Allen, Kid Ory & Jack Teagarden at Newport'' (Verve, 1957) * Red Allen's All Stars, ''Ride, Red, Ride in Hi-Fi'' (RCA Victor, 1957) *

Kenny Burrell Kenneth Earl Burrell (born July 31, 1931) is an American jazz guitarist known for his work on numerous top jazz labels: Prestige, Blue Note, Verve, CTI, Muse, and Concord. His collaborations with Jimmy Smith were notable, and produced the 1965 ...

& Bill Jennings & Tiny Grimes, ''Guitar Soul'' (Status, 1965) *

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" ...

, ''

All the Cats Join In ''All the Cats Join In'' is a song written by Ray Gilbert, Eddie Sauter and Alec Wilder, and first recorded by Benny Goodman. It later was a track on an LP with the same title by trumpeter Buck Clayton. Benny Goodman Curiously, Goodman recor ...

'' (Columbia, 1956) * Fletcher Henderson All Stars/

Rex Stewart Rex William Stewart Jr. (February 22, 1907 – September 7, 1967) was an American jazz cornetist who was a member of the Duke Ellington orchestra. Career As a boy he studied piano and violin; most of his career was spent on cornet. Stewart drop ...

, ''The Big Reunion'' (Jazztone, 1958) *

Coleman Hawkins Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November 21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes "Bean", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.Yanow, Scot"Coleman Hawkins: Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved December 27, 2013. One of the first p ...

, ''

Things Ain't What They Used to Be "Things Ain't What They Used to Be" is a 1942 jazz standard with music by Mercer Ellington and lyrics by Ted Persons. Background In 1941 there was a strike against the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, of which Duke Elling ...

'' (Swingville, 1961) * Alberta Hunter & Lucille Hegamin & Victoria Spivey, ''Songs We Taught Your Mother'' (Prestige, Bluesville, 1962) * James P. Johnson, ''Father of the Stride Piano'' (CBS, 1965) * Pete Johnson, ''Pete's Blues'' (Savoy, 1958) * Cootie Williams &

, ''

The Big Challenge ''The Big Challenge'' is an album by trumpeter Cootie Williams and cornetist Rex Stewart, recorded in 1957 and released on the Jazztone label.

'' (Jazztone, 1957) *

Jimmy Witherspoon James Witherspoon (August 8, 1920 – September 18, 1997) was an American jump blues singer. Early life, family and education Witherspoon was born in Gurdon, Arkansas. His father was a railroad worker who sang in local choirs, and his mot ...

, '' Goin' to Kansas City Blues'' (RCA Victor, 1958)

References

External links

*
J. C. Higginbotham recordings
at the Discography of American Historical Recordings {{DEFAULTSORT:Higginbotham, J.C. 1906 births 1973 deaths Swing trombonists Dixieland trombonists American jazz trombonists Male trombonists 20th-century American musicians 20th-century trombonists Musicians from Atlanta Musicians from Cincinnati Jazz musicians from Ohio 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Mills Blue Rhythm Band members