James Melvin Lunceford (June 6, 1902 – July 12, 1947) 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 majo ...

alto saxophonist and bandleader in the swing era.

Early life

Lunceford was born on a farm in the Evergreen community, west of the Tombigbee River, near Fulton,

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mis ...

, United States. The farm was owned by his father, James. His mother was Idella ("Ida") Shumpert of Oklahoma City, an organist of "more than average ability". Seven months after James Melvin was born, the family moved to Oklahoma City. The family next moved to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

where Lunceford attended high school and studied music under Wilberforce J. Whiteman, father of Paul Whiteman, whose band was soon to acquire a national reputation. As a child in Denver, he learned several instruments. After high school, Lunceford continued his studies at Fisk University. In 1922, he played alto saxophone in a local band led by the violinist George Morrison which included Andy Kirk, another musician destined for fame as a bandleader.

Career

In 1927, while an athletic instructor at Manassas High School in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the County seat, seat of Shelby County, Tennessee, Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 Uni ...

, Lunceford organized a student band, the Chickasaw Syncopators, whose name was changed to the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra. Under the new name, the band started its professional career in 1929, and made its first recordings in 1930. Lunceford was the first public high school band director in Memphis. After a period of touring, in 1934 the band accepted a booking at the

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Harl ...

nightclub The Cotton Club for their revue "Cotton Club Parade" starring Adelaide Hall. The Cotton Club had already featured

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was ba ...

and

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 vocali ...

, who won their first widespread fame from their inventive shows for the Cotton Club's all-white patrons. With their tight musicianship and the often outrageous humor in their music and lyrics, Lunceford's orchestra made an ideal band for the club, and Lunceford's reputation began to steadily grow. Jimmie Lunceford's band differed from other great bands of the time because it was better known for its ensemble than for its solo work. Additionally, he was known for using a two-beat rhythm, called the Lunceford two-beat, as opposed to the standard four-beat rhythm. This distinctive "Lunceford style" was largely the result of the imaginative arrangements by trumpeter Sy Oliver, which set high standards for dance-band arrangers of the time. Though not well known as a musician, Lunceford knew how to play several instruments and was even featured on flute in "Liza". Comedy and

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...

played a distinct part in Lunceford's presentation. Songs such as "Rhythm Is Our Business" (featured in a 1937 musical short with Myra Johnson (Taylor) on vocals), "I'm Nuts about Screwy Music", "I Want the Waiter (With the Water)", and "Four or Five Times" displayed a playful sense of

swing Swing or swinging may refer to: Apparatus * Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth * Pendulum, an object that swings * Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus * Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse * Swing rid ...

, often through clever arrangements by trumpeter Sy Oliver and bizarre lyrics. Lunceford's stage shows often included costumes, skits, and obvious jabs at mainstream white bands, such as Paul Whiteman's and Guy Lombardo's. Despite the band's comic veneer, Lunceford always maintained professionalism in the music befitting a former teacher; this professionalism paid off and during the apex of

in the 1930s, the Orchestra was considered the equal of

's, Earl Hines' or

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and th ...

's. This precision can be heard in such pieces as "Wham (Re-Bop-Boom-Bam)", "Lunceford Special", "For Dancers Only", "Uptown Blues", and "Stratosphere". The band's noted saxophone section was led by alto sax player Willie Smith. Lunceford often used a conducting baton to lead his band. The orchestra began recording for the Decca label and later signed with the

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

subsidiary Vocalion in 1938. They toured Europe extensively in 1937, but had to cancel a second tour in 1939 because of the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Columbia dropped Lunceford in 1940 because of flagging sales. (Oliver departed the group before the scheduled European tour to take a position as an arranger for Tommy Dorsey). Lunceford returned to the Decca label. The orchestra appeared in the 1941 movie '' Blues in the Night''. Lunceford's band was hired to play at the Elks Ballroom in Los Angeles on September 26, 1940 and again on June 26, 1947, by Leon Hefflin Sr. Most of Lunceford's sidemen were underpaid and left for better paying bands, leading to the band's decline.

Death

After playing McElroy's Ballroom in Portland, Lunceford and his orchestra were in Seaside, Oregon, to play at The Bungalow dance hall on July 12, 1947. Before the performance Lunceford collapsed during an autograph session at a local record store. He died while being taken by ambulance to the Seaside hospital. Lunceford was 45. Dr Alton Alderman performed an autopsy in nearby Astoria, Oregon, and concluded that Lunceford died of coronary occlusion. Lunceford had complained about an aching leg as they arrived in Seaside, and had been suffering with high blood pressure for a while, and had recently complained about not feeling well. Allegations and rumors circulated that he had been poisoned by a restaurant owner, who was unhappy at having to serve a "Negro" in his establishment.Myers, Mark (July 20, 2011). "Swing's Forgotten King". ''

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' He was buried at Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis.

Legacy

Band members, such as Eddie Wilcox and Joe Thomas, kept the band going for a time but finally had to break up the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra in 1949. In 1999, band-leader Robert Veen and a team of musicians set out to acquire permission to use the original band charts and arrangements of the Jimmie Lunceford canon. "The Jimmie Lunceford Legacy Orchestra" officially debuted in July 2005 at the North Sea Jazz Festival in the

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. The Jimmie Lunceford Jamboree Festival was founded by Bro. Ronald Cortez Herd II aka R2C2H2 Tha Artivist in 2007 with the aim of increasing recognition of Lunceford's contribution to jazz, particularly in Memphis, Tennessee. The Jimmie Lunceford Legacy Awards were created by the festival to honor exceptional musicians with Memphis ties as well as those who have dedicated their careers to excellence in music and music education. Lunceford's music continues to have an impact. Most recently the tune "Rhythm is Our Business" was included as track on the compilation set '' Memphis Jazz Box'' in 2004 in honor of Lunceford's close ties to Memphis. On July 19, 2009, a brass note was dedicated to Lunceford on the Beale Street Walk of Fame in Memphis.

Selected discography

Prior to Lunceford's success on Decca (beginning September 1934), Lunceford made the following recordings: *"In Dat Mornin'"/"Sweet Rhythm" ( Victor V-38141) - recorded Memphis, June 6, 1930 *"Flaming Reeds and Screaming Brass"/"While Love Lasts" (test pressings for Columbia, not released until 1967 on LP) - recorded New York, May 15, 1933 *"Jazznocracy"/"Chillun, Get Up" (Victor 24522) - recorded New York, January 26, 1934 *"White Heat"/"Leaving Me" (Victor 24586) - recorded New York, January 26, 1934 *"Breakfast Ball"/"Here Goes" (Victor 24601) - recorded New York, March 20, 1934 *"Swingin' Uptown"/"Remember When" (Victor 24669) - recorded New York, March 20, 1934, Also prior to his Decca period, he made recordings for Brunswick records from 1934 to 1940.

Decca recordings

*''Jazz Heritage Series #3- Jimmie Lunceford 1: Rhythm Is Our Business (1934-1935)'' (LP: Decca #79237, 1968/LP reissue:

MCA MCA may refer to: Astronomy * Mars-crossing asteroid, an asteroid whose orbit crosses that of Mars Aviation * Minimum crossing altitude, a minimum obstacle crossing altitude for fixes on published airways * Medium Combat Aircraft, a 5th gene ...

#1302, 1980) *''Jazz Heritage Series #6- Jimmie Lunceford 2: Harlem Shout (1935-1936)'' (LP: Decca #79238, 1968/LP reissue: MCA #1305, 1980) *''Jazz Heritage Series #8- Jimmie Lunceford 3: For Dancers Only (1936-1937)'' (LP: Decca #79239, 1968/LP reissue: MCA #1307, 1980) *''Jazz Heritage Series #15- Jimmie Lunceford 4: Blues In The Night (1938-1942)'' (LP: Decca #79240, 1968/LP reissue: MCA #1314, 1980) *''Jazz Heritage Series #21- Jimmie Lunceford 5: Jimmie's Legacy (1934-1937)'' (LP: MCA #1320, 1980) *''Jazz Heritage Series #22- Jimmie Lunceford 6: The Last Sparks (1941-1944)'' (LP: MCA #1321, 1980) *''Stomp It Off'' (1934-1935 Decca recordings) (CD: GRP #608, 1992) *''For Dancers Only'' (1935-1937 Decca recordings) (CD: GRP #645, 1994) *''Swingsation: Jimmie Lunceford'' (1935-1939 Decca recordings) (CD: GRP #9923, 1998)

Columbia recordings

*''Lunceford Special'' (1939-1940

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 ...

recording) (78rpm 4-disc album set/8 songs/#C-175: 1948; original LP issue/12 songs/#CL-634: 1956; expanded LP reissue/16 songs/#CL-2715 and #CS-9515: 1967; CD release/22 songs/#CK-65647: 2001 from Sony-Legacy label)

Majestic recordings

*''Margie'' (1946-1947 Majestic recordings) (LP/13 songs/#SJL-1209: 1989 from Savoy Jazz label)

The Chronological...Classics series

note: every recording by Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra is included in this 10 volume series from the Classics reissue label: *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1930-1934'' (#501) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1934-1935'' (#505) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1935-1937'' (#510) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1937-1939'' (#520) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1939'' (#532) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1939-1940'' (#565) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1940-1941'' (#622) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1941-1945'' (#862) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1945-1947'' (#1082) *''The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford's Orchestra 1948-1949'' (#1151) -note: these last recordings (1948-1949) were made after Lunceford's death by his long-time band under the joint-direction of Eddie Wilcox (his piano player) and Joe Thomas (his tenor sax player/vocalist).

CD compilations from different reissue labels

*''Rhythm Is Our Business'' ( ASV/Living Era, 1992) -note: all tracks recorded 1933–1940, both the Decca and Columbia periods successively. *''It's the Way That You Swing It: The Hits of Jimmie Lunceford'' (

Jasmine Jasmine ( taxonomic name: ''Jasminum''; , ) is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family ( Oleaceae). It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. Jasmines are widely cult ...

, 2002) 2-CD set *''Jukebox Hits 1935–1947'' ( Acrobat 2005) *''Quadromania: Jimmie Lunceford–Life Is Fine'' (1935–45, Membran/Quadromania Jazz, 2006) 4-CD box set *''Strictly Lunceford'' ( Proper, 2007) 4-CD box set *''The Complete Jimmie Lunceford Decca Sessions'' (

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

, 2014) 7-CD box set

References

External links

Jimmie Lunceford recordings
at the Discography of American Historical Recordings. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lunceford, Jimmie 1902 births 1947 deaths African-American saxophonists American jazz alto saxophonists American male saxophonists American jazz bandleaders Big band bandleaders Death in Oregon Fisk University alumni Musicians from Denver People from Fulton, Mississippi Swing bandleaders Swing saxophonists 20th-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from Mississippi Brunswick Records artists Columbia Records artists Decca Records artists Majestic Records artists RCA Victor artists Jazz musicians from Colorado 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians 20th-century African-American musicians