Leon Prima (July 28, 1907, New Orleans – August 15, 1985) 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 ...

trumpeter and the older brother of singer

Louis Prima Louis Leo Prima (December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and trumpeter. While rooted in New Orleans jazz, swing music, and jump blues, Prima touched on various genres throughout his career: he forme ...

. He started on piano before learning the trumpet. His early jobs were with

Ray Bauduc Ray Bauduc (June 18, 1906 – January 8, 1988) was an American jazz drummer best known for his work with the Bob Crosby Orchestra and their band-within-a-band, the Bobcats, between 1935 and 1942. He is also known for his shared composition of " ...

Leon Roppolo Leon Joseph Roppolo (March 16, 1902 – October 5, 1943) was an American early jazz clarinetist, best known for his playing with the New Orleans Rhythm Kings. He also played saxophone and guitar. Life and career Leon Roppolo (nicknamed "Rap" and ...

Jack Teagarden Weldon Leo "Jack" Teagarden (August 20, 1905 – January 15, 1964) was an American jazz trombonist and singer. According to critic Scott Yannow of Allmusic, Teagarden was the preeminent American jazz trombone player before the bebop era of the 19 ...

, and

Peck Kelley John Dickson "Peck" Kelley (October 22, 1898 – December 26, 1980) was an American jazz pianist. He was best known for his 1920s band Peck's Bad Boys, which included Jack Teagarden, and Pee Wee Russell. Early life John Dickson "Peck" Kelley w ...

(1925–27). He and

Sharkey Bonano Joseph Gustaf "Sharkey" Bonano (April 9, 1904 – March 27, 1972), also known as Sharkey Banana or Sharkey Bananas, was an American jazz trumpeter, band leader, and vocalist. His musical abilities were sometimes overlooked because of his lo ...

led the group the

Melody Master The Melody Masters were a series of first-rate big band musical film shorts produced by Warner Brothers, under the supervision of Samuel Sax at their Vitaphone studio in New York between 1931 and 1939, and in Burbank, California with producer Gordo ...

s in the late 1920s and early 1930s. He played in Louis Prima's

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

from 1940 to 1946 in New York City. After moving back to New Orleans, he led his own ensemble and managed more than one nightclub, then retired in 1955 to take up a career in real estate.

References

Scott Yanow Scott Yanow (born October 4, 1954) is an American jazz reviewer, historian, and author.Allmusic Biography/ref> Biography Yanow was born in New York City and grew up near Los Angeles. Since 1974, he was a regular reviewer of many jazz styles an ...

Leon Prima Leon Prima (July 28, 1907, New Orleans – August 15, 1985) was an American jazz trumpeter and the older brother of singer Louis Prima. He started on piano before learning the trumpet. His early jobs were with Ray Bauduc, Leon Roppolo, Jack Tea ...

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 ...

Satchmo database
includes a useful brief account of Leon Prima

External links

* American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters Jazz musicians from New Orleans 1985 deaths 1907 births 20th-century American musicians 20th-century trumpeters 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians {{US-jazz-trumpeter-stub