Milton "Milt" Herth (November 3, 1902 – June 18, 1969) 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 ...

organist, known for his work on the

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

soon after it was introduced in 1935. Herth's work is available from his recordings of the 1930s and 1940s.

Biography

Herth was born in

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

, In 1937, Herth began to work with jazz pianist

Willie "The Lion" Smith William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholf Smith (November 23, 1893 – April 18, 1973), nicknamed "The Lion", was an American jazz and stride pianist. Early life William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholf, known as Willie, was born in 1893 in Goshen, ...

in Chicago, when Smith was signed to

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

.Jasen, David A. (2002). ''Black Bottom Stomp: Eight Masters of Ragtime and Early Jazz''. Routledge, p. 94, Herth, Smith, and drummer O'Neil Spencer formed the Milt Herth Trio. The trio became a quartet with the addition of Teddy Bunn on guitar in April 1938. Herth appeared as himself in several short films (''Love and Onions'' (1935), ''Swing Styles'' (1939), and ''Jingle Belles'', (1941)) and the longer 1942 film, ''

Juke Box Jenny ''Juke Box Jenny'' (also known as ''Fifty Million Nickels'') is a 1942 film directed by Harold Young and starring Ken Murray, Harriet Hilliard, Iris Adrian, and Donald Douglas. The film is a musical comedy with songs performed by Charlie Barne ...

'', a movie noted for being a series of musical performances. He died in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 18, 1969.

Discography

* '' The Monkeys Have No Tails in Pago Pago'' (

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 ...

, 1939) * ''

Ain't She Sweet "Ain't She Sweet" is a song composed by Milton Ager, with lyrics by Jack Yellen. It was published in 1927 by Ager, Yellen & Bornstein, Inc. It became popular in the first half of the 20th century and typified the Roaring Twenties. Like ''Happy D ...

'' (

Coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

) * ''Hi-Jinks on the Hammond'' (

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

) * '' Milt Herth Trio'' (Decca)

References

External links

*
Milt Herth 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 ...

. 1902 births 1989 deaths 20th-century American musicians American jazz organists American male organists Decca Records artists Musicians from Chicago Musicians from Kenosha, Wisconsin RCA Victor artists 20th-century organists Jazz musicians from Illinois 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians 20th-century American keyboardists {{US-jazz-keyboardist-stub