Nat Towles (August 10, 1905 – January 1963) was an American musician,

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 ...

and

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 ...

leader popular in his hometown of

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

, North Omaha, Nebraska and

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. He was also music educator in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. The Nat Towles band is considered one of the greatest territory bands of all time by musicians who played in it and by others who heard it.Becker, B. (1985
"Til The Cows Come Home: Rock n Roll Nebraska,"
64Dances.com. Retrieved 1/1/08.

Early life

The son of string bassist Phil "Charlie" Towles, Nat was born in

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

, on August 10, 1905. Starting his musical career as a

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

ist and

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

ist at the age of 11, Towles switched to the bass at the age of 13. He performed in New Orleans through his teenage years with Gus Metcalf's Melody Jazz Band, eventually playing with a number of bands, including those of

Buddie Petit Buddie Petit (born Joseph Crawford; ca. 1897 – July 4, 1931), also spelled Buddy Petit, was an American early jazz cornetist. His early life is somewhat mysterious, with dates of his birth given in various sources ranging from 1887 to 1897. He ...

, Henry "Red" Allen,

Jack Carey Jack Carey (1889 – 1934) was an American jazz trombonist and the leader of the Crescent City Orchestra. The authorship of the famous ''Tiger Rag'' tune is attributed to him by some. During his career, he performed with Sidney Bechet. Carey ...

, and the

Original Tuxedo Jazz Orchestra Originality is the aspect of created or invented works that distinguish them from reproductions, clones, forgeries, or substantially derivative works. The modern idea of originality is according to some scholars tied to Romanticism, by a notion ...

.Chadbourne, E
"Nat Towles"
Answers.com. Retrieved 1/1/08. In 1923 he formed The Nat Towles' Creole Harmony Kings. This

band became one of the prominent territory bands in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska. In 1925 he played bass for Fate Marable, and reformed his own band the next year. In 1934, Towles organized a band of young musicians studying music at

Wiley College Wiley College is a private historically black college in Marshall, Texas. Founded in 1873 by the Methodist Episcopal Church's Bishop Isaac Wiley and certified in 1882 by the Freedman's Aid Society, it is one of the oldest predominantly black col ...

. Towles also worked a club circuit in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

during this period, reportedly working for a gangster who owned 26

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

s throughout the city. During this period

T-Bone Walker Aaron Thibeaux "T-Bone" Walker (May 28, 1910 – March 16, 1975) was an American blues musician, composer, songwriter and bandleader, who was a pioneer and innovator of the jump blues, West Coast blues, and electric blues sounds. In 2018 ''Roll ...

and

Buddy Tate George Holmes "Buddy" Tate (February 22, 1913 – February 10, 2001) was an American jazz saxophonist and clarinetist. Biography Tate was born in Sherman, Texas, United States, and first played the alto saxophone. According to the website All Ab ...

worked for Towles. In the 1930s Towles transformed his band into The Nat Towles Dance Orchestra, signed with the

National Orchestra Service The National Orchestra Service, Inc. (NOS), was the most important booking and management agency for territory bands across the Great Plains and other regions from the early 1930s through 1960. NOS managed black, white and integrated orchestras and ...

, and focused on

swing music Swing music is a style of jazz that developed in the United States during the late 1920s and early 1930s. It became nationally popular from the mid-1930s. The name derived from its emphasis on the off-beat, or nominally weaker beat. Swing bands ...

through the 1930s and 1940s. In 1934 Towles took up residence in North Omaha, Nebraska, where his band was stationed for the next 25 years. With this outfit Towles dueled with

Lloyd Hunter Lloyd Hunter (May 4, 1910–month and date unknown, 1961) was an American trumpeter and big band leader from North Omaha, Nebraska.(nd"Jammin’ For the Jackpot: Big Bands and Territory Bands of the 30s" New World Records, p. 10. . Biography Hunt ...

for dominance over the much-contested Near North Side in North Omaha, where he was held over at the

Dreamland Ballroom The Jewell Building is a city landmark in North Omaha, Nebraska. Built in 1923, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Located at 2221 North 24th Street, the building was home to the Dreamland Ballroom for more than 40 years, a ...

for several weeks. In 1936 and 1937 Towles' band held residence at Omaha's Krug Park. In 1943 he also held a three-month stint at the Rhumboogie Club in Chicago,Fullerton, K. "Lots O’Papa”: The Life of Nat Towles and His Orchestra." De-Canonizing Music History Symposium. Retrieved 1/1/08. and later that year took up residency again in Omaha's Dreamland Ballroom. Billy Mitchell played with him during that period. That year Towles also played extensively throughout

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 ...

, including an appearance at the

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater is a music hall at 253 West 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (Seventh Avenue) and Frederick Douglass Boulevard (Eighth Avenue) in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is a not ...

. Notable players in the dance orchestra included trombonist Buster Cooper and saxophonists Red Holloway, Buster Bennett and

Preston Love Preston Haynes Love (April 26, 1921 – February 12, 2004) was an American saxophonist, bandleader, and songwriter from Omaha, Nebraska, United States, best known as a sideman for jazz and rhythm and blues artists like Count Basie and Ray Char ...

. Towles continued leading bands throughout the 1950s. In 1959 Towles retired to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

to open a bar. He died in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

, of a heart attack in January 1963.

Influence

Despite a 1940 issue of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine that lists Towles as producing "Best Patronage Reaction," Towles' work never found true national recognition. He feared the limelight would then steal away his best players. For this reason there are very few recordings of Nat Towles' Band."Territory Bands: Nat Towles Band"
''Jazz on Our Networks.'' NETV. Retrieved 1/1/08. In his role as their bandleader, Towles is credited with influencing a variety of musicians including

Sir Charles Thompson Sir Charles Thompson, 1st Baronet (c.1740 – 17 March 1799) was a British naval officer. After long service in the Seven Years' War, American War of Independence and War of the First Coalition, he was John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent, Admir ...

and Neal Hefti, as well as superior saxophonists

Jimmy Heath James Edward Heath (October 25, 1926 – January 19, 2020), nicknamed Little Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually co ...

, Oliver Nelson and

Paul Quinichette Paul Quinichette (May 17, 1916 – May 25, 1983) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He was known as the "Vice President" or "Vice Prez" for his emulation of the breathy style of Lester Young, whose nickname was "The President", or simply "P ...

. As an educator Towles influenced many younger musicians such as pianist

Duke Groner Edward "Duke" Groner (March 24, 1908 – November 7, 1992)Kenan Heise, "Chicago jazzman Duke Groner, 84," ''Chicago Tribune'', November 10, 1992, page 8.Heise, Kenan, "Obituaries: Chicago Jazzman Duke Groner, 84," ''Chicago Tribune'', November 10 ...

and trombonist Buddy McLewis (aka Joe McLewis).

References

Notes Inline citations {{DEFAULTSORT:Towles, Nat 1905 births 1962 deaths American jazz bandleaders Big band bandleaders American jazz double-bassists Male double-bassists Musicians from Omaha, Nebraska Musicians from Dallas People from Omaha, Nebraska Territory bands Wiley College faculty Jazz musicians from New Orleans 20th-century American musicians Jazz musicians from Texas Jazz musicians from Nebraska 20th-century double-bassists 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians

Early life

Influence

See also

References