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 ...
band, led by
Leon Abbey
Leon Alexander Anthony Abbey (May 7, 1900 – September 1975) was an American jazz violinist and bandleader.
Biography
He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 7, 1900, to Luther James Robert Abbey and Eva Lee Alexander.
He started his ca ...
, which was the house band at the
Savoy Ballroom
The Savoy Ballroom was a large ballroom for music and public dancing located at 596 Lenox Avenue, between 140th and 141st Streets in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City.
Lenox Avenue was the main thoroughfare through upper Harle ...
in
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 ...
from its opening in 1926 to 1928. The band's name was changed from the
Charleston Bearcats
Leon Alexander Anthony Abbey (May 7, 1900 – September 1975) was an American jazz violinist and bandleader.
Biography
He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 7, 1900, to Luther James Robert Abbey and Eva Lee Alexander.
He started his care ...
while they were at the Savoy. After leaving the Savoy they became known as
Leon Abbey's Band
Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to:
Places
Europe
* León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León
* Province of León, Spain
* Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again fro ...
.
The band's
drummer
A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...
was
Tiny Bradshaw
Myron Carlton "Tiny" Bradshaw (September 23, 1907 – November 26, 1958) - accessed July 2010 was an American and its bassist was
Ralph Escudero
Rafael "Ralph" Escudero (July 16, 1898 in Manatí, Puerto Rico – April 10, 1970 in Puerto Rico) was a bassist and tubist active on the early American jazz scene.
Escudero began playing bass in a school band at the age of 12, and moved to New ...