| Some Important Early New Orleans Jazz Bands |
| Christen's Brass Band, Southern Park, 1890 - The only "Southern Park" I could find mention of was Parkview Place (Southern Park), bounded by Bayou St. John, Dumaine and Carrollton. Band leader, Frank George Christen, is in the middle of the back row. |
| Frank Christen's Band on Quarellas Pier at Milneburg, on Lake Pontchartrain, 1905 |
| "Papa" Jack Laine's Band - By the age of 16, Laine (above on drums) had led both string and brass bands; he led a drum & bugle corps during the Spanish American War. Mr. Laine was out of the music business by the end of WWI, but his influence was important enough that it affected the course of jazz. He spent his life in New Orleans and died at the age of 93, having been honored many times in his later years for his contributions to jazz. |
| The Original Dixieland Jazz Band made the first jazz recording in 1917 and they were the first New Orleans band to make an impact in New York City. Some early members of the band were: leader, Nick La Rocca; Alcie Nunez; Johnny Stein; Henry Ragas & Eddie Edwards. The 1918 ODJB recording of Nick La Rocca's "Tiger Rag" has been placed on the U.S. Library of Congress National Recording Registry. See more about this band on the Nick La Rocca page. |
| Above: Oscar "Papa" Celestin's Original Tuxedo Jazz Orchestra, 1926 - Papa Celestin was one of the great early jazz men; Louis Armstrong and many other notable jazz musicians played in the Orchestra early on. |
| Born in the Milneburg area of New Orleans, Sharkey Bonano (leaning, with hat on) and his Kings of Dixieland Band, are shown above performing in the Blue Room, Roosevelt Hotel, 1955. Mr. Bonano first recorded in 1925 and played with several bands until he led a band under his name. He traveled all over the world and spent his last active years performing in New Orleans, where he died in 1972. |
| Sidney Bechet and his band - In the 1920's, Sidney Bechet made some recordings with Louis Armstrong and these constitute one of the most important bodies of New Orleans Jazz available. Duke Ellington said, "Bechet was, to me, the very epitome of jazz." |
| Band at one of Tom Anderson's Saloons, Storyville District, bet. 1892-1915 |
| San Jacintos Dance Hall band, Storyville, New Orleans |
| West End Concert Band |
| Fate Marable's Orchestra on the S.S. Capitol, 1920. |
| Imperial Band : Big Eye Louis Nelson, center, clarinet; rear, right, cornetist Manuel Perez |
| Onward Brass Band, about 1913. Manuel Perez is at the left; 3rd from left is Peter Bocage; next to him, Lorenzo Tio, Jr., teacher of many great clarinetists. |
| Tuxedo Brass Band, also, led by Papa Celestin. Three of the musicians in the photo on the left were destined to be important names in Chicago days: Jimmy Noone (rear, left); John Lindsay (rear, right); Johnny St. Cyr (front, right). |
| This page of bands is by no means comprehensive. Every time I add a picture, I think of the dozens of bands that aren't yet represented. I encourage you to do some research and learn more about the musicians and bands that made New Orleans Jazz famous. |