Clarence Acox, Jr. is an award-winning American jazz drummer and band director. Born in October 1947, he is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana. Since his arrival in Seattle in 1971 he has become one of the most influential musical directors in the Pacific Northwest … Read MoreClarence Acox Jr. (1947- )
Joseph Brazil was an American jazz saxophonist and educator born August 25, 1927 in Detroit, Michigan. He taught jazz at Garfield High School in Seattle, Washington, and co-founded the music curriculum at the University of Washington in the late 1960s. He also founded the Black … Read MoreJoe Brazil (1927-2008)
James Melvin “Jimmie” Lunceford, a popular band leader during the swing era, was born near Fulton, Mississippi, in Itawamba County to James Leonard and Beulah Idella Tucker Lunceford in June, 1902. His grandparents, Daniel and Gracie Lunceford, had arrived in Mississippi as slaves from North … Read MoreJimmie M. Lunceford (1902-1947)
A musical pioneer who was among America’s first wave of jazz and blues recording artists in the 1920s, Lucille Hegamin was born Lucille Nelson in Macon, Georgia, on November 29, 1894. She grew up singing in church and at the age of fifteen joined a … Read MoreLucille Hegamin (1894-1970)
Henri Salvador was a popular 20th Century French entertainer, pop singer, and humorist. His most popular and emblematic song was “Le lion est mort ce soir” or “Syracuse.” Salvador was born in Cayenne (French Guiana) on July 18, 1917 to parents from Guadeloupe. His father, … Read MoreHenri Salvador (1917-2008)
Herb Jeffries, baritone jazz balladeer and first black singing cowboy in the movies, was born Umberto Alexander Valentino on September 24, 1913 in Detroit, Michigan, to a mixed-race father and an Irish-born mother. His mother operated a boarding house and raised her son alone. His … Read MoreHerbert “Herb” Jeffries (1913-2014)
For over six decades Dr. Yusef A. Lateef was a major developer in the international improvisational musical field. A saxophone and flute virtuoso, his early success in the blues and jazz fields led him to push himself beyond educational barriers, becoming a contemporary renaissance artist … Read MoreYusef Abdel Lateef (1920-2013)
Often referred to as “Mr. Jazz Himself,” Lieutenant James Tim Brymn was a conductor, a musical director of several George Walker and Bert Williams Shows, and bandleader of the all African American 350th Field Artillery Regiment Band during World War I. The band was also … Read MoreJames Tim Brymn (1881-1946)
Donald Byrd (Donaldson Toussaint L’Ouverture Byrd II) was born on December 9, 1932 in Detroit, Michigan; his father was amateur musician and Methodist minister D.T. Byrd. He attended Cass Technical High School, had a stint in the US Air Force, graduated from Wayne State University, … Read MoreDonald Byrd (1932-2013)
New Orleans, Louisiana trumpeter Lionel Charles Ferbos was born in in the city’s Creole 7th Ward on July 17, 1911. His father was Louis Ferbos, a tinsmith, and his mother was Rosita Ferbos. Lionel had two siblings. As a child, he had asthma and was … Read MoreLionel Charles Ferbos (1911-2014)
