Olympia Brass Band
Encyclopedia
The Olympia Brass Band is a New Orleans jazz
brass band
.
The first "Olympia Brass Band" was active from the late 19th century to around World War I. The most famous member was Freddie Keppard
.
In 1958, saxophonist Harold Dejan
, leader of the 2nd unit of the Eureka Brass Band
, split off to form the current Olympia, reviving the historic name.
The band had a notable part in the 1973 James Bond
movie "Live and Let Die
" where they lead a funeral march
for a freshly assassinated victim. Trumpeter Alvin Alcorn
plays the knife wielding "baby faced killer".
In addition to playing for parades and parties, the band for many years had a weekly gig at Preservation Hall on Sunday nights for many years. The band also toured Europe on numerous occasions and also toured Africa for the U. S. State Department. The band did a BBC radio broadcast for Queen Elizabeth's 25th wedding anniversary in 1972 while they were in London, and also played for Pope John Paul II on his visit to New Orleans.
The Olympia Brass Band was included with other stellar musicians from Louisiana, on the Southern Stars poster
created by Dianna Chenevert to promote them and historically document their contribution to the music industry. On October 12, 1983 USA Today
reporter Miles White highlighted the poster which provided additional nationwide attention. In 1986, Chenevert booked the “Olympia Brass Band” for a month long engagement in Israel at the night club El Hamm. According to the Times-Picayune front page article on September 4th, it was Olympia’s first trip to Israel and they arrived at the Tel Aviv airport wearing their traditional band outfits (red blazers, black pants and white hats). The Israeli immigration officials detained Olympia at customs, mistaking them as Black Hebrews, a sect at odds with the government. Band leader Herold Dejan saw the brief delay and international press coverage as good advertising, and made the comment “everything’s lovely!”
The Olympia Brass Band was a training ground for a whole new generation of jazz musicians including clarinetist Joseph Torregano, saxophonist Byron "Flea" Bernard; drummers Tanio Hingle and Kerry Hunter; and trumpeters Kenneth Terry and "Kid" Mervin Campbell.
Notable members of the band over the years were: Harold "Duke" Dejan, leader and alto saxophone; Emanuel "Pappy" Paul & Ernest Watson tenor saxophone; clarinetists Willie Humphrey, Joseph Torregano and David Grillier; trumpeters Milton Batiste (Asst. leader), Edmond Foucher, George "Kid Sheik" Colar, Reginald Koeller, Kenneth Terry, & Mervin Campbell. Trombonists Paul Crawford, Frank Naundorf, Wendell Eugene, Eddie King, Gerald Joseph, and Lester Caliste; Sousaphonists Allan Jaffe
, William "Coby" Brown, Anthony Lacen AKA "Tuba Fats," Edgar Smith, and Jeffrey Hills. Snare drummers Andrew Jefferson, Leroy "Boogie" Breaux, Kerry "Fatman" Hunter: Bass Drummers, Henry "Booker T." Glass, Nowell "Papa" Glass, and Cayetano "Tanio" Hingle. Grand Marshalls for the band were the immortal Matthew "Fats" Houston, Anderson Minor, Anderson Stewart and Richard "King" Matthews.
Although the band left numerous recordings, none is more prevalent then their recording of "The Westlawn Funeral Dirge" which featured Emanuel Paul on the tenor saxophone.
The Olympia Brass Band is profiled in the book, The Great Olympia Band by the late English writer Mick Burns, and Keeping the Beat on the Street: The New Orleans Brass Band Renaissance also by Mick Burns.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
brass band
Brass band
A brass band is a musical ensemble generally consisting entirely of brass instruments, most often with a percussion section. Ensembles that include brass and woodwind instruments can in certain traditions also be termed brass bands , but are usually more correctly termed military bands, concert...
.
The first "Olympia Brass Band" was active from the late 19th century to around World War I. The most famous member was Freddie Keppard
Freddie Keppard
Freddie Keppard was an early jazz cornetist.Keppard was born in the Creole of Color community of downtown New Orleans, Louisiana. His older brother Louis Keppard was also a professional musician. Freddie played violin, mandolin, and accordion before switching to cornet...
.
In 1958, saxophonist Harold Dejan
Harold Dejan
Harold "Duke" Dejan 4 February 1909 - 5 July 2002) was a New Orleans jazz alto saxophonist and bandleader. Dejan is best remembered as leader of the Olympia Brass Band, including during the 1960s and 1970s when it was considered the top band in the city....
, leader of the 2nd unit of the Eureka Brass Band
Eureka Brass Band
The Eureka Brass Band was a brass band from New Orleans, active from 1920 to 1975.The group was founded by trumpeter Willie Wilson, and its early members included clarinetists Willie Parker, John Casimir, and George Lewis...
, split off to form the current Olympia, reviving the historic name.
The band had a notable part in the 1973 James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
movie "Live and Let Die
Live and Let Die (film)
Live and Let Die is the eighth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman...
" where they lead a funeral march
Funeral march
A funeral march is a march, usually in a minor key, in a slow "simple duple" metre, imitating the solemn pace of a funeral procession. Some such marches are often considered appropriate for use during funerals and other sombre occasions, the most well-known being that of Chopin...
for a freshly assassinated victim. Trumpeter Alvin Alcorn
Alvin Alcorn
Alvin Alcorn was an American New Orleans jazz trumpeter.Alcorn was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He learned music from his brother, though not much is known about his youth. He played freelance in New Orleans in the late 1920s and early 1930s; he appears with Armand J. Piron's Sunny South...
plays the knife wielding "baby faced killer".
In addition to playing for parades and parties, the band for many years had a weekly gig at Preservation Hall on Sunday nights for many years. The band also toured Europe on numerous occasions and also toured Africa for the U. S. State Department. The band did a BBC radio broadcast for Queen Elizabeth's 25th wedding anniversary in 1972 while they were in London, and also played for Pope John Paul II on his visit to New Orleans.
The Olympia Brass Band was included with other stellar musicians from Louisiana, on the Southern Stars poster
Southern Stars Poster
The "Southern Stars" poster included famous Louisiana musicians and was created for a booking agency called Omni Attractions which was based in New Orleans from 1982 to 1994...
created by Dianna Chenevert to promote them and historically document their contribution to the music industry. On October 12, 1983 USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
reporter Miles White highlighted the poster which provided additional nationwide attention. In 1986, Chenevert booked the “Olympia Brass Band” for a month long engagement in Israel at the night club El Hamm. According to the Times-Picayune front page article on September 4th, it was Olympia’s first trip to Israel and they arrived at the Tel Aviv airport wearing their traditional band outfits (red blazers, black pants and white hats). The Israeli immigration officials detained Olympia at customs, mistaking them as Black Hebrews, a sect at odds with the government. Band leader Herold Dejan saw the brief delay and international press coverage as good advertising, and made the comment “everything’s lovely!”
The Olympia Brass Band was a training ground for a whole new generation of jazz musicians including clarinetist Joseph Torregano, saxophonist Byron "Flea" Bernard; drummers Tanio Hingle and Kerry Hunter; and trumpeters Kenneth Terry and "Kid" Mervin Campbell.
Notable members of the band over the years were: Harold "Duke" Dejan, leader and alto saxophone; Emanuel "Pappy" Paul & Ernest Watson tenor saxophone; clarinetists Willie Humphrey, Joseph Torregano and David Grillier; trumpeters Milton Batiste (Asst. leader), Edmond Foucher, George "Kid Sheik" Colar, Reginald Koeller, Kenneth Terry, & Mervin Campbell. Trombonists Paul Crawford, Frank Naundorf, Wendell Eugene, Eddie King, Gerald Joseph, and Lester Caliste; Sousaphonists Allan Jaffe
Allan Jaffe
Allan Phillip Jaffe was an American jazz tubist and the entrepreneur who developed Preservation Hall into a New Orleans jazz tradition....
, William "Coby" Brown, Anthony Lacen AKA "Tuba Fats," Edgar Smith, and Jeffrey Hills. Snare drummers Andrew Jefferson, Leroy "Boogie" Breaux, Kerry "Fatman" Hunter: Bass Drummers, Henry "Booker T." Glass, Nowell "Papa" Glass, and Cayetano "Tanio" Hingle. Grand Marshalls for the band were the immortal Matthew "Fats" Houston, Anderson Minor, Anderson Stewart and Richard "King" Matthews.
Although the band left numerous recordings, none is more prevalent then their recording of "The Westlawn Funeral Dirge" which featured Emanuel Paul on the tenor saxophone.
The Olympia Brass Band is profiled in the book, The Great Olympia Band by the late English writer Mick Burns, and Keeping the Beat on the Street: The New Orleans Brass Band Renaissance also by Mick Burns.