Pops Foster
Encyclopedia
George Murphy "Pops" Foster (May 19, 1892 – October 29, 1969) was a jazz
musician
best known for his vigorous playing of the string bass. He also played the tuba
and trumpet
professionally.
Foster was born to Charley and Annie Foster on a plantation
near McCall in Ascension Parish near Baton Rouge in south Louisiana
. His family moved to New Orleans when he was about ten years of age. His older brother, Willard Foster, began playing banjo
and guitar
; George started out on a cello
then switched to string bass. Foster married twice: to Bertha Foster in 1912 and Alma Foster in 1936.
Pops Foster was playing professionally by 1907 and worked with Jack Carey
, Kid Ory
, Armand Piron, King Oliver and other prominent hot bands of the era.
In 1921 he moved to St. Louis
to play with the Charlie Creath
and Dewey Jackson
bands, in which he would be active for much of the decade. He also joined Ory in Los Angeles
. He acquired the nickname "Pops" because he was far older than any of the other players in the band.
In 1929 Foster moved to New York City
, where he played with the bands of Luis Russell
and Louis Armstrong
through 1940. He giged with various New York-based bands through the 1940s, including those of Sidney Bechet
, Art Hodes
, and regular broadcasts on the national This Is Jazz radio
program.
In the late 1940s he began touring more widely and played in many countries in Europe
, especially in France
, and throughout the United States
including returns to New Orleans and California
.
In 1952, Foster toured Europe with Jimmy Archey
's Band. He played regularly at Central Plaza in New York and briefly in New Orleans with Papa Celestin
in 1954.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he played with Earl Hines
' Small Band. In 1966, he toured Europe with the New Orleans All-Stars but remained based in San Francisco, where he died.
The Autobiography of Pops Foster was published in 1971, with a new edition in 2005 ISBN 0-87930-831-1 (alk. paper). The book is not known for great accuracy when some anecdotes are compared to other sources.
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...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
best known for his vigorous playing of the string bass. He also played the tuba
Tuba
The tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...
and trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
professionally.
Foster was born to Charley and Annie Foster on a plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
near McCall in Ascension Parish near Baton Rouge in south Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. His family moved to New Orleans when he was about ten years of age. His older brother, Willard Foster, began playing banjo
Banjo
In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
; George started out on a cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
then switched to string bass. Foster married twice: to Bertha Foster in 1912 and Alma Foster in 1936.
Pops Foster was playing professionally by 1907 and worked with Jack Carey
Jack Carey
Jack Carey was a United States trombonist, the leader of the Crescent City Orchestra. The authorship of the famous Tiger Rag tune is attributed to him by some.-References:...
, Kid Ory
Kid Ory
Edward "Kid" Ory was a jazz trombonist and bandleader. He was born in Woodland Plantation near LaPlace, Louisiana.-Biography:...
, Armand Piron, King Oliver and other prominent hot bands of the era.
In 1921 he moved to St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
to play with the Charlie Creath
Charlie Creath
Charles Cyril "Charlie" Creath was an American jazz trumpeter, saxophonist, accordionist, and bandleader....
and Dewey Jackson
Dewey Jackson
Dewey Jackson was an American jazz trumpeter and cornetist.Jackson began playing professionally at an early age, with the Odd Fellows Boys' Band , Tommy Evans , and George Reynolds's Keystone Band. He played with Charlie Creath on riverboats, and then led his own Golden Melody Band from 1920 to 1923...
bands, in which he would be active for much of the decade. He also joined Ory in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. He acquired the nickname "Pops" because he was far older than any of the other players in the band.
In 1929 Foster moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he played with the bands of Luis Russell
Luis Russell
Luis Russell was a jazz pianist and bandleader.Luis Carl Russell was born on Careening Cay, near Bocas del Toro, Panama, in a family of Afro-Caribbean ancestry. His father was a music teacher, and young Luis learned to play violin, guitar, trombone, and piano...
and Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
through 1940. He giged with various New York-based bands through the 1940s, including those of Sidney Bechet
Sidney Bechet
Sidney Bechet was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer.He was one of the first important soloists in jazz , and was perhaps the first notable jazz saxophonist...
, Art Hodes
Art Hodes
Arthur W. Hodes , known professionally as Art Hodes, was an American jazz pianist.-Biography:...
, and regular broadcasts on the national This Is Jazz radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
program.
In the late 1940s he began touring more widely and played in many countries in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, especially in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
including returns to New Orleans and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
In 1952, Foster toured Europe with Jimmy Archey
Jimmy Archey
Jimmy Archey was an American jazz trombonist born in Norfolk, Virginia, perhaps most noteworthy for his work in several prominent jazz orchestras and big bands of his time . He performed and recorded with the James P...
's Band. He played regularly at Central Plaza in New York and briefly in New Orleans with Papa Celestin
Papa Celestin
Oscar "Papa" Celestin was an American jazz bandleader, trumpeter, cornetist and vocalist.-Life and career:...
in 1954.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he played with Earl Hines
Earl Hines
Earl Kenneth Hines, universally known as Earl "Fatha" Hines, was an American jazz pianist. Hines was one of the most influential figures in the development of modern jazz piano and, according to one source, is "one of a small number of pianists whose playing shaped the history of jazz".-Early...
' Small Band. In 1966, he toured Europe with the New Orleans All-Stars but remained based in San Francisco, where he died.
The Autobiography of Pops Foster was published in 1971, with a new edition in 2005 ISBN 0-87930-831-1 (alk. paper). The book is not known for great accuracy when some anecdotes are compared to other sources.