Tom "Kid" Albert (December 23, 1877 – December 12, 1969) was a jazz violinist, trumpeter and band leader from New Orleans, Louisiana. He began his musical career in the 1890s working with the bands violinist Johnny Gould, with "Big Eye" Louis Nelson Delisle on clarinet. From 1908 to 1949 he led his own band and also became one of the founding members of the Eureka Brass Band.[1]

Tom Albert
Tom Albert against a doorframe near his home in New Orleans, Louisiana September 25, 1954.
Tom Albert against a doorframe near his home in New Orleans, Louisiana September 25, 1954.
Background information
Birth nameThomas Albert
Also known asKid Albert
Born(1877-12-23)December 23, 1877
Belle Chasse, Louisiana, U.S.
OriginNew Orleans, Louisiana
DiedDecember 12, 1969(1969-12-12) (aged 91)
GenresJazz
Instrument(s)Trumpet, violin, guitar
Years active1899 - 1949

Biography

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Tom Albert was born on a plantation field in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, on December 23, 1877. He later relocated to New Orleans sometime in his early childhood, settling in the Algiers neighborhood. Tom lived in a run-down shack on Saux Lane, an impoverished strip nearby the Naval station. He initially played the guitar before learning how to play the violin. He was taught basic methods for each instrument by Jimmy Palao. Soon after he mastered the cornet and the violin. The first band Albert was in was his own which included Papa Celestin and Manuel Manetta. In 1920, he founded the Eureka Brass Band.[2] During the earlier years, Albert's band played in Algiers with Henry Red Allen Sr. Band. In his late thirties, Albert moved across the river to the French Quarter and reformed his band, branding it ""Kid Albert Band." The band then began performing in several halls around the city, mostly in the Storyville and Treme sections. For a decade, kid Albert Band played alongside jazz pioneers Louis Armstrong, Kid Thomas Valentine and other small brass bands but never recorded. In 1949 Albert retired from the bands and died on December 12, 1969, at the age of 91.[3]

References

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  1. ^ "Tom Albert". Music Rising ~ The Musical Cultures of the Gulf South.
  2. ^ Irrera, Joseph (23 December 2012). "Louisiana Music Timeline: December 23". OffBeat Magazine.
  3. ^ "Tom Albert 1959-09-25". Music Rising ~ The Musical Cultures of the Gulf South.