Kid Ory
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kid Ory | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Edward Ory |
| Born | December 25, 1886 |
| Origin | LaPlace, Louisiana |
| Died | January 23, 1973 (aged 86) |
| Genre(s) | Jazz Dixieland |
| Instrument(s) | Trombone |
| Associated acts | Louis Armstrong |
Edward "Kid" Ory (December 25, 1886 – January 23, 1973) was a jazz trombonist and bandleader. He was born in Woodland Plantation near LaPlace, Louisiana.
Ory started playing music with home-made instruments in his childhood, and by his teens was leading a well regarded band in South-East Louisiana. He kept La Place as his base of operations due to family obligations until his 21st birthday, when he moved his band to New Orleans, Louisiana.
He had one of the best-known bands in New Orleans in the 1910s, hiring many of the greats, including cornetists Joe "King" Oliver, Mutt Carey, and Louis Armstrong; and clarinetists Johnny Dodds and Jimmie Noone.
In 1919 he moved to Los Angeles, one of a number of New Orleans musicians to do so at about that time, and he recorded there in 1922 with a band including Mutt Carey, clarinetist (also a pianist) Dink Johnson, and string bassist Ed Garland. (Garland and Carey were longtime associates who were still with Ory during his 1940s comeback.) In 1925, Ory moved to Chicago, where he was very active, working and recording with Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, "King" Oliver, Johnny Dodds, and many others.
During the Great Depression Ory retired from music in 1933, and would not play again until 1943. From 1944 to about 1961 he led one of the top New Orleans style bands of the period. In addition to Mutt Carey and Ed Garland, trumpeters Alvin Alcorn and Teddy Buckner; clarinetists Darnell Howard, Jimmie Noone, Albert Nicholas, Barney Bigard, and George Probert; pianists Buster Wilson and Don Ewell; and drummer Minor Hall were among his sidemen during this period. All but Probert, Buckner, and Ewell were originally from New Orleans. The Ory band was an important force in reviving interest in New Orleans jazz, making popular radio broadcasts — among them a number of slots on Orson Welles' Almanac broadcast and a jazz history series sponsored by Standard Oil — and recordings.
Ory was also the composer of numbers including "Muskrat Ramble", "Ory's Creole Trombone", and "Savoy Blues". Ory retired from music in 1966 and spent his last years in Hawaii.
