Narvin Kimball
Encyclopedia
Narvin Kimball was a jazz
musician who played banjo
and string bass and was also known for his fine singing voice.
The left-handed virtuoso banjo player was born in New Orleans, Louisiana
, the son of well regarded string bass player Henry Kimball. He was playing music professionally by the mid 1920s with such groups as the bands of Fate Marable
and Papa Celestin
. He married a fellow member of Celestin's Tuxedo Jazz Band, pianist Jeannette Kimball (née Salvant).
In the 1930s during the Great Depression
Kimball switched to string bass to play in swing bands such as Sidney Desvigne
's, but music did not provide enough money; and he got a day job as a mailman. He continued playing music in the evening, leading his band called "Narvin Kimball's Gentlemen of Jazz".
After World War II he formed a singing group called "The Four Tones" with Fred Minor, Alvin Alcorn
, and Louis Barbarin
that enjoyed some local success.
With the revival of interest in in traditional jazz, about 1960 was able to return to regularly play banjo professionally again. He played regularly at such French Quarter
venues as Preservation Hall
and Dixieland Hall, at the latter often leading a band under his own name. However he kept his day job as a postman until his retirement in 1973; until then he only took brief tours outside the city while on vacation from his postal job. After this date, he toured the United States and Europe extensively with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band
. His singing "Georgia on My Mind
" was a reliable show stopper. He was the oldest member of the band at his retirement in 1999 at age 90.
When Hurricane Katrina
was threatening New Orleans, in 2005, Preservation Hall leader Ben Jaffe made a point to make sure Kimball and his wife were evacuated to Baton Rouge
. He died in exile with relatives in South Carolina
.
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 who played 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 string bass and was also known for his fine singing voice.
The left-handed virtuoso banjo player was born in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, the son of well regarded string bass player Henry Kimball. He was playing music professionally by the mid 1920s with such groups as the bands of Fate Marable
Fate Marable
Fate Marable was a jazz pianist and bandleader.Marable was born in Paducah, Kentucky, and learned piano from his mother. At age 17, he began playing on the steam boats plying the Mississippi River...
and Papa Celestin
Papa Celestin
Oscar "Papa" Celestin was an American jazz bandleader, trumpeter, cornetist and vocalist.-Life and career:...
. He married a fellow member of Celestin's Tuxedo Jazz Band, pianist Jeannette Kimball (née Salvant).
In the 1930s during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
Kimball switched to string bass to play in swing bands such as Sidney Desvigne
Sidney Desvigne
Sidney Desvigne was an American jazz trumpeter.Desvigne played in a large number of noted 1910s and 1920s-era New Orleans Jazz ensembles, including Leonard Bechet's Silver Bell Band, the Maple Leaf Orchestra, the Excelsior Brass Band, and Ed Allen's Whispering Gold Band. He and Fate Marable often...
's, but music did not provide enough money; and he got a day job as a mailman. He continued playing music in the evening, leading his band called "Narvin Kimball's Gentlemen of Jazz".
After World War II he formed a singing group called "The Four Tones" with Fred Minor, 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...
, and Louis Barbarin
Louis Barbarin
Louis Barbarin was a New Orleans jazz drummer. He studied under the famed drummer, Louis Cottrell, Sr.Louis was the younger brother of Paul Barbarin...
that enjoyed some local success.
With the revival of interest in in traditional jazz, about 1960 was able to return to regularly play banjo professionally again. He played regularly at such French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
venues as Preservation Hall
Preservation Hall
Preservation Hall is a noted jazz performance hall located at 726 St. Peter Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. It hosts nightly concerts featuring a rotating roster of bands. The bands of Preservation Hall typically perform jazz in the New Orleans style.Despite the fame of the...
and Dixieland Hall, at the latter often leading a band under his own name. However he kept his day job as a postman until his retirement in 1973; until then he only took brief tours outside the city while on vacation from his postal job. After this date, he toured the United States and Europe extensively with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Preservation Hall Jazz Band is the name for numerous groups of Dixieland Jazz and traditional jazz bands at Preservation Hall in New Orleans, Louisiana, and on tours as organized by the Preservation Hall...
. His singing "Georgia on My Mind
Georgia on My Mind
"Georgia on My Mind" is a song written in 1930 by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell . It is the official state song of the U.S. state of Georgia. Gorrell wrote the lyrics for Hoagy's sister, Georgia Carmichael. However, the lyrics of the song are ambiguous enough to refer either to the state or...
" was a reliable show stopper. He was the oldest member of the band at his retirement in 1999 at age 90.
When Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
was threatening New Orleans, in 2005, Preservation Hall leader Ben Jaffe made a point to make sure Kimball and his wife were evacuated to Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
. He died in exile with relatives in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
.