Frank Shelton "Red" Perkins was a bandleader of one of the oldest Omaha-based territory band

Territory band

Territory bands were dance bands that crisscrossed specific regions of the United States from the 1920s through the 1960s. Beginning in the 1920s, the bands typically had 8 to 12 musicians. These bands typically played one-nighters, 6 or 7 nights a week at venues like VFW halls, Elks Lodges,...

s, The Dixie Ramblers. Born in Muchakinock (a coal mining camp near Oskaloosa, Iowa

Oskaloosa, Iowa

Oskaloosa is the county seat of Mahaska County, Iowa, United States. The population was 11,463 in the 2010 census, an increase from 10,938 in the 2000 census. -History:...

) on December 26, 1890, Perkins' band was based in the city's Near North Side

Near North Side (Omaha, Nebraska)

The Near North Side of Omaha, Nebraska is the neighborhood immediately north of downtown. It forms the nucleus of the city's African-American community, and its name is often synonymous with the entire North Omaha area...

. National Orchestra Service

National Orchestra Service

The National Orchestra Service, Inc. , was the most important booking and management agency for territory bands across the Great Plains and other regions from the early 1930s through 1960...

 booked his gigs. He died September 27, 1976 in Minneapolis.

The Dixie Ramblers

Perkins formed his first band in 1925 in Omaha. A small band of six pieces, with most players doubling on several instruments, quickly grew into a medium sized territory band

Territory band

Territory bands were dance bands that crisscrossed specific regions of the United States from the 1920s through the 1960s. Beginning in the 1920s, the bands typically had 8 to 12 musicians. These bands typically played one-nighters, 6 or 7 nights a week at venues like VFW halls, Elks Lodges,...

.

Bookings

Perkins' bookings were handled by National Orchestra Service

National Orchestra Service

The National Orchestra Service, Inc. , was the most important booking and management agency for territory bands across the Great Plains and other regions from the early 1930s through 1960...

 of Omaha, Nebraska

Omaha, Nebraska

Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...

.

Selected discography

During the 1920s and 1930s, the Dixie Ramblers recorded for Gennett Records

Gennett Records

Gennett was a United States based record label which flourished in the 1920s.-Label history:Gennett records was founded in Richmond, Indiana by the Starr Piano Company, and released its first records in October 1917. The company took its name from its top managers: Harry, Fred and Clarence Gennett....

.

• Red Perkins and His Dixie Ramblers

Frank "Red" Perkins (t,as,ss,v) dir. Joe Drake (t,cl,ts,arr), Andre C. Oglesby (tb), Jesse Simmons (cl,as,ts), Howard Fields (p), Charles “Goodie” Watkins (bjo, gtr), Eugene Freels (t, bb), Harry Rooks (d-x), trio (v).

Richmond, Ind., May 5, 1931

1. 17727-A Hard Times Stomp (Perkins) Ch 40044
2. 17728-A My Baby Knows How (Davis-Akst-Richman) -vFP Ch 16661

Richmond, Ind., May 6, 1931

1. 17729-A Old Man Blues (Paul, Ellington, Mills) - v3 Ch 40044
2. 17730 Minor Blues (Perkins) Ch 16288

• Red Perkins, Red Perkins and the Kentucky Redheads (De Luxe Records
  De Luxe Records
  De Luxe Records was a Linden, New Jersey, United States based record label formed in 1944 by brothers David and Jules Braun. The label flourished in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1947, Syd Nathan, the founder and owner of King Records, purchased a majority interest in De Luxe. In 1949, Nathan moved the...
  
  /King Records
  King Records (USA)
  King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
  
  )

1. 5047 One Has My Name (The Other Has My Heart)/I Live The Life I Love, 78rpm single De Luxe Records
   De Luxe Records
   De Luxe Records was a Linden, New Jersey, United States based record label formed in 1944 by brothers David and Jules Braun. The label flourished in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1947, Syd Nathan, the founder and owner of King Records, purchased a majority interest in De Luxe. In 1949, Nathan moved the...
   
    (King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    subsidiary) (1948)
2. 5052 Someday You'll Call My Name/You're Gonna Regret It All Someday, 78rpm single De Luxe Records
   De Luxe Records
   De Luxe Records was a Linden, New Jersey, United States based record label formed in 1944 by brothers David and Jules Braun. The label flourished in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1947, Syd Nathan, the founder and owner of King Records, purchased a majority interest in De Luxe. In 1949, Nathan moved the...
   
    (King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    subsidiary) (1948)
3. 792 Aggravating Lou From Louisville/Hoedown Boogie, 78rpm single King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    (1949)
4. 823 I Know Better Now/Too Long, 78rpm single King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    (1949)
5. 836 Crocodile Tears/I Hate You, 78rpm single King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    (1950)
6. 850 One At A Time/I’m So Happy I Could Cry, 78rpm single King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    (1950
7. 903 Big Blue Diamonds
   Big Blue Diamonds
   "Big Blue Diamonds" is a song written by Earl J. Carson in 1950 and published by Lois Music, BMI. It was first recorded by Red Perkins and originally issued as a 78rpm single on King Records #903 b/w "Rag Man Boogie" in 1950...
   
   /Rag Man Boogie, 78rpm single, King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    (1950)
8. 920 I’m Gonna Rush Right Down To Macon/A Long Necked Bottle, 78rpm single, King Records
   King Records (USA)
   King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
   
    (1951)

Former members of the Dixie Ramblers (partial list)

• Jim Alexander
• Jesse Ashlock
• Bill Boyd
• Jim Boyd (Bill's younger brother)
• Cecil Brower (alumni of the Milton Brown Band)
• Fred Calhoun
• Harry Fooks
• Clarence Gray
• Jay Green
• Marvin "Smokey" Montgomery (alumni of Light Crust Doughboys
  Light Crust Doughboys
  The Light Crust Doughboys is a quintessential American Western swing band from Texas organized in 1931 by the Burrus Mill and Elevator Company in Saginaw, Texas. The band achieved its peak popularity in the few years leading up to World War II...
  
  )†
• Bill Osboen
• Kenneth Pitts (alumni of Light Crust Doughboys
  Light Crust Doughboys
  The Light Crust Doughboys is a quintessential American Western swing band from Texas organized in 1931 by the Burrus Mill and Elevator Company in Saginaw, Texas. The band achieved its peak popularity in the few years leading up to World War II...
  
  )†
• Jabbo Smith
  Jabbo Smith
  Jabbo Smith, born as Cladys Smith was a United States jazz musician, known for his hot virtuoso playing on the trumpet....
  
  , trumpet
• Charlie Watkins
• Anna Mae Winburn
  Anna Mae Winburn
  Anna Mae Winburn, née Darden was an African American vocalist and jazz bandleader who flourished beginning in the mid 1930s...
  
  , singer

† At one point, several members of the popular Light Crust Doughboys

Light Crust Doughboys

The Light Crust Doughboys is a quintessential American Western swing band from Texas organized in 1931 by the Burrus Mill and Elevator Company in Saginaw, Texas. The band achieved its peak popularity in the few years leading up to World War II...

 leaped out of the baking pan to join Perkins.

Move to Minneapolis

By the mid 1940s, Perkins disbanded and became a professional photographer in Minneapolis.

External links

• [ Allmusic biography]

Big Blue Diamonds

Big Blue Diamonds

"Big Blue Diamonds" is a song written by Earl J. Carson in 1950 and published by Lois Music, BMI. It was first recorded by Red Perkins and originally issued as a 78rpm single on King Records #903 b/w "Rag Man Boogie" in 1950...