One of our most famous New Orleans Jazz musicians was George Lewis. Not as well known as Louis Armstrong but in my view just as important, as were all those fellas back in the early days of Jazz

Old New Orleans Jazz Clarinetist George Lewis Tears It Up on Mahogany Hall Stomp

George Lewis travelled all over the world spreading the good news of  jazz. But strangely enough he was less well-known in his hometown New Orleans. I had only heard about him when it was announced he had died.

In the 1950s he became a popular figure in the New Orleans jazz revival movement. He played with all the early greats of the jazz movement, like Kid Ory, the Eureka Brass Band and others. For a time he was a regular at Preservation Hall.

He was relatively young by today’s standards, passing away in 1968 at 68. And his legacy lives on in the many albums he recorded. He was a New Orleans jazz classic.