Buddy Bolden

Charles Joseph “Buddy” Bolden (1877-1931) was a cornetist regarded by his peers as a key figure in the development of a New Orleans style of rag-time music, which later become known as jazz.

In New Orleans, Buddy was also known as King Bolden and his band was a top act from 1900-1907. He was known for his very loud sound and constant improvisation. Many early jazz musicians credited Bolden as the “father of jazz”. He created a looser, more improvised version of ragtime and added blues to it. His band was the first to have brass instruments play the blues. He said he took ideas from gospel music that he heard in uptown New Orleans African-American Baptist churches.

Instead of imitating other cornetists, Bolden played music he heard “by ear” and adapted it to his horn. He created an exciting sound that infused ragtime, Black sacred music, marching-band music, and rural blues. He rearranged the typical New Orleans dance band of the time to better accommodate the blues and the string instruments became the rhythm section and the front-line instruments were clarinets, trombones, and Bolden’s cornet. His music was loud, powerful, and “wide-open”. Buddy influenced Joe “King” Oliver, Freddie Keppard, Bunk Johnson, and other early jazz musicians. Some of the songs associated with his band are, “Careless Love”, “My Bucket’s Got a Hole in It”, “Get Out of Here and Go Home” and “Home! Sweet Home!”.

Unfortunately, little is documented about his life and myths about him being a barber and a publisher of the scandal sheet, The Cricket, are still in question. Bolden did suffer an episode of acute alcoholic psychosis in 1907, and was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He spent the rest of his life at the Louisiana State Insane Asylum at Jackson.