Home » Jazz Musicians » Louis Prima

Louis Prima

Best remembered for his risque Vegas act of the 1950s, Louis Prima was the ultimate showman. Loud, boisterous, and completely out front, his mix of rhythm and blues, big band music, Italian novelty tunes, and Dixieland made him one of the hottest performers of his era.

Born and raised in New Orleans, Prima studied violin as a child. He took up the trumpet at age fourteen after his brother, who was also a musician, went on tour and left behind an old instrument. Prima taught himself how to play and in the late 1920s began to perform professionally, influenced by Louis Armstrong and the rich jazz heritage of his hometown.

In 1934 Prima moved to New York at the suggestion of bandleader Guy Lombardo. At first he struggled to find work but soon organized his own band, the New Orleans Gang, for an engagement at the Famous Door. The group quickly proved popular, recording for a variety of labels over the next several years. Despite this success, though, Prima remained relatively unknown to the general public, except as composer of the song ''Swing, Swing, Swing,'' which proved a big hit for Benny Goodman in the late 1930s.

In 1939 Prima broke up the New Orleans Gang and formed his own big band. Known as the Gleeby Rhythm Orchestra, Prima's new outfit finally broke through in 1944 with ''Angelina,'' the first of several Italian novelty hits. Other popular songs written or performed by Prima during the late 1940s include ''Bell Bottom Trousers,'' ''Robin Hood,'' and the ballad ''A Sunday Kind of Love.'' Prima handled male vocals in the band. Jack Powers also sang during the mid-1940s. Female vocalist was Lily Ann Carol.

In 1948 Prima hired 16-year-old Dorothy Keely as a replacement for Carol. The loud and boisterous Prima found a perfect foil in the shy young singer, whom he renamed Keely Smith. The two produced strong stage chemistry together, playing off their opposite personalities, and quickly became the focus of each performance. In 1950 Prima broke up the band and formed a successful nightclub act with Smith. In 1953 they married.

By late 1954 Prima and Smith's act had run its course, and Prima began to look towards Las Vegas. He recruited popular New Orleans tenor saxophonist Sam Butera to put together a new band for a booking at the Sahara Hotel. Billed as the ''Wildest Show in Vegas,'' the new act was an immediate hit, and Prima was suddenly in demand, appearing frequently on television and in film. He soon signed with Capitol Records, producing several albums over the next few years and charting several hits, including ''Just a Gigolo'' and ''Oh, Marie!'' In 1958 he and Smith won a Grammy for their rendition of ''That Old Black Magic.''

Louis Prima: Jump Jive and Wail: The Essential Louis Prima

Read "Jump Jive and Wail: The Essential Louis Prima" reviewed by David Rickert

by David Rickert
December 6, 2007

It's likely that Louis Prima would have faded into obscurity if not for the Gap ad that featured young, khaki-wearing twenty-somethings swing dancing to “Jump, Jive, and Wail. That ad appeared at the height of the nineties swing revival and brought the song back into circulation, appearing on several swing compilations designed to make a quick buck. Now that the craze is over, Prima still isn't held in as high esteem as Frank Sinatra or even Dean Martin, yet his ...

Video / DVD

Louis Prima: King of the Swingers

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
March 3, 2022

Born in New Orleans, trumpeter, singer and entertainer Louis Prima grew up in the city's Italian-American community. He was influenced not only by New Orleans's Black jazz and folk culture but also the tradition of commedia dell'arte that dates back to 16th-century Italy. Comedy's earliest form of improv, this form of street theater poked fun at neighborhood characters and customs, and gave us the buffoon, the harlequin and, later, the clown and circus. Prima's combination of jazz and humor was ...
read more

Performance / Tour

Danny Bacher All-Star Band Returns To The Metropolitan Room On August 4 & 25 - Celebrating Louis Armstrong, Louis Prima & Louis Jordan!

Source: Scott Thompson Public Relations
August 2, 2015

Danny Bacher returns to the Metropolitan Room on August 4 & 25 with his All-Star Band Celebrating Upcoming Debut CD Swing That Music! Danny Bacher Sings and Plays Louis Armstrong, Louis Prima and Louis Jordan" Advance EP features: Warren Vache, Bill Goodwin, Ray Drummond, Howard Alden, Houston Person and Cyrille Aimée Danny Bacher and his All-Star Band are back by popular demand at Manhattan's Metropolitan Room with special guest vocalists both August 4 and August 25! Make your reservations now! ...
read more

Music Industry

Documentary: Louis Prima

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 22, 2014

Louis Prima goes back further than you think. Born in New Orleans, his first surge of popularity came in the 1930s, when he was a trumpeter-bandleader with a swinging singing voice. He wrote Sing, Sing Sing, which sounds just like him once you know it came from his pen. In the 1940s, Prima leveraged his heritage to create a string of Italian-themed hits, becoming Metronome's “Showman of the Year" in 1946. Then in 1953, he divorced his third wife and ...
read more

Recording

Louis Prima Jr. & The Witnesses To Release Blow On June 10

Source: Independent Music Media
May 20, 2014

A different kind of musical dawn is coming with flashes of rowdy big band, simmering soul and swaggering rock 'n' roll as Louis Prima Jr. and the Witnesses prepare to ignite a new legacy with their second full-length album, Blow out June 10 on Warrior Records/Universal Music Distribution. With Blow, Prima and the Witnesses revive a boogie woogie spirit for the modern generation. “The message is to have a good time and enjoy life," explains Prima. “Get up and move. ...
read more

313

Event

Louis Prima To Get Star On Hollywood Walk of Fame. Louis Prima Jr. To Perform Live, July 25

Source: Nina Gordon Public Relations
July 23, 2010

Get Ready to “Jump, Jive, an' Wail" LOUIS PRIMA TO GET STAR ON HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME JULY 25TH. LOUIS PRIMA JR. AND THE WITNESSES FEATURING SARAH SPIEGEL TO PERFORM LIVE IN CONCERT AFTER CEREMONY AT 11:30 AM. LOS ANGELES, CA--Louis Prima, one of the greatest contributors to popular music and a powerful entertainment influence for the past eight decades, will be presented posthumously with his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Sunday, July 25th at 11:30 a.m. in ...
read more

262

Obituary

Sam Butera 1950s-'60s Tenor Saxophonist with Louis Prima Dies

Source: Michael Ricci
June 5, 2009

Tenor sax player Sam Butera joined up with Louis Prima -- a fellow New Orleans native of Italian heritage -- in 1954, and for almost two decades they recorded hit albums for Capitol Records, were nightclub fixtures from Las Vegas to New York and appeared in movies and on television.

He was best known for his musical partnership with entertainer Louis Prima. They were a nightclub fixture and appeared on TV and in movies.

Sam Butera, a hard-swinging tenor saxophonist ...
read more

289

Obituary

Sam Butera, Former Louis Prima Saxophonist, Dies in Las Vegas at Age 81

Source: All About Jazz
June 4, 2009

Sam Butera, the hard-driving, hard-swinging New Orleans saxophonist who was Louis Prima's longtime musical partner, died Wednesday in Las Vegas following a long illness. He was 81. Mr. Butera joined Prima's band in 1954. With singer Keely Smith, they built one of the most popular acts in the golden age of Las Vegas. Mr. Butera cooked up the arrangements that gave the likes of “Just a Gigolo," “I Ain't Got Nobody" and “Jump Jive An' Wail" maximum impact. “Louis's ace-in-the-hole ...
read more

124

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Louis Prima

Source: Michael Ricci
December 7, 2008

All About Jazz is celebrating Louis Prima's birthday today!

JAZZ MUSICIAN OF THE DAY Louis Prima

Louis Prima - trumpet, vocalist, composer, bandleader (1910 - 1978) Best remembered for his risque Vegas act of the 1950s, Louis Prima was the ultimate showman. Loud, boisterous, and completely out front, his mix of rhythm and blues... more

Website | Videos | Articles

Join Louis Prima's fan network

Put AAJ's Musician of the ...
read more

118

Recording

Capitol/EMI to Release Swingin' New Hits Collections for Louis Prima and Keely Smith

Source: All About Jazz
July 16, 2007

Jump, Jive An' Wail: The Essential Louis Prima Presents 26 of the Grammy-Winner's Best, Including “I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)," “Jump, Jive An' Wail," “Just A Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody," and “Buona Sera"

Keely Smith: The Essential Capitol Collection Features 27 Tracks, Including a Previously Unreleased Live Recording and Duets with Prima and Frank Sinatra Hollywood, California - On July 17, Capitol/EMI will release new single-disc hits collections for Louis Prima and Keely Smith on CD and ...
read more

204

Recording

Recent Releases

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Louis Prima

Louis Prima

Followers

Get more of a good thing!

Connect

More Access

For Musicians

Advertise