[TPIN] Black and white on the same band

[Phil Landsberg]

And Willie Smith with Harry James under the same conditions.

Phil Landsberg
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bryan Edgett" <bedgett1 at comcast.net>
To: "Michael Anderson" <manderson at okcu.edu>; "Phil Landsberg" 
<fivee at tx.rr.com>; <tpin at tpin.okcu.edu>
Sent: Saturday, December 02, 2006 6:11 AM
Subject: Re: [TPIN] Black and white on the same band


> Lets not forget our own Leon Merian who was the first caucasian to tour 
> nationally with and all black jazz band when he was with Lucky Millinder. 
> Regrettably, segregation still was in full force then. Leon told me that 
> when they went to the South, the white hotel owners wouldn't let him stay 
> in their hotels because he was playing with a black band. He couldn't stay 
> in the hotels that served African Americans because he was white. He often 
> had to sleep on the bus.
>
> Cordially,
>
> Bryan Edgett
>
>>Lots of great musicians broke the color barriers in times and places where 
>>it was difficult.. Here are some good examples off the top of my head -