Harry James

Harry James
James c. 1942
Born
Harry Haag James

(1916-03-15)March 15, 1916
DiedJuly 5, 1983(1983-07-05) (aged 67)
Spouses
(m. 1935; div. 1943)
(m. 1943; div. 1965)
Joan Boyd
(m. 1967; div. 1970)
Children5
Musical career
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • bandleader
  • trumpeter
InstrumentTrumpet
Years active1933–1983
Labels

Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983)[1] was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band to great commercial success from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947, but shortly after he reorganized and was active again with his band from then until his death in 1983. He was especially known among musicians for his technical proficiency as well as his tone, and was influential on new trumpet players from the late 1930s into the 1940s. He was also an actor in a number of films that usually featured his band.

  1. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. pp. 1260/1. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.