WALTER BLYTHE

Instruments: Bass, Tuba, Educator
Date of Birth: 1904
Place of Birth: Birmingham, Alabama

Walter Blythe was born in 1904, on the South Side in Birmingham. He played the bass and tuba as a member of the Jazz Demons, the first jazz band in Birmingham, led by Fess Whatley. In 1925, Blythe organized the first band at Council Elementary School (in Ensley) where he taught Jo Jones, Nehemiah Stanfield, and Jimmy Chappel. For many years Blythe was a regular performer in the theater bands and was a member of Whatley's 1934 touring band.

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