Marshal Royal
*Marshal Royal was born on this date in 1912. He was a Black jazz musician.
From Sapulpa, Oklahoma, he was raised in Los Angeles. His mother, father, and uncle had a pre-World War I group called the Royal Family Orchestra. His father was a Music teacher and bandleader, his mother played piano, and his brother Ernie was a well-known jazz trumpeter. In 1925, a young Marshal joined up on violin. From the 1930s through the seventies, he performed with Lionel Hampton, Earl Hines, and Duke Ellington, besides his time with Basie.
Upon leaving the road scene in 1971, he returned home to California and worked in all major recording studios. He has recorded with Frank Sinatra, Sara Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, Linda Ronstadt, and many others. Most recently, he also played for many motion picture scores, including the hit, "Dick Tracy." One of the city's greatest jazz treasures won a little recognition late in life:
On a Sunday in September 1987, Marshal Royal, the alto saxophonist, was given an award from the L.A. Jazz Society for a lifetime of musical achievement. He received the honor at a ceremonial concert at the Hyatt Regency downtown, when the society bestowed its principal annual tribute on bassist Red Callender, whose autobiography, "Unfinished Dream," has recently been published by Quartet Books. Marshal Royal died on May 9, 1995.
