Big Jim Robinson (born Nathan; December 25, 1890 – May 4, 1976) was an American jazz musician, based in New Orleans, renowned for his deep, wide-toned, robust "tailgate" style of trombone playing, using the slide to achieve a wide swoop between two notes ("glissando") and rhythmic effects.
Biography
Born Nathan Robinson in Deer Range, a small settlement on the west bank of lower Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, Robinson studied music under James Brown Humphrey.
Robinson arrived in New Orleans looking for work shortly before the 1915 New Orleans hurricane, which wiped out his home town of Deer Range, and prompted Robinson to settle in the city. In his youth, he got the nickname "Jim Crow" because of his facial features, which resembled a Native American. He was playing semi-professionally in his twenties, from World War I on. In the 1920s, he made his first recordings as a member of the Sam Morgan Jazz Band.
Discography
- New Orleans: The Living Legends (Riverside)
- Classic New Orleans Jazz Vol. 2 From The Rare Center Series (Biograph, 1993, 2007)