Roy Eldridge
Trumpet Player
Influential swing musician who is known for his tritone substitutions and distinct style.
He played with many traveling groups around the Midwest after learning how to play piano, drums, and trumpet.
He joined Gene Krupa's Orchestra in 1941, making him one of the first black musicians to be invited on as a permanent member of a white big band.
He was married to a woman named Viola who passed away three weeks before Eldridge.
Eldridge performed in a band founded and run by Artie Shaw in 1944 before leaving and beginning his own big band.