Jazz O' Maniacs

Biography

Charles Creath's Jazz-O-Maniacs was a prominent St. Louis-based jazz band active in the 1920s, led by trumpeter, saxophonist, and bandleader Charlie Creath (1890-1951). Creath, born in Ironton, Missouri, began his career in traveling circuses and theater bands in the 1900s before settling in St. Louis around 1919, where he led ensembles on Mississippi Riverboats between St. Louis and New Orleans for Streckfus company steamers from 1916 to 1940. The band gained recognition through recordings for Okeh Records between 1924 and 1927, producing highly collectible tracks in the OKeh 8000 race series, including 'Market Street Blues,' 'Grandpa’s Spells,' and 'King Porter Stomp.'[1][2][5]

The Jazz-O-Maniacs embodied the hot jazz style of the era, characterized by powerful brass leads from Creath, tight rhythm sections, and New Orleans influences, featuring innovative arrangements and vocal choruses. Creath's multi-instrumental versatility allowed him to front multiple bands simultaneously in the 1920s. After an illness in the late 1920s shifted him to saxophone and accordion, he co-led groups with Fate Marable, opened a Chicago nightclub in the late 1930s, worked in wartime manufacturing, and retired in 1945 amid health issues, passing away in Chicago in 1951.[2][1]

The band's legacy endures through its rare, sought-after recordings that capture St. Louis jazz's riverboat vitality, bridging regional talents like Lonnie Johnson and Zutty Singleton to broader jazz history without major city fame. Creath's ensembles trained future legends and preserved authentic 1920s hot jazz sounds.[3][5]

Fun Facts

• Creath could break up a razor fight in a St. Louis dance hall with one powerful trumpet note.[5]
• The band's Okeh recordings from 1924-1927 are among the hottest and most collectible in OKeh's race 8000 series.[2]
• Zutty Singleton, a key drummer, was Creath's brother-in-law, married to Creath's sister Marge.[1][5]
• Trombonist Sonny Lee on a 1927 session was a white musician from Frank Trumbauer's Orchestra, blending scenes seamlessly.[5]

Musical Connections

Key Collaborators

• Zutty Singleton - brother-in-law and drummer in rhythm section (Okeh recordings 1924-1927 including third session) [1924-1927]
• Lonnie Johnson - guitarist and violinist featured on recordings (Won’t Don’t Blues (1924), various Okeh sessions) [1924-1927]
• Pops Foster - bassist in riverboat bands (Charles Creath’s Jazz-O-Maniacs ensembles) [1916-1940]
• Fate Marable - co-leader on riverboats (SS Capitol (1927), joint playing 1935-1938) [1927, 1935-1938]
• Ed Allen - band member (trumpeter) (Creath's bands) [1920s]
• Jerome Don Pasquall - band member (Creath's bands) [1920s]
• Leonard Davis - trumpeter in recordings (Okeh sessions) [1924-1927]

Artists Influenced

• Gene Sedric - played in Creath's riverboat bands as young musician, later Fats Waller mainstay (Fats Waller's combo and orchestra) [1920s-early 1930s]

External Links

• Spotify
• Wikipedia