The California Ramblers were an influential jazz group that recorded hundreds of songs for many different labels during the 1920s. Red Nichols and Jimmy Dorsey were three of the original members of the group. Tommy Dorsey would later go on to lead big bands. Although the original members of the band were originally from Ohio, they chose to call themselves the California Ramblers as they believed people would be more inclined to listen to jazz bands from the Midwest. The band’s name was given to the “Ramblers Hotel” in Pelham, New York. The band became a huge success and was well-known for the rest of the decade. The Ramblers were one of the most popular recording groups of the 1920s. In November 1921, the Ramblers’ first recordings were for Vocallion Records. Oscar Addler, the front man of the California Ramblers, told Ed Kirkeby that he was to become the band’s manager and booking agent. Ed Kirkeby, who was a prominent figure in the New York Music Scene, had the B. F. Keath Cercut bar the Ramblers playing in any of their restaurants or theaters. The Original band disbanded by March 1922. Arto Records released their last recording on March 16,1922. Ray Kitchenman, a Banjo player who was also the founder of the Ramblers Ray Kitchenman, asked Kirkeby if the band can be reformed. Kirkeby suggested that he play Shanlee’s dance hall with a band led by Arthur Hand. Kirkeby agreed and the new band of California Ramblers recorded their first album for Emerson Record Company on April 3, 1922. The Ramblers signed a Columbia Records contract in late 1924. They then agreed, together with Ed Kirkeby their manager, to waive all Columbia royalties for the right of recording for other companies. Over 100 unique aliases were used to record for almost every independent label in America, Canada, and the United Kingdom. They were not necessarily from Ohio, although some of them were. However, they also came from Pennsylvania. They performed at Shanleys Dance Hall and The Monte Carlo, as well as at the McAlpine Hotel in 1928. Although they weren’t the first band to record ( Jimmy Durante’s Original New Orleans Jazz Band In 1918 had a light skinned clarinetist Achille Bquet), they were an early mixed band. Bill Moore was a light-skinned trumpeter. He was replaced by Red Nichols in March 1925. While he was with the California Ramblers, Bill Moore was known as The Hot Hawaiian. The California Ramblers recorded the iconic song “Has Anyone Seen My Gal?” From Wikipedia Wikipedia
