David Kenneth Brooks, Jr., better known as Bubba Brooks or Bubber Brooks (May 29, 1922 in

Fayetteville, North Carolina Fayetteville () is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city. Fayetteville has received the All-America ...

– April 11, 2002) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

tenor

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pro ...

. He was the brother of

Tina Brooks Harold Floyd "Tina" Brooks (June 7, 1932 – August 13, 1974) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and composer best remembered for his work in the hard bop style. Early years Harold Floyd Brooks was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, an ...

. Brooks's first professional gig was with the

medicine show Medicine shows were touring acts (traveling by truck, horse, or wagon teams) that peddled "miracle cure" patent medicines and other products between various entertainments. They developed from European mountebank shows and were common in the Unit ...

of Pepper McAllister. He served in the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, there he played with James Moody. He moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

after his discharge in 1944, where he played at

Minton's Playhouse Minton's Playhouse is a jazz club and bar located on the first floor of the Cecil Hotel at 210 West 118th Street in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City. It is a registered trademark of Housing and Services, Inc. a New York City nonprofit provider ...

and the Harlem Grill. He toured

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

in a band alongside

Sonny Payne Sonny Payne (May 4, 1926 – January 29, 1979) was an American jazz drummer, best known for his work with Count Basie and Harry James. Biography Payne's father was Wild Bill Davis's drummer Chris Columbus. After early study with Vic Berton, ...

in 1947, then played with George Barkley at the Baby Grand in New York; he first recorded with Barkley around 1947 or 1948. He then played with Sonny Thompson from 1948 to 1957. In 1958 he worked with

Jimmy McCracklin James David Walker Jr. (August 13, 1921 – December 20, 2012), better known by his stage name Jimmy McCracklin, was an American pianist, vocalist, and songwriter. His style contained West Coast blues, Jump blues, and R&B. Over a career tha ...

and in 1961 with

Phil Upchurch Philip Upchurch (born July 19, 1941) is an American jazz and blues guitarist and bassist. Career Upchurch started his career working with the Kool Gents, the Dells, and the Spaniels, before going on to work with Curtis Mayfield, Otis Rush, an ...

; he also did session work with pop musicians in the 1960s. From 1967 to 1973 he played at the Fantasy East in New York with alto saxophonist Charles Williams and

Don Pullen Don Gabriel Pullen (December 25, 1941 – April 22, 1995) was an American jazz pianist and organist. Pullen developed a strikingly individual style throughout his career. He composed pieces ranging from blues to bebop and modern jazz. The great ...

, recording three albums as a trio for

Mainstream Records Mainstream Records was an American record company and independent record label founded by producer Bob Shad in 1964. Mainstream's early releases were reissues from Commodore Records. Its catalogue grew to include Bob Brookmeyer, Maynard Fergu ...

. After a short run with

Jimmy McGriff James Harrell McGriff (April 3, 1936 – May 24, 2008) was an American hard bop and soul-jazz organist and organ trio bandleader. Biography Early years and influences Born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, United States, McGriff started playing pi ...

in 1974, Brooks became a member of

Bill Doggett William Ballard Doggett (February 16, 1916 – November 13, 1996) was an American pianist and organist. He began his career playing swing music before transitioning into rhythm and blues. Best known for his instrumental compositions "Honky Tonk" ...

's ensemble, where he remained for two decades (1976–1996). Brooks worked in the middle of the 1990s with

Bross Townsend Bross Elvie Townsend, Jr. (October 18, 1933 – May 12, 2003) was an American jazz and blues pianist. Townsend was born in Princeton, Kentucky. His father was also a pianist, and started his son on the instrument at age seven. Townsend moved to ...

Carrie Smith Carrie Louise Smith (August 25, 1925 – May 20, 2012) was an American blues and jazz singer. She was not well known in the United States but had a small following in Europe. Career Smith was born in Fort Gaines, Georgia, United States. S ...

, and the Harlem Blues and Jazz Band. He did a tour of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

with Al Casey in 1999.

Discography

As leader

* ''Smooth Sailing'' (TCB, 1995) * ''The Big Sound of Bubba Brooks'' (Claves Jazz, 1995) * ''Polka Dots and Moonbeams'' (TCB, 1996)

As sideman

*''

Wynonie Harris Wynonie Harris (August 24, 1915 – June 14, 1969) was an American blues shouter and rhythm-and-blues singer of upbeat songs, featuring humorous, often ribald lyrics. He had fifteen Top 10 hits between 1946 and 1952. Harris is attributed by ...

'' ( Route 66, 1954) *''

You Can't Sit Down'' (

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stu ...

, 1961) *''

Twist - The Big Hit Dances'' (United Artists, 1961) * Charles Williams - '' Charles Williams'' ( Mainstream, 1971) *Charles Williams - '' Trees and Grass and Things'' (Mainstream, 1972) *Charles Williams - ''

Stickball Stickball is a street game similar to baseball, usually formed as a pick-up game played in large cities in the Northeastern United States, especially New York City and Philadelphia. The equipment consists of a broom handle and a rubber ball, ...

'' (Mainstream, 1973) *''

Am I Blue'' (

Black and Blue ''Black and Blue'' is the 13th British and 15th American studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 23 April 1976 by Rolling Stones Records. This album was the first recorded after former guitarist Mick Taylor qu ...

, 1978) *''

Honky Tonk'' (Black and Blue, 1980) *''

The Right Choice'' (After Hours, 1991) *''Bross Townsend I Love Jump Jazz'' (Claves Jazz, 1995) *'' Michel Pastre Live During a French Tour'' (Djaz, 1999) *''Joseph Carter In the Now'' (Velvet Swan, 2000) *''Bobby Forrester Organic Chemistry'' (Lollipop, 2001)

References

*Howard Rye, "Bubba Brooks". '' Grove Jazz'' online. {{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Bubba 1922 births 2002 deaths Musicians from Fayetteville, North Carolina American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists African-American jazz musicians 20th-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from North Carolina 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Harlem Blues and Jazz Band members United States Army personnel of World War II 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people