Erskine Hawkins

Early years

Hawkins was named by his parents after Alabama industrialist Erskine Ramsay, who rewarded parents with savings accounts for doing so. He attended Councill Elementary School and Industrial High School in Birmingham. At Industrial High, he played in the band directed by Fess Whatley, a teacher who taught many African-American musicians who later worked with Duke Ellington, Lucky Millinder, Louis Armstrong, and Skitch Henderson.

Headliner years

Erskine Hawkins first recorded for Vocalion Records between 1936 and 1938, billing his group as the 'Bama State Collegians. In 1938, he moved to RCA Victor and began cutting records for their Bluebird label under the name Erskine Hawkins and His Orchestra. During the late 1930s, his band served as one of the house acts at the Savoy Ballroom, trading sets with Chick Webb’s orchestra and closing with "Tuxedo Junction" to keep the dance floor moving.

Hawkins also squared off in band battles against Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington, and Lionel Hampton. By the mid-1940s, he was recording for RCA Victor’s main label, where he scored many of his biggest hits. He stayed with RCA until 1950, then moved to Coral Records.

Did You Know?

• Hawkins was trumpeter and band leader at The Concord Resort Hotel in Kiamesha Lake, New York, from 1967 to 1993.
• He is buried at Elmwood Cemetery and Mausoleum in Birmingham, Alabama, alongside his sister.
• Hawkins was a contemporary of another Birmingham jazz musician, Sun Ra.