StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Remembering David "Red" Lehr

This week, StLJN salutes the memory of tuba and sousaphone player David "Red" Lehr, who passed away on Tuesday at age 83.

Beginning in the early 1960s, Lehr enjoyed a long and prolific career playing traditional jazz, both here in St. Louis and for fans around the USA and the world. Although there's not much video online from the first several decades of his career, fortunately there's plenty of video documentation of Lehr performing with various bands from the past 15 years or so, amply demonstrating both his musical skills and his showmanship.

So let's take a look at a small but representative selection of those videos, starting with the first clip above, which features Lehr's Powerhouse Five performing "Tiger Rag" in November 2009 at the Suncoast Dixieland Jazz Classic in Clearwater, FL. Along with Lehr, who uses the number for one of his signature walkabouts through the audience, the band includes Noel Kaletsky (clarinet), Steve Lilley (cornet), Ray Templin (piano, vocals) and Jack Tartar (drums).

After the jump, you can see the St. Louis Rivermen playing "Running Wild" and "Royal Garden Blues," both recorded in November 2010 at the Arizona Classic Jazz Festival in Chandler, Arizona. The band's lineup includes Lehr, Kaletsky, and Lilly, along with Bobby Grimm (banjo), Jim Maihack (trombone), Don Schroeder (drums), and John Sheridan (piano).

The fourth video features the same lineup of the Rivermen performing "Clarinet Marmalade" and "Black Bottom Stomp" as part of two different shows at the 2011 Glacier Jazz Stampede in Kalispell, MT.

In the penultimate clip, recorded in 2011 at the Central Illinois Jazz Festival in Decatur, IL, Lehr and the band are joined by his longtime collaborator (and original leader of the Rivermen), Jean Kittrell, who steps up to the mic for a bit of banter and then sings "I Aint Got Nobody."

The final video, also recorded at the 2011 Central Illinois Jazz Festival, documents a brief ceremony dedicating the festival and paying tribute to Red Lehr.

For more about the life and career of David "Red" Lehr, read the feature story about him published in 2019 in the Monroe County, IL Republic Times.

You can see the rest of today's videos after the jump...

David "Red" Lehr 1937 - 2021

Tuba and sousaphone player David "Red" Lehr, a mainstay of traditional jazz in St. Louis since the early 1960s, died Tuesday, January 5 at his home in New Athens, IL. He was 83 years old.

Lehr (pictured) first became known to local jazz fans in 1963, performing with Don Scherr’s Banjo Band in Gaslight Square. He formed his own group, the Old St. Louis Levee Band, in 1965 and worked regularly in the St. Louis area. Then in 1978, the group teamed up with pianist and singer Jean Kittrell, going on to perform on the Robert E. Lee riverboat in St. Louis for the next 13 years.

Known for his showmanship as well as his musical skills, Lehr also worked with Kittrell in the Jazz Incredibles trio (along with banjo player John Becker) and the St. Louis Rivermen. After Kittrell retired. Lehr took over leadership of the Rivermen, and also led his own group, the Powerhouse Five. Over the course of his long career, he performed at traditional jazz festivals all across the USA; toured in Europe, Canada, and Japan; and played on more than 25 recordings.

When not working as a musician, Lehr with his wife Carolyn ran Lehr’s Market in New Athens, passing on the business to his son Jeff upon retirement. Survivors in addition to his wife and son including a daughter, Lori (Thomas) Knapp of Smithton, IL; sisters Vera Robb of Belleville, IL and Fern Frick of Mt. Vernon, IL; three grandchildren; and various nieces and nephews.

Funeral arrangements will be handled by Kurrus Funeral Home in New Athens. Visitation will be from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Friday, January 8, 2021 and from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 9 at St. John UCC in New Athens. COVID-19 restrictions will be followed, with masks and social distancing required. Funeral services will be private, but will be live-streamed at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, January 9 at https://www.facebook.com/KurrusFH.

StLJN will present a tribute to David "Red" Lehr as this week's Saturday Video Showcase.