Jelly Roll Morton

Jelly Roll Morton was a  mix of french, African, and spanish, he was one of the first Jazz musicians to put their songs on paper. He was in a band known as The Red Hot Peppers. Though Jelly started at a very young age, his music wasn’t very popular until the 1930’s. He played the piano at a very young age around the time Morton’s mother met his step father, Mouton. Jelly Roll Morton’s name came from his step father’s name, Mouton, his real name was Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe.

Before becoming a famous Jazz musician, Jelly roll did a number of odd jobs. He at one point was a gambler, he also worked as a pimp, and even went as far as to work as a piano player in a whore-house.