Arville Harris
Arville Shirley Harris (1904–1954) was an American jazz reedist. He was the brother of Leroy Harris, Sr. Harris was born in St. Louis and played on riverboats in the early 1920s. He worked in the bands of Hershal Brassfield and Bill Brown, then worked with Clarence Williams, including on recordings, late in the decade. Around the same time he recorded with Fats Waller, King Oliver, Eva Taylor, and Sara Martin. He played in Cab Calloway's group, including on tours of Europe, between 1931 and 1935. In the latter half of the 1930s he worked with Jacques Butler, Baron Lee, and Claude Hopkins. He led a band under his name in New York at the Majestic Ballroom from ca. 1944 until his death. |
Birth and Death Data: Born St. Louis (independent city in Missouri, United States), Died 1954
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1929 - 1937
Roles Represented in DAHR: alto saxophone, clarinet, tenor saxophone
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor | BVE-49760 | 10-in. | 3/1/1929 | The minor drag | Fats Waller’s Buddies | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, alto saxophone, clarinet, tenor saxophone | |
| Victor | BVE-49761 | 10-in. | 3/1/1929 | Harlem fuss | Fats Waller’s Buddies | Jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, alto saxophone, clarinet, tenor saxophone | |
| Brunswick | E36212 | 10-in. | 3/3/1931 | Minnie the moocher | Cab Calloway Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, clarinet, alto saxophone | |
| Decca | 62140 | 10-in. | 4/21/1937 | Honey | Clude Hopkins Orchestra | instrumentalist, clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone | ||
| Decca | 62141 | 10-in. | 4/21/1937 | June night | Clude Hopkins Orchestra | instrumentalist, clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone | ||
| Decca | 62142 | 10-in. | 4/21/1937 | Church Street sobbin' blues | Clude Hopkins Orchestra | instrumentalist, clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone | ||
| Decca | 62143 | 10-in. | 4/21/1937 | My kinda love | Clude Hopkins Orchestra | instrumentalist, clarinet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Harris, Arville," accessed December 25, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/114223.
Harris, Arville. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 25, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/114223.
"Harris, Arville." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 25 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Harris, Arville - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2008083449
Wikidata: Arville Harris - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q11852967
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/198789
MusicBrainz: Arville Harris - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/d0a89bc2-815f-47a5-831e-e12b5269584c
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