Passing of the Last Original of Preservation Hall

Wanted to share with you the news we saw the other day of the death of the last founding member of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Narvin Kimball, known for his vocal styling and banjo playing, died on March 17 at his daughters' home in Charleston, SC. He was age 97.

His death was confirmed by the publicist of the band, a New Orleans institution, and the local coroner. He and his wife, Lillian, had been staying with their daughters since shortly after Hurricane Katrina.

Mr. Kimball's vocal renditions of "Georgia on My Mind" always brought standing ovations, said Preservation Hall's director, Ben Jaffe, whose parents opened the hall in 1961. "He was really our last connection to a bygone time in the history of New Orleans," Mr. Jaffe said by telephone from New Orleans.

Mr. Kimball was the son of the bassist Henry Kimball, and he made his first banjo with a cigar box, stick and string. He began playing professionally in the 1920's on Mississippi riverboats with the Fate Marable Band. He made his first Columbia Records recording in 1928.

Mr. Kimball formed his own band, the Gentlemen of Jazz, and played around New Orleans for 40 years. He also worked for 37 years for the United States Postal Service.

He last played with the band in 1999 in a PBS performance. Not long afterward, Mr. Jaffe said, Mr. Kimball suffered a series of strokes that ended his banjo playing.

Mr. Kimball is survived by his wife, two daughters, four grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. (Source: Associated Press)