The Memoirs of Alton Augustus Adams, Sr.: First Black Bandmaster of the United States Navy (Music of the African Diaspora)

387 Pages·2008·2.83 MB·English

by  Alton Augustus Adams Sr.

the george gund foundation
imprint in african american studies
The George Gund Foundation has endowed
this imprint to advance understanding of
the history,culture,and current issues
of African Americans.
The publisher gratefullyacknowledges the generous contributions
tothisbookprovided by the Center for Black M usicResearch and
by the African American Studies EndowmentFund ofthe
UniversityofCaliforniaPress Foundation,which issupported by
amajor giftfrom the George Gund Foundation.
musicof the african diaspora
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SamuelFloyd,Jr.

The M em oirsof
Alton Augustus Adam s,Sr.
[To view this image, refer to
the print version of this title.]

Alton Augustus Adams,Sr.,in1961.Courtesy Alton Augustus Adams Collection,
Center for Black M usicResearch,and Alton Adams FamilyTrust.
The M em oirs of
Alton Augustus Adam s,Sr.
FirstBlack Bandm aster ofthe United States Navy
Edited by
mark clague
Foreword by SamuelFloyd,Jr.
UniversityofCaliforniaPress
berkeley los angeles london
Center for Black M usicResearch
columbiacollege chicago
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presses inthe United States,enriches lives around the worldby advanc-
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Itsactivities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philan-
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mation,visitwww.ucpress.edu.
Unless otherwise noted,allphotographs are courtesy ofthe Alton
Adams FamilyTrust.
UniversityofCaliforniaPress
Berkeley and Los Angeles,California
UniversityofCaliforniaPress,Ltd.
London,England
Center for Black MusicResearch
ColumbiaCollege Chicago
© 2008by The Regentsofthe UniversityofCalifornia
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Adams,Alton A.
The memoirs ofAlton Augustus Adams,Sr.:firstblack bandmaster
ofthe United States Navy /edited by Mark Clague ;foreword by
SamuelFloyd,Jr.
p. cm.— (Musicofthe African diaspora ;12)
Includes bibliographicalreferences (p.)and index.
ISBN 978-0-520-25131-1(cloth:alk.paper)
1.Adams,Alton A. 2.Bandmasters— VirginIslands ofthe United
States— Biography. 3.VirginIslands ofthe United States— Social
conditions— 20thcentury. I.Clague,Mark,[date]. II.Title.
ML422.A245A3 2008
784.092— dc22 2007012025
Manufactured inthe United States ofAmerica
17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 09 08
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Thisbookisprinted on Natures Book,which contains 50% post-
consumer wasteand meetsthe minimum requirementsofANSI/NISO
Z39.48–1992(R1997)(Permanence ofPaper).
To my wife,Ella;sister,Edna;brother,Julien;
and my fellow bandsmen
and
tothe peopleofthe VirginIslands
Alton Augustus Adams,Sr.