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James W. Sturr Jr. (born September 25, 1941), commonly known as Jimmy Sturr, is an American polka musician, trumpeter, clarinetist, saxophonist and leader of Jimmy Sturr & His Orchestra. Media outlets have often dubbed him the "King of Polka," with his recordings having won 18 out of the 24 Grammy Awards given for Best Polka Album.[1] Sturr's orchestra is on the Top Ten List of the All-Time Grammy Awards, and has acquired more Grammy nominations than anyone in the history of musical polka awards.[2][3]
Jimmy Sturr | |
|---|---|
 Sturr in 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | James William Sturr Jr. |
| Born | September 25, 1941 Warwick, New York, United States |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Instrumentalist, bandleader |
| Instrument(s) | Trumpet, clarinet, saxophone |
| Labels | Rounder, Vanguard, Starr |
| Website | www |
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Sturr and his orchestra have performed at Carnegie Hall,[4] Lincoln Center in New York City, Yankee Stadium [5] and the Palace of Culture in Warsaw, Poland.[6] When touring, the band rides in Jimmy's 45-foot customized tour bus, previously owned by Billy Ray Cyrus.[2] The band has crossed genres and collaborated with numerous prominent musicians such as Willie Nelson, Brenda Lee, Arlo Guthrie, Boots Randolph, The Oak Ridge Boys, Mel Tillis, and Charlie Daniels.
A significant highlight for Jimmy Sturr & His Orchestra was when they were invited to appear on the Grand Ole Opry, the only polka group (and the only group with brass instruments) to do so.[1]
Sturr hosts a syndicated radio show on stations including WTBQ[7] in his hometown of Florida, New York, the station he once owned. He also has a weekly radio show on the Rural Radio channel on SirusXM.[8] In addition to radio shows, he also owns and operates United Polka Artists, Starr Record Company, Jimmy Sturr Travel Agency, and a publishing company.[1]
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- All American Polka Festival
- All in My Love for You (1990 Grammy)
- The Best of Jimmy Sturr and His Orchestra
- The Big Band Polka Sound
- Born to Polka (1989 Grammy)
- Come on and Dance (Live from RFD-TV) (2014)
- Come Share the Wine (2008 Grammy)
- Dance with Me (1999 Grammy)
- Double Magic
- First Class Polkas
- Forget Me Never
- Gone Polka with Willie Nelson, Brenda Lee (2002 Grammy)
- Gonna be Good Times (2017)
- Grammy Gold
- Greatest Hits of Polka
- I Love to Polka (1996 Grammy)
- I Remember Warsaw (1987 Grammy)
- A Jimmy Sturr Christmas
- Let the Whole World Sing (2009 Grammy)
- Let's Polka 'Round with Charlie Daniels, Bela Fleck, Boots Randolph (2004 Grammy)
- Life's a Polka
- Live at Gilley's! (1992 Grammy)
- Living on Polka Time with Bill Anderson, Flaco Jiménez (1998 Grammy)
- Most Requested Hits
- Not Just Another Polka
- Please Have Them Play a Polka Just for Me (1988 Grammy)
- Polka! All Night Long with Willie Nelson (1997 Grammy)
- Polka Christmas
- Polka Christmas in My Home Town
- Polka Cola (Music That Refreshes) with Bill Anderson (2009)
- Polka Fever (1978)
- Polka in Paradise with Bobby Vinton (2007 Grammy)
- Polka is My Life
- Polka Party
- Polkapalooza
- Primetime Polkas
- Pure Country
- Pure Polka
- Rock 'N' Polka
- Saturday Night Polka
- Shake, Rattle and Polka! (2006 Grammy)
- Stir Up a Musical Mix
- Sturr It Up
- Sturr Struck
- Top of the World with Arlo Guthrie, Rhonda Vincent (2003 Grammy)
- Touched by a Polka with Mel Tillis (2001 Grammy)
- Tribute to the Legends of Polka Music
- When It's Polka Time at Your House (1991 Grammy)
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Band Members
- Jimmy Sturr - Leader, Vocals, Clarinet, Saxophone, Drums, and Trumpet
- Johnny Karas - Tenor Saxophone and Vocals
- Nick DeVito - Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, and Piccolo
- Jim Perry - Clarinet and Alto Saxophone
- Frank Urbanovitch - Fiddle & Vocals
- Al Piatkowski - Accordion
- Bill Ash - Trumpet
- Rick Henly - Trumpet
- Rich Berends - Drums
- Rich Pavasaris - Bass Guitar
- Ron Oswanski - Piano & Accordion
- Tom Conklin - Bus Driver and Sound Manager
- Mike Magdon - Sound Manager
- Gus Kosior - Manager & Bus Driver
- Barbara James - Assistant Manager
- Joe - Social Media
Reoccurring members
- Nick Koryluk - Accordion
- Joe Mariany - Clarinet and Saxophone
- Ray Barno - Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, and Baritone Saxophone
- Chris Caffery - Guitar
Past members
- William “Bill” Hulle - Bass[9]
- Hank Golis - Trumpet
- Kevin Krauth - Trumpet & Vocals
- Al Noble - Trumpet
- Ben Poole - Trumpet
- Eric Parks - Trumpet
- Paul Ketterer - Trumpet
- Kenny Harbus - Trumpet & Vocals
- Dana Sylvander - Trombone
- Dennis Coyman - Drums
- Bill Langan - Bass Guitar
- Mike Ralff - Bass Guitar
- Dave Kowalski - Guitar
- Eddie Burton - Guitar
- Lou Pallo - Guitar
- Kevin Chase - Guitar
- Walt Cunningham - Strings & Banjo
- Ed Goldberg - Piano & Bass
- Jeff Hoffman - Piano
- Jeff Miller - Piano
- Keith Slattery - Piano
- Lenny Filipowski - Piano
- Dennis Polisky - Clarinet & Alto Saxophone
- Greg Dolecki - Clarinet & Alto Saxophone
- Joe Magnuszewski - Clarinet & Alto Saxophone
- Peter Kargul - Violin
- Ryan Joseph - Violin
- Steve Wnuk - Violin
- Gene Bartkiewicz - Accordion
- Wally Czerniawski - Accordion
- Darlene Morrow - Violin
- Mark Zaki - Violin
- Steve Swiader - Accordion
- Gennarose - Vocals
- Lance Wing - Vocals
- Lindsey Webster - Vocals
- John Doolan - Equipment Manager
- Bryan Doolan - Roadie
- Thomas 'Tom' Karas - Accordion/keyboard (1983-1989)[10]
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