Leroy Jones was born February 20, 1958, in New Orleans, and began playing trumpet at age ten. By 12, he was leading the Fairview Baptist Church Marching Band, a group of young musicians organized by jazz guitarist and banjo player Danny Barker. As a young teenager, Jones performed as "Little Louis Armstrong" during the Super Bowl VI halftime show in 1972, a tribute to Louis Armstrong following his death the previous year, alongside the Onward Brass Band, Danny Barker, Carol Channing, Ella Fitzgerald, and Al Hirt.
When the musicians' union forced Barker to disband the youth group in 1974, Jones became a union musician himself and took over running the band, renaming it the Hurricane Brass Band. In 1975 or 1976, he left to tour with Eddie Vinson and Della Reese before forming his own group, the Leroy Jones Quintet. In 1991, Jones joined Harry Connick Jr.'s big band, an association that brought wider exposure and led to his 1994 debut album as a leader, Mo' Cream From The Crop, released on Columbia Records.
Jones has continued to record and perform as a bandleader in the decades since, including his 2002 album Back To My Roots, which traced his musical journey back to his days at Fairview Baptist Church and St. Augustine High School, featuring collaborators including trombonist Craig Klein, pianist Paul Longstreth, and drummer Gerald French. A regular at Preservation Hall, Jones continues to lead Leroy Jones & New Orleans' Finest, performing New Orleans jazz standards and original compositions at venues across the city and around the world.
