The Bohee Brothers
The Bohee Brothers | |
|---|---|
 James Bohee (left) and George Bohee (right) | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Indiantown (now Saint John) New Brunswick, Canada |
| Instrument | Banjo |
| Years active | 1876–1897 |
| Members |
|
The Bohee Brothers were a Canadian musical duo that consisted of James Bohee (1844–1897)[1][2] and George Bohee (1857–1930).[1] They were banjo players of Caribbean descent.[3] Their performance was popular because "they played and danced at the same time".[3] "They also wrote their own material, and their songs were widely copied".[3]
History
The brothers were born in Indiantown, New Brunswick, Canada.[2] Their family later moved to Boston, USA where James began his musical career playing banjo in the late 1860s.[2] They organized their own Bohee Minstrels around 1876 which later joined a few other minstrels. The company toured the United States of America until they moved to England in 1881.[2][1] The company eventually returned to the United States but the Bohee Brothers stayed in London and continued to tour and perform regularly in Europe until James' death.[1][4]
In addition to performing, they ran a banjo teaching studio. James gave lessons to the Prince of Wales.[2]
James Bohee is buried in an unmarked grave in the Great Circle of Brompton Cemetery.[5]
References
- ^ a b c d "Black Musicians in the John Johnson Collection: the Bohee Brothers by Hope Williard (Part 3: the Bohee Brothers)".
- ^ a b c d e info042768 (2020-08-25). "The Bohee Brothers". NBBHS. Retrieved 2022-02-25.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c "James Bohee". The Royal Parks. Archived from the original on 2022-02-25. Retrieved 2022-02-25.
- ^ "BLACK HISTORY MONTH..." National Post, 16 Oct 2018, pages 2, 3
- ^ The Royal Parks: Brompton Cemetery Famous Graves and Burials Retrieved 27/10/23.