This is a timeline documenting events of Jazz in the year 1908.

• Trumpeter Freddie Keppard and his Creoles played more powerful Jazz in New Orleans than the Original Dixieland Jazz Band did in 1917. Keppard did not record any records until many years later. He was afraid of having his style stolen.^[1]

January

• 1 – Bill Tapia, Portuguese-American singer and ukulele player (died 2011).^[2]
• 7 – Red Allen, American trumpeter and vocalist (died 1967).
• 14 – Russ Columbo, American baritone, songwriter, violinist, and actor (died 1934).^[3]
• 22 – Teddy McRae, American tenor saxophonist and arranger (died 1999).
• 26 – Stéphane Grappelli, French violinist, Quintette du Hot Club de France (died 1997).^[4]
• 27 – Hot Lips Page, American trumpeter, singer, and bandleader (died 1954).

February

• 20 – Seymour Österwall, Swedish tenor saxophonist, bandleader, and composer (died 1981).

March

• 6 – Bill Beason, American drummer (died 1988).
• 7 – Nat Gonella, trumpeter, bandleader and vocalistAmerican (died 1998).
• 15 – Spencer Clark, American bass saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist (died 1998).
• 31 – Red Norvo, American vibraphonist (died 1999).

April

• 2 – Håkan von Eichwald, Finnish-Swedish bandleader and conductor (died 1964).
• 16 – Ray Ventura, French bandleader and pianist (died 1979).
• 20 – Lionel Hampton, American vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader, and actor (died 2002).^[5]
• 21 – Alfred Lion, German-American record executive, Blue Note Records (died 1987).
• 22 – Kid Howard, American trumpeter (died 1966).

June

• 25 – Jean Robert, Belgian saxophonist (died 1981).

July

• 13 – Ernst van 't Hoff, Dutch pianist and bandleader (died 1955).
• 17 – Fud Candrix, Belgian saxophonist and violinist (died 1974).

August

• 1 – Elmer Crumbley, American trombonist (died 1993).
• 5 – Don Albert, American trumpeter and bandleader (died 1980).
• 11 – Russell Procope, American clarinettist and alto saxophonist (died 1981).
• 18 – Zinky Cohn, American pianist (died 1952).^[6]
• 30 – Willie Bryant, American bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey (died 1964).

September

• 7 – Max Kaminsky, American trumpeter and bandleader (died 1994).^[7]
• 10 – Raymond Scott, American composer, band leader, pianist, and electronic instrument inventor (died 1994).
• 13 – Chu Berry, American tenor saxophonist (died 1941).
• 14 – Charlie Beal, American pianist (died 1991).
• 15
  • Kid Sheik, American trumpeter (died 1996).
  • Fred Adison, French vocalist, drummer, and bandleader (died 1996).

October

• 6 – Sammy Price, American pianist and bandleader (died 1992).^[8]
• 9 – Lee Wiley, American singer (died 1975).
• 15 – Herman Chittison, American pianist (died 1967).
• 19 – Spike Hughes, British upright bassist, composer, and music journalist (died 1987).

November

• 2 – Bunny Berigan, American trumpeter and bandleader (died 1942).^[9]
• 14 – Clancy Hayes, American vocalist, banjoist and guitarist (died 1972).
• 19 – Keg Johnson, American trombonist (died 1967).
• 25 – Harlan Lattimore, African-American singer (died 1980).

December

• 31 – John Kirby, American upright bassist, trombonist, and tubist (died 1952).^[10]

Unknown date

• Billy Banks, American singer (died 1967).

• History Of Jazz Timeline: 1908 at All About Jazz

v t e Jazz
General topics	Outline of jazz Jazz (word) Jazz band Big band Improvisation Jazz Jam session Scat singing Swing performance Jazz bass Jazz drumming Jazz guitar French horn in jazz Jazz piano Jazz trombone Jazz violin Vocal jazz Women in jazz
Genres	Avant-garde jazz Bebop Hard bop Neo-bop Post-bop Cape jazz Chamber jazz Cool jazz Dixieland Flamenco jazz Folk jazz Free jazz Free funk Free improvisation Punk jazz Gypsy jazz Jazz-funk Jazz fusion Jazz rap Latin jazz Afro-Cuban jazz M-Base Mainstream jazz Marabi Modal jazz Nu jazz Orchestral jazz Organ trio Progressive jazz Ska jazz Smooth jazz Soul jazz Spiritual jazz Sacred jazz Stride Swing Swing revival Third stream Trad jazz
Musicians	Bassists Clarinetists Drummers Guitarists Organists Percussionists Pianists Saxophonists Trombonists Trumpeters Vibraphonists Violinists Vocalists
Musicians by genre	Bebop Chamber jazz Cool jazz and West Coast jazz Hard bop Jazz fusion Scat Smooth jazz Soul jazz Swing
Standards	Pre-1920 1920s 1930s 1940s post-1950
Discographies	Bethlehem Blue Note BYG Cobblestone Contemporary CTI ECM ESP-Disk Flying Dutchman Freedom Groove Merchant Impulse! India Navigation JMT Landmark Mainstream Milestone MPS Records MPS Muse Prestige Riverside Strata-East Verve Winter & Winter
Festivals	Beaches (Toronto) Cape Town Chicago Copenhagen Jakarta Monterey Montreal Montreux New Orleans Newport North Sea Pori Saint Lucia
Culture	Contrafacts Institutions and organizations Jazz funeral Jazz poetry Jazz royalty Jazz theory See Template: Jazz theory Rare groove Second line Venues
Regional scenes	African Ethiopia Malawian South African Cape jazz Marabi Zimbabwean Asian Armenian Azerbaijani Jazz mugham Indian Indo jazz Sitar Iranian Japanese European Balkan Bulgarian Belgian British British dance band Continental European Czech and Slovak Danish Dutch European free jazz French German Italian Polish Yass Spanish Flamenco jazz Swedish North American Canadian Haitian Latin American Cuban American Baltimore jazz Chicago Kansas City New Orleans New York City Washington, D.C. West Coast Oceanian Australian South American Brazilian Latin American Worldwide Ethno jazz
History	Bibliography of jazz Blues British dance band Ragtime Jazz Age Continental jazz Straight-ahead jazz Pre-1920 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020 2021 2022
Related	Acid jazz Afrobeat Contradanza Blues Jump blues New Orleans blues Brass band Exotica Plugg Quiet storm Ragtime Novelty ragtime Sophisti-pop West African music Western swing
Media	Album covers of Blue Note Records Bird Jazz (miniseries) The Jazz Singer Round Midnight Straight, No Chaser
Jazz portal