1. Luigi Waites performed weekly gigs in the Omaha area both solo and with ensembles such as Luigi, Inc Luigi Waites served the Omaha music community for over 60 years.
10 Facts About Luigi Waites
1. 2.
Luigi Waites toured Europe twice and performed with jazz legends such as Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and Dinah Washington.
3.
Luigi Waites was born Lewis Waites on July 10,1927, in Omaha, Nebraska, to Ione Kelley and Sylvester Waites.
4.
Luigi Waites began playing drums at age twelve, and soon after began playing local nightclubs around Omaha.
5.
Luigi Waites might perform as a professional musician until the wee hours and then jump into a taxicab standing by in front of his mother's house to rush him to class at Central High School the next morning.
6.
Luigi Waites married Eva Jean Little in 1950 and begot six children.
7.
In 1960, Luigi Waites founded The Contemporaries, a multicultural, independent drum corps that featured jazz rhythms, lyres and modern dance steps.
8.
Luigi Waites Inc is a 5 piece jazz combo located in Omaha, Nebraska.
9.
Luigi Waites appeared with the group over 1,700 consecutive Sunday nights in Omaha at the bar, Mr Toad, beginning in 1978.
10.
Luigi Waites died at 4 am on April 6,2010, at Immanuel Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska of natural causes.