A Master Musician from Lutcher, Louisiana
Early Years: The Holmes Band of Lutcher
Porter’s earliest known photograph shows him in the Holmes Band of Lutcher, circa 1910, standing in the back row with his baritone horn beside fellow musicians Floyd Jackson, Henry Sawyer, and Anthony Holmes
This ensemble was part of the fertile river-parish scene that shaped early jazz, blending brass-band marches with ragtime and the Creole waltzes of the time.
John Porter, the Bass that Built the New Orleans Sound
John Porter was one of the early pillars of New Orleans jazz, a bassist, baritone horn player and band member whose rhythm gave the Crescent City its swing. Born in Lutcher, Louisiana, he began performing in the brass bands that carried music up and down the Mississippi River. His work with Papa Celestin's Original Tuxedo Orchestra placed him among pioneers who turned the Creole parade tradition into a global sound.
The Original Tuxedo Orchestra
By the early 1930s, Porter had switched to string bass, joining Oscar “Papa” Celestin’s Original Tuxedo Orchestra, a cornerstone of New Orleans jazz history.
Archival images from 1931 document him performing alongside Louis Barbarin, Jeanette Kimball, Oliver Alcorn, and Papa Celestin himself
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Their repertoire fused Creole dance tunes with blues progressions, helping define the rhythmic structure that would influence swing and R&B for decades.
The Paddock Lounge and Revival Era
In the 1950s, John Porter performed at the Paddock Lounge on Bourbon Street, a venue central to the post-war jazz revival.
Photographs preserved in the Louisiana Digital Library show him playing bass onstage with fellow jazzmen, continuing to carry the authentic New Orleans sound to new audiences
His steady presence kept the tradition alive through changing eras, from early street parades to modern nightclub stages.
A Family Lineage of Sound
John Porter’s musical bloodline extends through generations of the Diamond family.
His cousin, William “Billy” Diamond (1916–2011), also a bassist and later road manager for Fats Domino, continued the rhythm where John left off.
Together they represent a bridge between the birth of jazz and the rise of New Orleans R&B, a continuum now celebrated through Treme Diamond’s cultural programming and digital archive.
Legacy
John Porter’s story reminds us that rhythm is both heritage and heartbeat.
Through archival preservation, museum partnerships, and family storytelling, Treme Diamond honors his place in music history as the steady bassline that carried the joy, sorrow, and triumph of New Orleans to the world.
Archival Images & Sources
Holmes Band of Lutcher, Louisiana (1910)
John Porter with Papa Celestin’s Original Tuxedo Orchestra (1931)
John Porter Playing Bass at the Paddock Lounge (1950)
Archival references courtesy of the Louisiana Digital Library and Tulane University Hogan Jazz Archive.
