Dr. Tolton Rosser was the only person who called his daughter by her full name.

“Everyone else called me Kim. But my daddy always called me Kimberly,” said Dr. Kimberly Rosser Carr.

Whenever she asked him why, he’d give her a frank response: “Because that’s what your mother and I named you.”

The reply embodied Rosser’s disposition — direct, yet respectful. That temperament wasn’t only reserved for his family. He extended the same courtesy to his students and members of his band.

“He was firm, but they knew he wanted them to learn. As one student would say ‘He did not play’,” said Rosser Carr.

Dr. Tolton Columbus Rosser, a trumpeter, Army veteran, and celebrated educator whose achievements include a 1982 induction into the Alabama Hall of Fame and a 24-year tenure as director of the Birmingham Heritage Band, died on Oct. 31, 2023. He was 91.

Family, friends, musicians, and members of Birmingham’s jazz community gathered on Nov. 8 to bid farewell to the revered jazz master with a memorial service at Union Bethel Christian Church, where Rosser was a longtime member.

Attendees filed into the sanctuary a little before 11 a.m., some with instruments in tow. A table at the front of the church held a framed photograph of Rosser and a trumpet perched on top of a trumpet case. Nearby was Rosser’s casket, draped in the American flag.

Seated on the left corner of the church was a cast of musicians ready to pay tribute to Rosser, including sitting members of the Birmingham Heritage Band with director and trumpeter Collins “Bo” Berry, bassist Andre Burnett, and Willie Jackson Jr. (a fellow church member of Rosser’s) on the keyboard.

The service began with the processional song, “How Great is Our God.” Next, Dr. Vickie Stokes performed a solo rendition of “Amazing Grace.” Rev. Curtis Radford and Dr. John Cantelow III, the pastor of Sixth Avenue Baptist Church, delivered scripture readings and prayers. Trombonist Leander McCurdy Sr. gave short reflections.

The sun shined through the stained glass windows, bathing the musicians in yellow and orange light as they delivered an instrumental version of the gospel song “I’ll Fly Away,” led by Berry. It was a joyful performance. In the pews, attendees tapped their feet and clapped their hands, while others cheerily but discreetly recorded video on their cell phones.

When the song ended, shouts of praise rang through the church.

“Alright now!

“Yeah!”

“Amen!”

For the eulogy, Rev. Kenneth R. Robinson spoke of Rosser’s wisdom.

“He was a quiet, gentle man,” Robinson said from the pulpit. “He loved his country. He loved his music.”

Robinson recalled a time when he went to visit Rosser in the hospital.

“I went to minister to him, and he ended up ministering to me,” said Robinson. “It was in him to encourage.”

Robinson continued to sing Rosser’s praises, describing him as a steward of the community and an equally, if not more, devoted husband and father. During his time in the hospital, Robinson remembered Rosser repeatedly saying “I gotta go home. I have to take care of my wife.”

“In his mind,” said Robinson, “he was thinking about his family.”

After the benediction, the band sent the congregation forth with a final blessing: A rendition of “As the Saints Go Marching In.”

The church overflowed with jubilant music as Berry played, his trumpet lifted to the heavens in song. There were more shouts of “Amen!” as attendees stood in the pews to clap. Pallbearers collected the trumpet case, and ushers carried away buckets of white lilies as the Rosser family exited the sanctuary. Some guests who’d walked out to quickly greet the family returned to get a last glimpse of the musicians.

“They were playing so good you could hear it outside the church!” said one man as he held out his phone to record.

The service was short (barely over 30 minutes), but cheerful — a celebration of life and music.

Birmingham’s days as a haven for jazz clubs are long gone, but that morning at Union Bethel Christian Church was reminiscent of the city’s jazz heyday as musicians and lovers of the genre gathered in fellowship to pay their respects to one of Birmingham’s jazz elder statesmen.

Trumpeter and band leader Daniel “Jose” Carr — dressed to the nines in a black suit and shades — shook hands with friends. Nearby, board members from the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, including executive director Dr. Leah Tucker and vice president Orville Ifill, exchanged greetings.

There were smiles, warm embraces, and cheerful conversation.

Music historian Burgin Matthews, who co-authored jazz master Dr. Frank Adams’ 2012 autobiography, acknowledged Rosser in the front pages of the book for his valuable perspective on Birmingham’s jazz legacy.

Standing in the pews that morning, Matthews said Rosser was also instrumental in his forthcoming book “Magic City: How the Birmingham Jazz Tradition Shaped the Sound of America.”

“What broke my heart is he died two days before the books arrived on my doorstep,” said Matthews.

The procession escorting Rosser’s casket departed the church around 11:30 for his final resting place at the Alabama National Cemetery in Montevallo, where he was buried with military honors.

Dr. Tolton Columbus Rosser was born in Birmingham, Ala., on July 29, 1932. After attending Washington Elementary School and A.H. Parker High School, Rosser graduated from Alabama A&M University in 1952. After serving in the Army during the Korean War, Rosser returned to academia where he received his master’s degree in education from Alabama State University in 1959. The same year, Rosser married his wife Hazel. The couple would have two children, Kenneth and Kimberly.

Rosser completed his formal education in 1985 with a doctorate of education from the University of Alabama. He started his career in education as a band director in the Talladega City School system. He went on to have a 40-year career in the Bessemer City School system starting as a band director at Abrams High School, and later became vice principal of Jess Lanier High School. He ended his full-time career in the school system in 1997 as principal of James A. Davis Middle School. In 2010, Miles College appointed Rosser to a position as an adjunct professor, a role he served until 2013.

Rosser directed the Birmingham Heritage Jazz Band for more than 20 years, beginning in 1999. He also toured and his resume includes performances with singer Gatemouth Moore and singer/saxophonist Bull Moose Jackson, as well as stints with trumpeter Erskine Hawkins and vibraphonist, percussionist and pianist Lionel Hampton. Rosser was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame in 1992. He was an avid supporter of the nonprofit, where he gave music lessons and served on the board of directors until his death.

‘He didn’t take no stuff’

Nadine Smith remembers Rosser as a compassionate conductor who ran a tight ship. She’s been a sitting member of the Birmingham Heritage Jazz Band for nearly 12 years, but her encounters with the ensemble date back to attending shows and rehearsals with her late husband Joseph Smith, who played upright bass in the band before his death in 2009.

Years later, Dr. Frank E. Adams recommended her for a spot in the band as a fill-in vocalist. Smith thought the role would be temporary.

“But I’ve been singing with them ever since!” she said gleefully.

Smith’s voice lit up as she recalled her favorite moments with Rosser. Some were special occasions, such as singing with the Birmingham Heritage Jazz Band to honor Rosser at Alabama A&M University. And of course, there were the performances at the Carver Theatre for the Performing Arts (the home of the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame) from the annual Christmas concerts to the weekly rehearsals on the theater stage.

Through it all, Smith says Rosser was always good-natured, but very stern.

“He didn’t take no stuff,” Smith said. “He could hear anything. It could be an instrument that played out of the ordinary. I don’t want to say out of tune. Because he definitely didn’t play that.”

While Smith readily admits reading music isn’t her strong suit (”I kind of learned with my husband. And could follow along a little bit.”), she says Rosser held his instrumentalists to a far more rigid standard.

“If you couldn’t read [music], you didn’t come in. You didn’t even have an opportunity to sit in the building, to be honest,” said Smith. “You had to read very well with Dr. Rosser.

‘He directed with energy’

The evening before Rosser’s funeral, friends and fellow musicians spoke highly of the late director while gathered at True Story Brewing for the weekly jazz jam with the Daniel Jose Carr quartet.

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Three members of the quartet — Carr, Willie Jackson Jr., and Timothy Huffman III — either played in the Birmingham Heritage Band or were sitting or fill-in members of the ensemble during Rosser’s tenure as director. Bo Berry regularly sits in at the jam. Last year, when Rosser announced his retirement from his role as Birmingham Heritage Band director, he named Berry as his successor.

That night, as Carr called tunes from the stage and musicians lined up near the wall waiting to sit in, people who knew Rosser shared fond memories. And those who didn’t know him learned more about his legacy. It was an informal memorial for one of Birmingham’s jazz greats and a fitting night of remembrance at one of the city’s longest-running jazz jam sessions.

While Carr didn’t know Rosser well, he says he had a humbling experience playing with the Birmingham Heritage band during his days as a fledgling jazz musician.

“It was like I was hazed,” Carr chuckled.

Around 9 p.m., Jackson stepped away from the keys to give pianist Terry Harper a chance to sit in. He joined Andre Burnett at a table for a drink where the pair laughed as they spoke about their early encounters with Rosser. Their faces lit up as they recalled sharing the bandstand with the storied conductor.

Burnett started playing with the Birmingham Heritage Band in 1979. Four years later, he joined the Army.

“It was after Cleve went back on the road with “Count” Basie” Burnett said, referencing Cleveland Eaton, the Fairfield-born musician known as “the Count’s Bassist.”

Burnett remembers Rosser as a “good-spirited guy.” He recalled when Rosser was first trumpet in the Heritage Band. When Rosser later became the band’s leader, Burnett says he was blown away by Rosser’s ability to organize and direct.

“He surprised me. I never saw that part of Rosser. I always saw him as a member of the band. I didn’t know he could direct like that,” Burnett said. “I saw the skills that boy had. I said look at him! He directed with energy. Made you feel what he was feeling. He was a nice guy. His spirit was so humble.”

He paused, thinking about the jazz greats the city lost over the past three decades, including Frank Adams, Henry Blankenship, and Jothan Callins — all men who influenced him and his peers in their early years.

“They’re all gone,” said Burnett. “Rosser was one of the last ones. Me and Jose (Carr) were the babies.”

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“And I was younger than them!” joked Jackson.

Jackson, who grew up attending Union Bethel Baptist Church, knew Rosser as an educator and active church member but had no idea he was a musician. He says Rosser would always give him feedback when he performed in church.

“He’d be saying encouraging things like ‘You’re developing real good.’ I still didn’t know he was a musician at the time. I just kept saying ‘Thank you, I appreciate it,’” Jackson said, laughing.

Years later, Jackson finally caught on when he went to fill in as a pianist for the Birmingham Heritage Band and saw Rosser directing.

Growing up, drummer Timothy Huffman III took music classes at the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame from Dr. Frank Adams. He remembers seeing the Birmingham Heritage Band during their performances. The band’s arrangements piqued his interest and he hoped to one day play with the ensemble. In 2012, Adams invited Huffman, who was in middle school, to join the band, which was under Rosser’s direction. Huffman spent his middle and high school years as the band’s main drummer and says his tenure under Rosser shaped his career.

“He was definitely a man of structure, for sure. Definitely a great composer, a great director. He’ll tell you what he wants you to do,” said Huffman. “That experience taught me to learn to play with other people and adapt to any situation.”

‘He taught me patience.’

Bo Berry says he’ll never forget the experience he had before meeting Rosser.

Growing up, the Rosedale native excelled in music, playing drums, the piano, and the trumpet.

He spent most of his time around older musicians and developed a proficiency for conducting.

Whenever his high school band director Mr. Abrams couldn’t make it, he’d appoint Berry to lead the band for the day instead of a substitute teacher.

The high school trumpeter was so talented, he started playing with the Miles College Collegians, the university’s big band jazz ensemble. During his first week in the program, Ike “Boss Man” Williams, the founder of the institution’s band program, approached him with a test.

Berry recalls the conversation with mirth.

“I’m young, thinking I’m a hot trumpet player, and Boss said ‘Yeah, Mr. Abrams told me you’re a good trumpet player,’” Berry chuckled. “I said ‘Yeah, I’m pretty good, Boss.’”

“You think you’re as good as my trumpet player?” Boss replied, according to Berry. “I said ‘Oh no, Boss!’”

That trumpet player was Tolson Rosser. Williams left to get a book with sheets of music for the band’s first trumpet position. When came back, he opened up the book and pulled out a song.

“‘Can you play that?” Williams asked. “My trumpet player can!’”

“I looked at that music, I didn’t even recognize the notes, they were so high!” Berry said, laughing heartily. “My eyes opened I said ‘I don’t know if I can play that, Boss! He said ‘Oh, okay! And he closed the music up and went on.’”

Berry says the highest notes he’d seen back then were on clarinet parts. (“I ain’t know trumpets played that high!”). Of course, he would go on to learn the part. He and Rosser played together many times over the years, developing a friendship. Rosser would eventually go on to direct the Birmingham Heritage Band. Berry describes him as a patient and even-tempered band leader.

“I mean, I ain’t never saw him mad. Never saw him argue,” said Berry. “Never heard him raise his voice out of all the years I’ve known him.”

When Rosser made the decision to retire from his role in the Birmingham Heritage Band, he already had Berry in mind. The other band members were in agreement and the rest was history.

“I’ve always had the highest respect for him because he’s always been this mild-mannered guy,” said Berry, who also runs his own quartet, as well as a Sunday afternoon jazz jam session at Williams Chapel C.M.E Church in Oak Ridge Park. “What I learned from him was just patience.”

Dr. Kimberly Rosser Carr is proud her father’s peers remember his encouraging spirit. Rosser was a decorated and accomplished man. She says while he wasn’t one to toot his own horn, he did want to inspire every life he touched, from his family and friends to his bandmates.

“Just anyone that he would meet and have an interaction with, he wanted them to do well and excel,” said Rosser Carr. “And that was an example for people to follow. For people to excel at whatever they were doing.”

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