Jane Jarvis

Jane Jarvis
born Luella Jane Nossette

• School Loyola University Chicago, DePauw University

• Born October 31, 1915 in Vincennes, IN USA
• Died January 25, 2010 in New York, NY USA

Biographical Information

Jane Jarvis was the ballpark organist for the Milwaukee Braves (1954-1963) and for the New York Mets (1964-1979).

Jane was a child prodigy, being admitted to take piano classes at Vincennes University at the age of 5 and getting her first professional job, as the house pianist for a radio station in Gary, IN when she was 11 or 12, accompanying seasoned performers who sang for the station. She lost both of her parents when she was 14 but she still managed to pursue her musical studies in Chicago, IL and at Loyola University Chicago and DePauw University. She wanted to become a classical concert pianist, but was discouraged from that pursuit, tried her hand at playing in clubs, but did not like the boozy atmosphere, and eventually she married Dr. Kenneth Jarvis, a chiropractor, and moved with him to Milwaukee, WI. There she again found a job with a radio station, WTMJ, and was given her own show, called Jivin' With Jarvis.

The Milwaukee Braves had installed a Hammond electric organ at County Stadium when they relocated from Boston in 1953, but they had trouble finding a good organist. The first man they hired was removed for his tendency to play Three Blind Mice whenever he disagreed with an umpire's call and other partisan comment on the action. The Braves auditioned a number of local musicians for the job and Jane was chosen even though she knew nothing about baseball. Her mandate was to remain professional (unlike her predecessor), to "never, ever" interfere with the game, and to play Take Me Out to the Ballgame during the seventh-inning stretch. She knew thousands of tunes, however, and quickly developed some favorites, including signature tunes for various Braves players when they hit home runs. She decided to learn the game and became friends with a number of the team's players.

In 1963, having divorced, she decided to move to New York, NY, because it was the center of the musical world. She had some difficulty finding work at first, but managed to land a job with the Muzak Corporation, known for their trademark brand of soft music sold to be used as background accompaniment in supermarkets, elevators and other similar spaces. She eventually rose to the job of vice-president in charge of production. The Braves tried to convince her to move to Atlanta, GA, where they knew they were headed in short order, but she declined, and team President John McHale instead recommended her to the Mets, who needed an organist when they inaugurated Shea Stadium in 1964. In addition to playing the organ, she wrote the team's anthem, Let's Go Mets. As she had done in Milwaukee, she developed signature tunes for various players, and also introduced some more adventurous jazz into the ballpark, including tunes by Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. She left Muzak in 1978 because of disagreements over company policy - very much the jazz fan, she was all about giving work to jazz greats such as Lionel Hampton, whereas higher management wanted an ever-more generic product. She wanted to break into the local music scene as a jazz pianist and considered that her job as the Mets' organist would be a detriment, so she quit in 1979 and was never replaced: the Mets have used recorded music ever since. In any case, the team's new owner, Nelson Doubleday, wanted to go in a different direction, so she would have been let go before the 1980 season if she hadn't left of her own volition.

In any case, he career in jazz did pretty well, as she had a regular slot at a Big Apple night spot in Greenwich Village and was asked to play at President Ronald Reagan's second inauguration ball in 1985 as part of old friend Lionel Hampton's orchestra. She also did movie work, including the soundtrack of Woody Allen's Radio Days, actually appearing on-screen. She released a number of records and upon moving to Florida organized a touring band of older jazz musicians, the "Statesmen of Jazz". She later moved back to New York City and died there at 94, a couple of years after the demolition of Shea Stadium. Her passing was noted in both jazz and baseball circles.

Further Reading

• Rory Costello: "Jane Jarvis", in Gregory H. Wolf, ed.: Thar's Joy in Braveland: The 1957 Milwaukee Braves, SABR, Phoenix, AZ, 2014, pp. 258-264. ISBN 978-1933599717

Related Sites

• Jane Jarvis at the SABR Bio Project