San Antonio jazz great Jim Cullum Jr. dies

Jim Cullum plays at the 2016 Distinction in the Arts awards ceremony, which honored him. Jim Cullum plays at the 2016 Distinction in the Arts awards ceremony, which honored him. Photo: Kin Man Hui /Staff File Photo Photo: Kin Man Hui /Staff File Photo Image 1 of / 47 Caption Close San Antonio jazz great Jim Cullum Jr. dies 1 / 47 Back to Gallery

San Antonio jazz legend Jim Cullum Jr., died at his Anastacia Place home on Sunday of an apparent heart attack. He was 77.

“He loved this city,” said his longtime companion, Donna Cloud. “He was Mr. San Antonio. He was at the top of his game.”

Cullum was best known as the leader of The Jim Cullum Jazz Band, which, beginning in 1989, headlined “Riverwalk Jazz” (originally “Riverwalk: Live From the Landing”) on public radio.

It was eventually syndicated to more than 200 stations nationwide and around the world, with jazz aficionados tuning in to hear the show’s introduction that went (with variations) “Welcome to Riverwalk Jazz, on the banks of the San Antonio, across the alley from the Alamo, deep in the heart of Texas.” Although new shows were discontinued in 2012, reruns are still available online on the Stanford University web page.

On ExpressNews.com: Jim Cullum Jr. brought classic jazz from the River Walk to the world

During his long career, Cullum played alongside such greats at Pete Fountain, Louis Armstrong and Dave Brubeck. He was proudest of having performed with his father, clarinetist Jim Cullum, and the Happy Jazz Band in the early 1960s at The Landing, the first nightclub on the River Walk.

Born in Dallas on Sept. 20, 1941, Cullum was a dapper dresser, known for his neatly pressed shirts, silk bowties, suspenders and occasionally a fedora. He last performed Friday evening at the band’s regular gig at the Cookhouse restaurant.

Hector Saldaña, former Express-News staff writer and now curator of the Texas Music Collection at The Wittliff Collections at Texas State University, contributed to this report. | Richard A. Marini is a features writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | rmarini@express-news.net | Twitter: @RichardMarini