The Fat Babies are an eight piece jazz band interpreting classic styles of the 1920s and 30s. Founded in 2010 by string bass player Beau Sample, its members include Andy Schumm (cornet), John Otto (reeds), Jonathan Doyle (reeds), Dave Bock (trombone), John Donatowicz (banjo and guitar), Paul Asaro (piano), and Alex Hall (drums).

“Ensembles that play early-period jazz are in perpetually short supply, and those that handle repertoire of Jelly Roll Morton, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong and other pioneers at a high technical and artistic level are rarer still. That makes Chicago’s Fat Babies a band to be treasured, these musicians dispatching pre-bebop music with the passion and respect it deserves but rarely receives.” – Howard Reich, The Chicago Tribune