Fred D. Pryor

Fred Douglas Pryor was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by the union of the late Fred Pryor Sr. and Martha (Bannister) Pryor. To that union, four children were born, Jean, Fred, Jimmy and Ronnie. Fred was educated in the Pittsburgh Public school system. He met and married Shirley Smith. Out of this union they had one daughter Sylvia and two sons Fred Jr. and Mark. Fred started playing the drums at a very young age. He played with some Pittsburgh greats such as George Benson, Walt Harper and Harold Betters just to name a few. He loved jazz and formed his band the Fred Pryor Trio. He played at many places such as the Crawford Grill, Savoy, Balcony, The Pyramid, Crazy quilt, Encore and many more.

He was a member of Pittsburgh Musician’s Union and the African American Jazz Preservation Society of Pittsburgh. Fred worked at Genesee Beer for 30 years in sales and became a district manager. His territory was Pittsburgh, Rochester, NY and Cleveland, Ohio. He was an avid Steelers fan. He was not going anywhere on a Sunday when the Steelers were on until the game was over. Fred leaves to cherish his memory wife Shirley, daughter Sylvia, son Fred, and Mark which departed this life Christmas Day 2020. Grandchildren Fred, Ebonie, Mark, Laurence, Ariana, Haley, Marcus, and Michael. One brother Jimmy (Donna), sister-in-law Ridgley Logan and son-in-law Duane Ewing, and a host of nieces, nephews, and friends.

He is predeceased by brother Ronnie, sister Jean Curry and sister-in-law Dolores Nisby.

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