The original sextet was established during the student festival UKA in Trondheim and was led by Johan David Behrends.
Later Asbjørn Krokstad (trombone) and drummer Bonsak Schieldrop (1959–64) developed the band to a 17-man crew after model of Count Basie.
Around 1971, Per Husby (piano and arranger) took charge of Bodega Band, and was central to a change of course with a greater element of his own music, assisted by performers and writers like Lars Martin Thomassen (flugelhorn), Eirik Lie/Tor Halmrast (guitar), Torgeir Døssland (alto saxophone and clarinet) and Jan Tro (bass).
In this period the Bodega band also toured to Reykjavík (1978), performed at Moldejazz (1977) and at the "Festspillene i Nord-Norge" (1973).
The band has since the establishment of the Jazz program at Trondheim Musikkonservatorium gained a wider array of performers.