Kansas City Music History - Kansas City Jazz

Kansas City Music History - Kansas City Jazz

Kansas City jazz is a style of jazz that established in Kansas City, Missouri throughout the 1920s and 1930s, which marked the shift from the structured big band style to the musical improvisation design of Bebop. The hard-swinging, bluesy shift style is bracketed by Count Basie who in 1929 signed with the Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra and Kansas City native Charlie Parker who ushered in the Bebop style in America. Kansas City was known for the arranged artists of the Local 627 A.F.M., which controlled a number of places in the city.

 

The very first band from Kansas City to obtain a nationwide reputation was the Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra, a white group which broadcast nationally in the 1920s. The Kansas City jazz school is determined with the black bands of the 1920s and 1930s, including bands led by Bennie Moten, Andy Kirk, Harlan Leonard, George E. Lee, William "Count" Basie, and Jay McShann.

Kansas City in the 1930s was very much the crossroads of the United States leading to a mix of cultures. Transcontinental trips at the time whether by aircraft or train typically needed a drop in the city. The age marked the zenith of power of political boss Tom Pendergast. Kansas City was a large open town with alcohol laws and hours totally neglected and was called the brand-new Storyville. The majority of the jazz artists related to the style were born in other locations however got captured up in the friendly musical competitors among entertainers that might keep a single tune being carried out in variations for a whole night. Typically members of the big bands would perform at routine places previously at night and go to the jazz clubs later to jam for the remainder of the night.

Jay McShann informed the Associated Press in 2003:

" You 'd hear some cat play, and someone would state 'This feline, he sounds like he is from Kansas City.' It was Kansas City Style. They understood it on the East Coast. They knew it on the West Coast. They understood it up North and they understood it down South."

Claude "Fiddler" Williams described the scene:

Kansas City was various from all other locations because we 'd be jamming all night.
Clubs were scattered throughout city but the most fertile area was the inner city neighborhood of 18th Street and Vine.

Amongst the clubs were the Amos 'n' Andy, Boulevard Lounge, Cherry Blossom, Chesterfield Club, Chocolate Bar, Dante's Inferno, Elk's Rest, Hawaiian Gardens, Hell's Kitchen, the Hello Hat, the Hey Hay Club, Lone Star, Old Kentucky Bar-B-Que, Paseo Ballroom, Pla-Mor Ballroom, Reno Club, Spinning Wheel, Street's Blue Room, Subway, and Sunsetx.

Design:

Kansas City jazz is identified by the following musical components:

A preference for a 4 feel (walking) over the 2 beat feel discovered in other jazz designs of the time. As a result, Kansas city jazz had a more relaxed, fluid noise than other jazz designs.
Prolonged soloing. Fueled by the non-stop nightlife under political manager Tom Pendergast, Kansas City jam sessions went on well past sunrise, fostering an extremely competitive atmosphere and an unique jazz culture in which the objective was to "say something" with one's instrument, rather than merely display one's method. It was not uncommon for one "song" to be performed for a number of hours, with the very best artists typically soloing for lots of choruses at a time.

So-called "head arrangements". The KC big bands often played by memory, composing and setting up the music jointly, instead of sight-reading as other huge bands of the time did. This more contributed to the loose, spontaneous Kansas City sound.

A heavy blues influence, with KC songs typically based around a 12-bar blues structure, rather than the 32 bar AABA requirement, although Moten Swing is in this AABA format.
One of the most identifiable attributes of Kansas City jazz is frequent, fancy riffing by the different areas. Riffs were frequently produced - or even improvised - collectively, and took lots of types: a) one section riffing alone, serving as the primary focus of the music; b) one area riffing behind a musician, adding excitement to the tune; or c) 2 or more areas riffing in counterpoint, creating an exciting hard-swinging sound. The Count Basie signature tunes "One O'Clock Jump" and "Jumpin' at the Woodside", for instance, are just collections of complicated riffs, memorized in a head plan, and stressed with solos. Glenn Miller's well-known swing anthem "In the Mood" carefully follows the Kansas City pattern of riffing areas, and is a fine example of the Kansas City design after it had actually been exported to the rest of the world.

Kansas City jazz is a design of jazz that developed in Kansas City, Missouri throughout the 1920s and 1930s, which marked the shift from the structured big band style to the musical improvisation design of Bebop. The hard-swinging, bluesy transition style is bracketed by Count Basie who in 1929 signed with the Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra and Kansas City native Charlie Parker who ushered in the Bebop design in America. Other cities consist of New Orleans, Chicago, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New York City. Kansas City was known for the organized musicians of the Local 627 A.F.M., which managed a number of venues in the city.

Glenn Miller's popular swing anthem "In the Mood" closely follows the Kansas City pattern of riffing areas, and is an excellent example of the Kansas City style after it had been exported to the rest of the world.