The Latin Tinge

How did Kansas City - not a place noted for much else in cultural, or any other, circles - get to play such a crucial role in the history of jazz?

Kansas City in the 1930s was very much the crossroads of the United States resulting in a mix of cultures. Transcontinental trips at the time whether by plane or train often required a stop in the city. The era marked the zenith of power of political boss Tom Pendergast. Kansas City was a wide open town with liquor laws and hours totally ignored and was called the new Storyville. Most of the jazz musicians associated with the style were born in other places but got caught up in the friendly musical competitions among performers that could keep a single song being performed in various variations for an entire night.

Often members of the big bands would perform at regular venues earlier in the evening and go to the jazz clubs later to jam for the rest of the night.

Claude Williams described the scene:

Kansas City was different from all other places because we'd be jamming all night. And [if] you come up here ... playing the wrong thing, we'd straighten you out.

Clubs were scattered throughout city but the most fertile area was the inner city neighborhood of 18th Street and Vine. Among 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 Hi Hat, the Hey-Hay, Lone Star, Old Kentucky Bar-B-Que, Paseo Ballroom, Pla-Mor Ballroom, Reno Club, Spinning Wheel, Street's Blue Room, Subway and Sunsetx.

And here we are in the very early days, with Benny Moten and his Kansas City Orchestra...from 1929, Rumba Negro:

Count Basie joined the band in 1929, and shares writing credit for the song (here, for instance), so I think we can assume that we're listening to Basie's piano here. After Moten's untimely death in 1935, many of the band went on to form the nucleus of the new Count Basie band.

It's that Latin flavour that I love here. See John Storm Roberts' book The Latin Tinge on the pervasive influence of Latin rhythms on US music, and Ned Sublette's Cuba and its Music for a look back to the turn of the last century when the two great centres of the music that was about to dominate the next 100 years, New Orleans and Havana, echoed each other across the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Comments

[Richard]

In Kansas City, Fats Domino sings about waiting on the corner of 18th and Vine. Great song.

[Richard]

Just looked up 12th street and Vine on google maps. Ain't nobody there.

[Sheddie]

It seems the band's manager at one time was Winston Holmes. One of Winstons many talents was as a bird impressionist. He did this on blues records with the slide quitarist Charlie Turner. One tune was the almost well known "Kansas City Dog Walk" as well as the superb hokum of "Ramblers Lament".