In this illuminating work, Kathy Ogren places jazz - a controversial form at its inception - in the social and cultural context of 1920s America and sheds new light on its impact on the nation. She traces its dissemination from the honky-tonks of New Orleans, New York, and Chicago, to the clubs and cabarets of such places as Kansas City and Los Angeles, and further to the airwaves. Ogren argues that certain characteristics of jazz, notably the participatory nature of the music, its unusual rhythms and emphasis, gave it a special resonance for a society undergoing rapid change. Those who resisted the changes criticised the new music; those who accepted them - for example, the Harlem Renaissance participants - celebrated its possibilities. Ogren also describes the many other factors that contributed to the growth of jazz as a popular music during the 1920s, such as the migration of African-Americans north to urban areas; prohibition, which sent people out in droves to gang-controlled speakeasies, many of which provided jazz entertainment; and the 1920s economic boom, which made music readily available through radio and the phonograph record.

This book is a thought-provoking historical and sociological look at America's debate about jazz in the 1920s. It won a 1990 ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award in 1990.

CONTENTS:
Introduction: The Significance of the Jazz Controversy for Twenties America
1. "Coming Down the Same Drain": Performance Practice of Bluesmen, Minstrels & Jazzmen
2. "All the Lights Were Tinted Green or Red": Location and Setting for Jazz Performance
3. Dance-Tested Records and Syncopep for the Millions
4. From Devil's Music to Jooking: Jazz Performance and the Black Community
5. Prudes and Primitives: White Americans Debate Jazz
Conclusion: Performance Crossroads

KATHY OGREN is Associate Professor in the History Department at the Johnston Center for individualized Learning at the University of Redlands.

back to previous page

back to previous page