African Americans At The Capital Making Jazz History
The Ronnie Waters Quartet

The Selections

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The Program

The Ronnie Waters Quartet

Ronnie Waters, flugel horn

The following program notes were written by historian Eric Ledell Smith, Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

The Jazz Scene in the 1930s
The 1930s is considered the decade of what is called “swing music.” Swing differed from the jazz of the 1920s because it relied on more written musical arrangements, less emphasis on ragtime influence, a swing feeling achieved by increased use of swing eighth-note patterns. Most of all swing had big bands rather than small bands. Fletcher Henderson, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman and Jimmie Lunceford led the most important big bands of the 1930s. Because radio was common in American homes, swing-style jazz quickly found a ready audience. Swing was popular with young people because it was easy to dance to. Big bands emerged in cities across the state such as Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg.

Harrisburg produced many outstanding jazz musicians that played the hotels and saloons in the 12 block Uptown section between 6th and 7th Streets and Capitol and Hamilton Streets. Among the prominent jazz places was the Fidge Hotel, owned by George Alexander. Fidge’s was located at 7th and Herr Street, near the railroad tracks. George Alexander’s daughter, Marjorie Alexander, was one of the nation’s first woman orchestra leaders. Her group was known as “Marj and the Majors.” Marj “tickled the ivories” at her father’s joint. The Alexander family tradition was passed on to her son Jimmie Woods.

1. Introduction to When My Mother Calls Me 1:02 (Words spoken by Jimmy Wood)

2. When My Mother Calls Me 6:12 (Jimmy Wood)

3. About pianist-band leader Marjorie Alexander 1:11 (Words spoken by Jimmy Wood)

4. The Harrisburg scene during the 1930s 0:56 (Words spoken by Ronnie Waters)

5. Now is the Time 3:04 (Charlie Parker)

6. Over the Rainbow 6:06 (Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harborg)

7. Sweet & Lovely 4:15 (Gus Arnheim, Harry Tobias, and Jules Lemare)

The Jazz Scene in the 1940s
Big bands continued during the 1940s but at the same time a new kind of jazz came into being. It was called “Bop.” Bop differed from swing by using smaller bands, richer chords, more chord changes, faster playing with more surprises and drier, more biting tone qualities. The originators of bop were pianist Theolonious Monk, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and alto saxophonist Charlie Parker. Charlie Parker wrote numerous songs based on pop tunes and twelve-bar progressions that became part of standard jazz repertoire.

Bop was not too popular with dancers, who preferred the big-band sounds of Count Basie and Duke Ellington. A composer of more than two thousand songs, Duke Ellington is regarded as one of the most important people in the history of jazz. Bop and swing musicians traveled frequently around the country especially on the New York, Baltimore and Washington D.C. circuit. The last stop Harrisburg was known for its jazz scene.

One of the places to go for jazz in Harrisburg during the 1940s was the Madrid Palestra Ballroom. It was on the second floor of the Chestnut Street Market House. Legend has it that Duke Ellington played there on opening night in 1926. Charlie Parker played there later on. Swing musicians like the Dorsey brothers and Earl Fatha Hines played the Madrid. The jazz was hot, and the price of admission was cool—just 75 cents. Before it was torn down in 1955, the Madrid hosted local jazzmen such as Sammy Banks, Ditty Potter, Richard Morrison and John E. Brown. Brown directed the Elks Band on 6th Street and in 1949 he started his own big band.

8. The Harrisburg scene during the 1940s 1:26 (Words spoken by Ronnie Waters)

9. Almost Like Being in Love 3:30 (Lerner and Loewe)

10. Come Rain or Come Shine 3:06 (Johnny Mercer and Harold Arlen)

11. Take the A Train 3:26 (Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn)

The Jazz Scene in the 1950s and 1960s
After World War II, jazz continued to evolve, often sprouting different styles simultaneously. Those styles were “Cool Jazz”, “Hard Bop” and “Afro-Cuban/Afro-Brazilian Jazz”. Cool jazz is a term applied to the more relaxed, understated, and melodic music influenced by innovators such as Claude Thornhill, Lester Young, Lennie Tristano, and Count Basie. For instance, Stan Getz and Miles Davis are often called “cool.” Lester Young inspired both men. The subtle, chamber music-like qualities of the Modern Jazz Quartet have also been described as “cool” by jazz historians. A second style of jazz called “Hard Bop” also appeared in the 1950s. Whereas cool jazz tended to have light tones, soft melodic conceptions and general relaxed drive, hard bop tended to have hard driving rhythms with dark tones and complex melodies. Clifford Brown, Philly Joe Jones, McCoy Tyner and John Coltrane are just a few of the “hard bop” tradition musicians who hailed from Philadelphia.

Although the American public was exposed to Latin American music through Hollywood films and dances like the mambo and the rumba in the 1940s, it was not until the 1950s that Latin music was felt in jazz. Charlie Parker, Stan Getz, Stan Kenton and above all, Dizzy Gillespie incorporated Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian music into their jazz arrangements and compositions. Big band dances like the jitterbug gave way to 1950s dances such as the Rumba, the Mambo, and of course, the Chachacha.

Names didn’t become popular until Rock ‘n’ Roll. In those days bands presented themselves a lot of times. Your girlfriend, wife or cousin was at the door collecting money while the musicians played. In fact, it was said that on Thursdays people shopped during the day and partied at night in the clubs. It was not uncommon to see parcels from the day’s excursion at the tables.

In the Fifties, may of the East Coast jazz pros stopped off at Lawson’s when passing through Harrisburg. James W. “Jumbo” Lawson ran Lawson’s Palace. It started out as a saloon at 1306 North Seventh Street. After expanding to seat 300 people he changed the name to Lawson’s Palace. When urban renewal hit Harrisburg in 1959, he had to relocate up the street and his place was called “Lawson’s Hotel.” Jumbo Lawson often put up his groups for the night or the week they were playing, either in upstairs rooms or in other places he owned. The Palace hosted visitors such as Pearl Bailey, Joe Louis, and Joe Frazier. Almost all the top names in black show business appeared at Lawson’s. For example he brought in singer Sarah Vaughan and Gloria Lynne, musicians Kenny Burrel, Stanley Turrentine, George Benson and Yusef Lateef, just to name a few. Of all the bands in Harrisburg during this period, one of the most popular was the Bill Jones Orchestra. Beside Lawson’s, jazz joints in 1950s Harrisburg included the Clock Bar, 210 Club, Fidge’s, Pete’s Café, The High Hat Club, The Center Lounge on Sixth Street, and Thomas Jones’ Carousel at Sixth and Harris Streets. It is said that no other place in Harrisburg had the racial mix that Lawson’s provided and few could boast a track record of impromptu and improvised creativity lasting more than two decades.

12. Perfidia 1:53 (A. Domínquez)

13. Manteca 2:52 (Dizzy Gillespie and Walter Fuller)

14. Just in Time 4:38 (Jule Styne, Betty Comden and Adolph Green)

15. But Beautiful 3:06 (Johnny Burke & James Van Heusen)

16. Camelot 3:51 (Ronnie Waters)

© 2001 On Tour Productions