Joe Jordan (musician)
Joe Jordan | |
---|---|
Birth name | Joseph Taylor Jordan |
Born | February 11, 1882 Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
Died | September 11, 1971 (aged 89) Tacoma, Washington, U.S. |
Genres | Jazz, ragtime |
Instrument(s) | Piano |
Joseph Taylor Jordan (February 11, 1882 – September 11, 1971) was an American pianist, composer, real estate investor, and music publisher.[1] He wrote over 2000 songs and arranged for notable people such as Florenz Ziegfeld, Orson Welles, Louis Armstrong, Eddie Duchin, Benny Goodman, and others.[2]
Early life and education
Jordan was born on February 11, 1882, in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Career
In 1900, Jordan performed as fiddler and percussionist with the Taborian Band of St. Louis. He also appeared with Tom Turpin, Sam Patterson, and Louis Chauvin in a singing four piano act. In 1902, he went to New York City to collaborate with Ernest Hogan, known in show business as "The Unbleached American".
At the beginning of the 20th century, much of the entertainment industry was founded upon the exploitation of ethnic stereotypes. Hogan's big hit was called "
When the show disbanded in Des Moines, Iowa, Jordan left for Chicago. He began performing at the Pekin, a former casino/saloon at 27th and State that had been converted into a beer garden by Robert T. Motts. This location became the "Pekin Theater Stock Company" featuring many African American performers.
The "Pekin Theater Stock Company"
Jordan commemorated this hot spot with the "Pekin Rag", published in 1904.
James Weldon Johnson said that this "playing-singing-dancing orchestra" was "the first modern jazz band ever heard on a New York stage". Instrumentally, the ensemble contained saxophones, brass, banjos, guitars, mandolins, piano and drums. Later in 1905, they played Paris, London, and other major European cities. Jordan composed "Rise and Shine", "Oh, Liza Lady", "Goin' To Exit", and "Dixie Land" for this group. He also wrote the "J.J.J. Rag".
Back in Chicago, Motts' establishment was developing into an all-purpose entertainment center, known locally as the Pekin Temple of Music. In 1906 Motts expanded his operation by erecting the Pekin Theatre right on top of the existing "Temple". With the opening of the enlarged Pekin (one of America's first African-American-owned theatres) on March 31, 1906, the South Side of Chicago began to transform itself into a launching pad for the jazz explosion of 1915-1925. Jordan conducted the 16-piece house orchestra and served as composer and musical director, all for a weekly salary of $25.
In New York, Jordan wrote a couple of songs for
The Red Moon with Cole and Johnson
Also in 1909, Jordan collaborated with
European Tours and Keep Shufflin'
Jordan went to Germany in 1910 with King and Bailey's Chocolate Drops. On his way back he performed his way through England. Landing at the Pekin in Chicago once again, he resumed his duties there for about three years. His songs dating from this period include "Dat's Ma Honey Sho's Yo' Born", "Oh Say Wouldn't It Be a Dream" and "Brother-In-Law Dan". He did very well in Chicago's real estate market. In 1917, he built the J. Jordan Building Bronzeville neighborhood at 3529–49 South State Street, at the corner of 36th Street – described as the city's first major commercial building by a black developer.[9] In 1918-19, he was assistant director and financial advisor for Will Marion Cook's New York Syncopated Orchestra.
In 1928, Jordan conducted a band made up of
He composed songs in collaboration with W. C. Handy, led military bands during World War II and ran a successful real estate business in Tacoma, Washington, where he died on September 11, 1971.
Nappy Lee
Nappy Lee was a nickname for a low brass player that sported unkempt albeit likable hair who once performed with
Death
Jordan died in Tacoma, Washington, on September 11, 1971.[11][12][2]
See also
- African American music
- African American musical theater
References
Copyrights
- Catalog of Copyright Entries, Part 3 – Musical Compositions, New Series (beginning 1905, ending 1945) & Third Series (beginning 1946), Library of Congress, Copyright Office
Attribution
- ^ Vol. 40, Second Quarter 1904, Whole No. 666 (1904), p. 145, "Nappy Lee," a slow drag© 28 March 1904; C67561; 2 c. 22 January 1904
— for orchestra; C67560; 28 March 1904; 2 c. 22 January 1904
References
- ISBN 978-0-19-535778-3.
- ^ ISSN 0090-7790.
- Juli Jones, Jr. (pseudonym of William D. Foster; 1884–1940), Indianapolis Freeman, December 23, 1911, p. 6 (accessible via GenealogyBank.com; subscription required)
- OCLC 76908074
- ^ ASCAP Biographical Dictionary (re: "Jordan, Joe"), American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers
- ISBN 0-313-21339-9 (borrowable online via Internet Archive)
- ^ Absher, Amy (2014), "Musicians and the Segregated City: Chicago in the Early 1900s-1930s", The Black Musician and the White City, Race and Music in Chicago, 1900-1967, University of Michigan Press, pp. 16–47, retrieved November 7, 2023
- ^ "Push Is on to Save Piece of Old Bronzeville," p. 1; "Rosenwald: Complex Was Home to 'Black Aristocracy,'" p. 14 (re: Bronzeville), by Celeste Garrett, Chicago Tribune, Vol. 156, No. 304, October 31, 2002 (accessible via Newspapers.com; subscription required)
- ISBN 978-1-6047-3099-9
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
- ^ "Joe Jordan, Tacoma, and "Dear Lincoln"". Tacoma Music History. November 17, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
External links
- Joe Jordan at jass.com
- Joe Jordan at Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
- List of works by Joe Jordan at Grainger.de Archived February 9, 2012, at the Wayback Machine