In East Texas before the Civil War, there were vast forests of longleaf pine trees and slaves were in bondage in lumber camps in the backwoods, with the greatest concentration in Harrison County in northeasterly Texas. When the Civil War ended, most of the freed slaves had little prospects for employment, so out of desperation they continued to work the lumber camps where they had previously toiled in involuntary servitude. By the 1870s, railroads were established in and around Harrison County in order to bring the logs to market and the accelerating “chug, chug” sound of the steam locomotive made its way into the music of Harrison County and beyond.
In many of the lumber camps, “barrelhouses” began to be constructed as places the former slaves could seek entertainment away from their white bosses. These sheds were stocked with barrels of whiskey and beer (hence the name), a dance floor and usually, a tinny-sounding, out-of-tune upright piano played by an itinerant piano player. Gambling, fighting and a back room where “railroad ladies” earned their keep were ubiquitous.
Beginning in the 1870s in the barrelhouses of Harrison County, a unique sound was heard emanating from these pianos, initially known as “fast western” and “fast Texas,” the music later became known as “barrelhouse,” “honky tonk” and ultimately “boogie-woogie” or “boogie.” Over the next four decades as the music evolved, it was the trains that not only inspired the music, but also transported the itinerant piano players, first from lumber camp to lumber camp, then to New Orleans, Chicago and beyond, thereby spreading the new music to a larger urban population of willing black dancers.
Boggie’s influence
Boogie sprang from the blues and had all the elements of jazz: syncopation, improvisation and that “swinging feeling.” However, blues were traditionally played in a slow tempo, while Boogie was a fast blues for dancing. The piano was played in a percussive manner like a drum, beating out a rhythm so dancers could move aggressively with the music. Some say the pulsating and driving rhythm had sexual overtones and while the origin of the name is not clear, brothels were known as “boogie houses” and to “pitch a boogie” was to have a party or sex. To the churchgoing African-Americans, it was clear that this was the music of the devil—even the name suggested an abomination.
Alan Lomax, the famous ethnomusicologist, described the originals of boogie as follows: “anonymous Black musicians, longing to grab a train and ride away from their troubles, incorporated the rhythms of the steam locomotive and the moan of their whistles into the new dance music they were playing in jukes and dance halls. Boogie-woogie forever changed piano players, as piano players transformed the instrument into a polyrhythmic railroad train.”
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By the 1920s, boogie was well established in urban centers with large African-American populations, but few white Americans knew the music. That all changed on December 23, 1938, when three African-American boogie masters, Meade “Lux” Lewis, Pete Johnson and Albert Ammons, performed at Carnegie Hall, setting off a nationwide dance frenzy that continues to this day. How is that possible? Think back to the early music of Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Ray Charles and Jerry Lee Lewis, who famously said, “They called it blues. They called it boogie-woogie. Then they changed the name of it to rock and roll.”
So what started out in the barrelhouses of the backwoods of Texas as fast blues morphed into jazz and ultimately shaped the beat of rock and roll.
Howard Stone is the founder and artistic director of Vail Jazz, the presenter of the annual Vail Jazz Festival each summer and an annual Winter Jazz Series, both of which feature internationally renowned artists. In addition, Vail Jazz presents educational programs throughout the year with a special focus on young musicians and young audiences. Many of Vail Jazz’s performances and educational programs are presented free of charge. This column is readapted from the original archived edition, republished to commemorate Vail Jazz’s 25th Anniversary season in 2019. For information about upcoming performances, visit http://www.vailjazz.org.
