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What a strange
but unique name - The Jitterbug! Nearly all people attribute Cab
Calloway (1907-1994) as coining the term. However, he was
not the one. As you will see, Harry Alexander White
(b.6/1/1898) who was also known as "Father White"
by his peers coined the term "Jitterbug." White was a
trombonist, drummer and arranger on the "Keith Circuit"
in 1914 as well as working with Duke Ellington (1899-1974)
and Elmer Snowden, later White, would work with the renowned Cab
Calloway.
Calloway's trumpeter, Edwin
Swayzee, overheard Mr. White using the term "Jitterbug,"
which apparently was unheard of during this period. Swayzee wrote
the song entitled "The Jitterbug" for Cab
Calloway after hearing White's use of the word. Calloway
recorded the song in January 1934, which made it a household name.
Sooo White coined it, Swayzee used it, and Calloway made it famous.
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Incidentally, the very first song written for the movie "Wizard
of Oz" (1938) was the song titled "Jitterbug"
as well. (July/1938 Keen Magazine.)
Jazz lingo played an important part as well (Daddy-O,
Icky, Reefer, Hep-Cat, etc.) and was big during the Jazz era.
Here are some of its stories:
1) One description is that it meant
a man or women, suffering from alcoholic or drug nerves.
2) Another story has Jitterbug associated
to the English word "Bugger or Bugging" (a sexual act,)
and was used to characterize someone suffering from Syphilis.
3) Another is of racial
nonsense (resembling the preceding) was used to characterize
a man or woman, who was sexually active with a dissimilar race (Black
and White,) and/or who had the "Jitters from Drugs, Alcohol
or Syphilis and was "bugging" them a Jitterbugger!
4) Some of the stories were comical,
such as; the dancers looked like jitterbugs - (?) because they bounced.
So, whatever the original intent of the word may have been, it is
now, to be known as a dance.
- There were distinct forms of Lindy
and Shag already being
done at such places as the Savoy
Ballroom. Today, the Jitterbug as a dance, is also known as:
Hollywood Style, Lindy Hop,
East Coast, West
Coast, Push, Whip, Jive,
Shag, New
Yorker, Bop, Ceroc,
Leroc, Rock and Roll etc.
Jitterbug was a slang or umbrella term for what we call "Swing
dancing" today with the term Jitterbug initially enveloping
all styles of swing. Depending on what City or State you came from
and what year you danced in. Each variant of swing that was danced
was called the Jitterbug at one time or another. Today some people
are trying to maintain it is only "Single or double rhythm
East Coast swing" (Well ... yes it was!, as well
as all the other forms mentioned above.) The W.W.II
and the U.S.O. spread the Jitterbug all over the
World.
Benny
Goodman (1909-1986) is credited with establishing
the Swing Craze as well as helping make the word jitterbug a household
name. Goodman was signed to perform on the "National
Biscuit Saturday Night " radio broadcasts in New York.
Goodman would perform popular standards during the day for the popular
radio hours in New York, but late at night, when New York was asleep,
he would play some of his own music. Because of the national time
difference, California being three hours behind, many younger Californians
did lend an ear.
During the
spring of 1934, RCA-Victor Records Company signed
Goodman's Band. That Summer he went on the road and toured the Ballrooms,
despite having his own music, he was told to play the standards,
as earlier attempts to play his music found much displeasure by
the older ballroom dancers. This was to lead to a procession of
failures (flops) on his tour, as no one eventually came.
Nevertheless, when Goodman hit California, there was about to be
a transformation.
The first stop was Sweet's
Ballroom in Oakland, Ca. young adults lined up for blocks
to hear and dance to Goodman's new music, They Jitterbugged all
night long. This was ACTUALLY the first "Un-official"
start of the Jitterbug craze and the Big Swing Bands. (Goodman
wouldn't believe his success, thought it was some flook.) Descending
the coast to his next and final, would be permanent stop on his
tour was in Los Angeles at the "Palomar
Ballroom." This would become the first "Officially
recorded start of the Jitterbug" and Swing Bands.
Originally, before his successfulness
at Sweets ballroom, the Palomar
Ballroom was to be the final stop of Goodman's tour
(as well as to be their final gig, forever, due to all his previous
touring failures.) The show at the Palomar was jammed with young
adults that were listening to Goodman's prior New York broadcast's
on the radio, due to the earlier time frame between New York and
California, the young adults on the East Coast didn't listen to
his music. Benny Goodman became a TREMENDOUS sensation at the Palomar
(to his surprise); these 'West Coast kids' and adults were
jitterbugging all night long and loving it. The newspapers loved
it as well and reported on the "jitterbugging" done at
the Palomar.
From there, Goodman went on
to Chicago (a success,) then finally arriving back in New
York, where he formerly had his first dismal turnout after the Palomar
on this "would be" famous tour. In the summer of 1936,
the Paramount
Theater in New York, on hearing of his achievement in California,
hired his band to play. Goodman's West Coast success at the Palomar
was rivaled only by the Paramount Theater as the kids were "Jitterbugging
in the Isles." The newspapers reported on his band's success
and about the dancing. Again, the reporters used the term "Jitterbug"
in their columns and the term "Jitterbug," after that
day, publicly was here forever.
So if you "Swing Dance," whatever style it may be You
are a Jitterbug, "Believe it or
Not!"
Many folks ask what style of
swing (Jitterbug) is best, West Coast, East Coast, Whip, Push, Lindy,
Shag etc. However, there is no best style. The best style would
depend on what type of music you are dancing to at the time, Geographics,
the theme of the dance being held, geographics, the speed in which
the music is played and the dance knowledge of you and or your partner.
If you're partner only knows one style of swing, then their style
would be the best style to dance with them at that time. If they
only know one style they usually will declare that the style they
know is the best style above all others and usually will make derogatory
statements for many varied reasons.
Swing (Jitterbug)
is a wonderful dance form in all it's versions that fits all types
of music, personalities, finances etc. Calling yourself a swing
dancer means you can at least do the basics in many forms of swing
and a few well. So learn to swing dance whatever style, you're unique
and your dances should be varied and your style should represent
your knowledge of dance that other, newer dancers (and they
are the majority) don't possess, not limited to only one. However
you will eventually find you like them all and soon you will understand
the importance of them all as well as understand why there are different
styles to begin with. So enjoy them and mainly smile, laugh and
have fun.
NOTE:
1) According to Arthur
Murray in his book "Down Memory Lane," The closest
circumstance to the Lindy or Jitterbug in the 18th century was the
Allemande. |
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