Benjamin Moten (November 13, 1893 – April 2, 1935) was an American
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major f ...
pianist and band leader born and raised in
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...
, United States.
He led his Kansas City Orchestra, the most important of the regional, blues-based orchestras active in the Midwest in the 1920s, and helped to develop the
riff
A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompanim ...
ing style that would come to define many of the 1930s big bands. The
jazz standard
Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive li ...
Moten started making music from an early age and developed as a pianist, pulling together other musicians in a band. His first recordings were made (for
OKeh Records
Okeh Records () is an American record label founded by the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, a phonograph supplier established in 1916, which branched out into phonograph records in 1918. The name was spelled "OkeH" from the initials of Ott ...
) on September 23, 1923, and were rather typical interpretations of the
King Oliver
Joseph Nathan "King" Oliver (December 19, 1881 – April 8/10, 1938) was an American jazz cornet player and bandleader. He was particularly recognized for his playing style and his pioneering use of mutes in jazz. Also a notable composer, he ...
and others. They also showed the influence of the
ragtime
Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott ...
that was still popular in the area, as well as the stomping beat for which his band was famous. These OKeh sides (recorded 1923–1925) are some of the more valuable acoustic jazz 78s of the era; they are treasured records in many serious jazz collections.
They signed with
Victor Records
The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer that operated independently from 1901 until 1929, when it was acquired by the Radio Corporation of America and subsequently operated as a subsidia ...
in 1926, and were influenced by the more sophisticated style of
Fletcher Henderson
James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson (December 18, 1897 – December 29, 1952) was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music. He was one of the most prolific black musi ...
. More often than not, their pieces featured a hard stomp beat that was extremely popular in Kansas City. Moten continued to be one of Victor's most popular orchestras through 1930. Their song "
Kansas City Shuffle
"Kansas City Shuffle" is the name of a 1926 jazz song.
The title of the tune refers to an advanced form of bait-and-switch confidence game employing misdirection, subterfuge, and playing on the "mark's" arrogance and/or self-loathing.
The scheme
...
" was recorded during this time. (The band recorded prolifically, and many of their records were issued in Victor's regular series, not specifically marketed to the Black community as some other bands were.)
By 1927, Moten's orchestra contained many names associated with Kansas City music, and included
Harlan Leonard
Harlan Leonard (July 2, 1905 – November 10, 1983) was an American jazz bandleader and clarinetist from Kansas City, Missouri, United States.
Leonard was born in Kansas City in 1905. A professional musician from the age of 17, he joined Bennie M ...
(alto sax), Jack Washington (alto and baritone sax), Ed Lewis and Lamar Wright (trumpets) and Willie McWashington (drums). His orchestra featured the standard Kansas City style at the time: smooth sax chorus over tinkling piano and a bass drum beat.
Moten's popular 1928 recording of "
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
" on Victor V-38021 (itself a remake of the first version on OKeh from late 1924) stayed in Victor's catalog over the years. (It was reissued as 24893 in 1935, as Victor phased out any remaining V-38000 series that were still in the catalog.) In the late 1940s, it became a big
jukebox
A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to sele ...
hit (by then, reissued as 44-0004). It remained in print (as a vinyl 45) until RCA stopping making vinyl records.
By 1928, Moten's piano was showing some boogie woogie influences, but the real revolution came in 1929, after he recruited
Count Basie
William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...
,
Walter Page
Walter Sylvester Page (February 9, 1900 – December 20, 1957) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist and bandleader, best known for his groundbreaking work as a double bass player with Walter Page's Blue Devils and the Count Basie Orchest ...
walking bass
Bassline (also known as a bass line or bass part) is the term used in many styles of music, such as blues, jazz, funk, Dub music, dub and electronic music, electronic, traditional music, traditional, or classical music for the low-pitched Part ( ...
lines gave the music an entirely new feel compared to the 2/4
tuba
The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...
of his predecessor Vernon Page, colored by Basie's understated, syncopated piano fills. Another boon to the band was adding
Jimmy Rushing
James Andrew Rushing (August 26, 1901 – June 8, 1972) was an American singer and pianist from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948.
Rushing was known as " Mr. Five by ...
as their primary vocalist.
Their final session showed the early stages of what became known as the "Basie sound," four years before Basie recorded under his own name. (They made 10 recordings at Victor's Camden, New Jersey, studios on December 13, 1932, during a time when the band was suffering significant financial hardship.) By this time
Ben Webster
Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
Career Early life and career
A native of Kansas City, Missouri, he studied violin, learned how to play blues on the piano from ...
and Rushing had joined Moten's band, but Moten himself did not play on these sessions. These sides were mostly arranged by
Eddie Durham
Edward Durham (August 19, 1906 – March 6, 1987) was an American jazz guitarist, trombonist, composer, and arranger. He was one of the pioneers of the electric guitar in jazz. The orchestras of Bennie Moten, Jimmie Lunceford, Count Basie, ...
, and they include a number of tunes that later became swing classics:
* "Toby"
* " Moten Swing"
* " The Blue Room"
* "Imagination" (vocals: Sterling Russell Trio)
* "
tonsillectomy
Tonsillectomy is a surgical procedure in which both palatine tonsils are fully removed from the back of the throat. The procedure is mainly performed for recurrent tonsillitis, throat infections and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). For those wi ...
.
Band personnel
The complete personnel of Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra, as of 1926-1927 when the band was at the peak of its early popularity, was:
* Ed Lewis, trumpet
* Lamar (or Lammar) Wright, trumpet
* Thamon Hayes, trombone
*
Harlan Leonard
Harlan Leonard (July 2, 1905 – November 10, 1983) was an American jazz bandleader and clarinetist from Kansas City, Missouri, United States.
Leonard was born in Kansas City in 1905. A professional musician from the age of 17, he joined Bennie M ...
, alto sax
* Jack Washington, alto and baritone saxes
* Woodie Walder, tenor sax
* Bennie Moten, piano
* Leroy Berry, banjo
* Vernon Page, tuba
* Willie McWashington, drumsThis personnel is found on the cover of RCA's "Label X" reissue album ''Bennie Moten's Kansas City Jazz (Volume 1)'' (LVA-3004), which erroneously lists the tuba player as Walter Page.
See also
*
Kansas City Jazz
Kansas City jazz is a style of jazz that developed in Kansas City, Missouri during the 1920s and 1930s, which marked the transition from the structured big band style to the much more improvisational style of bebop. The hard- swinging, bluesy tra ...
Discography of American Historical Recordings
The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...