Buddy Bolden
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Charles Joseph "Buddy" Bolden (September 6, 1877 – November 4, 1931) was an American cornetist who was regarded by contemporaries and later jazz scholars as a key figure in the development of a
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
style of
ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...
music, or "jass", which later came to be known as
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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
.


Childhood

When he was born, Bolden's father, Westmore Bolden, was working as a driver for William Walker, the former employer of Buddy's grandfather Gustavus Bolden, who was born in Louisiana in 1806 and died in 1866. Gustavus was most likely born into slavery, though no definitive records say. His mother, Alice (née Harris), was aged 18 when she married Westmore on August 14, 1873. Westmore Bolden was around 25 at the time, as records show that he was 19 in August 1866. When Buddy was six years old, his father died, after which the boy lived with his mother and other family members. In records of the period the family name is variously spelled ''Bolen'', ''Bolding'', ''Boldan'', and ''Bolden'', thus complicating research. Buddy likely attended Fisk School in New Orleans, though evidence is circumstantial, as early records of this and other local schools are missing.


Musical career

Bolden was known as "King" Bolden (see Jazz royalty), and his band was at its peak in New Orleans from around 1900 to 1907. He was known for his loud sound and improvisational skills, and his style had an impact on younger musicians. Bolden's trombonist Willie Cornish, among others, recalled making
phonograph cylinder Phonograph cylinders (also referred to as Edison cylinders after its creator Thomas Edison) are the earliest commercial medium for Sound recording and reproduction, recording and reproducing sound. Commonly known simply as "records" in their heyda ...
recordings with the Bolden band, but none are known to survive. Many early jazz musicians credited Bolden and his bandmates with having originated what came to be known as ''jazz'', though the term was not in common musical use until after Bolden was musically active. Jazz historian Ted Gioa has labelled Bolden the father of jazz, though this is quickly qualified: 'even if he did not invent jazz, he had mastered the recipe for it, which combined the rhythms of ragtime, the bent notes and chord patterns of the blues, and an instrumentation drawn from New Orleans brass bands and string ensembles.' In his ''A New History of Jazz,'' Alyn Shipton describes Bolden as having invented 'the music that became jazz.' He is credited with creating a looser, more improvised version of
ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...
and adding
blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...
; Bolden's band was said to be the first to have brass instruments play the blues. He was also said to have adapted ideas from gospel music heard in uptown African-American
Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...
churches. Instead of imitating other cornetists, Bolden played the music he heard "by ear" and adapted it to his horn. In doing so, he created an exciting and novel fusion of ragtime, black sacred music, marching-band music, and rural blues. He rearranged the typical New Orleans dance band of the time to better accommodate the blues: string instruments became the rhythm section, and the front-line instruments were clarinets, trombones, and Bolden's cornet. Bolden was known for his powerful, loud, "wide open" playing style. Joe "King" Oliver, Freddie Keppard, Bunk Johnson, and other early New Orleans jazz musicians were directly inspired by his playing. One of the best known Bolden numbers is "Funky Butt" (later known as "Buddy Bolden's Blues"), which represents one of the earliest references to the concept of
funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
in popular music. Bolden's "Funky Butt" was, as Danny Barker once put it, a reference to the olfactory effect of an auditorium packed full of sweaty people "dancing close together and belly rubbing." This tune was incendiary in New Orleans at the time: clarinettist Sidney Bechet recalled that 'the police put you in jail if they heard you singing that song.' Bolden is also credited with the invention of the "Big Four", a key rhythmic innovation on the marching band beat, which gave early jazz more room for individual improvisation. As Wynton Marsalis explains, the big four (below) was the first syncopated bass drum pattern to deviate from the standard on-the-beat march. The second half of the Big Four is the pattern commonly known as the habanera rhythm developed from sub-Saharan African music traditions. : \new Staff << \relative c' >>


Physical and mental decline

Bolden had an episode of acute alcoholic
psychosis In psychopathology, psychosis is a condition in which a person is unable to distinguish, in their experience of life, between what is and is not real. Examples of psychotic symptoms are delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized or inco ...
in 1907 at age 30. With the full diagnosis of dementia praecox (today called
schizophrenia Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...
), he was admitted to the Louisiana State Insane Asylum at Jackson, a mental institution, where he spent the rest of his life.Barlow, William. ''"Looking Up At Down": The Emergence of Blues Culture''. Temple University Press (1989), pp. 188–191. . Recent research has suggested that Bolden may in fact have had pellagra, a vitamin deficiency common among poor and black groups in the population, which in 1907 swept through the southern United States. In his essay 'Jazz and disability', George McKay positions Bolden (alongside disabled European guitarist
Django Reinhardt Jean Reinhardt (23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953), known by his Romani people, Romani nickname Django ( or ), was a Belgium, Belgian-born Romani jazz guitarist and composer in France. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe ...
) as a pivotal figure in this new music's inclusive capacity: 'Apparently from an edge, the edge of sound mental health or a normal life itself, Buddy Bolden seems to have had a mind that let him hear and create a new music.... istantalizing as well as desperate story, his achievements and influence, which are shrouded in silence, is also one of cognitive impairment at the heart of the jazz tradition.' Bolden's death on November 4, 1931, was caused by cerebral arteriosclerosis according to the death certificate.


Personal life

In 1895–1896, Bolden began a relationship with Harriet "Hattie" Oliver, a woman several years his senior who lived in the same neighborhood. Their relationship was brief, and though they never married, she gave birth to their son, Charles Joseph Bolden Jr., on May 2, 1897.


Further life and legend

While there is substantial first-hand oral history about Bolden, facts about his life continue to be lost amidst colorful myth. Stories about his being a barber by trade or that he published a scandal sheet called ''The Cricket'' have been repeated in print despite being debunked decades earlier.


Tributes


Music

*
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
paid tribute to Bolden in his 1957 suite '' A Drum Is a Woman''. The trumpet part was taken by Clark Terry. *The Bolden band tune "Funky Butt", better known as "Buddy Bolden's Blues" since it was first recorded under that title by
Jelly Roll Morton Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe ( Lemott, later Morton; c. September 20, 1890 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American blues and jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer of Louisiana Creole descent. Morton was jazz ...
, alternatively titled "I Thought I Heard Buddy Bolden Say", has been covered by hundreds of artists, including Dr. John, on his 1992 album '' Goin' Back to New Orleans'', and Hugh Laurie, on his 2011 album '' Let Them Talk''. *"Hey, Buddy Bolden" is a song on the 1962 album '' Nina Simone Sings Ellington''. * Wynton Marsalis speaks about Bolden in an introduction and performs "Buddy Bolden" on his album ''Live at the Village Vanguard'' (1999). *The Buddyprisen, or Buddy Award, is the prime award honoring Norwegian jazz musicians. * Hop Along wrote "Buddy in the Parade" as a tribute to Bolden. * Malachi Thompson recorded '' Buddy Bolden's Rag'' in 1995.


Fiction

Bolden has inspired a number of fictional characters with his name. *The Canadian author
Michael Ondaatje Philip Michael Ondaatje (; born 12 September 1943) is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian poet, fiction writer and essayist. Ondaatje's literary career began with his poetry in 1967, publishing ''The Dainty Monsters'', and then in 1970 the critically a ...
wrote the novel '' Coming Through Slaughter'' (1976), which features a Buddy Bolden character who in some ways resembles Bolden, but in other ways is deliberately contrary to what is known about him. *The character of Buddy Bolden helps Samuel Clemens solve a murder in Peter J. Heck's novel ''A Connecticut Yankee in Criminal Court'' (1996). *He is a notable character in Louis Maistros' novel ''The Sound of Building Coffins'', which contains many scenes depicting Bolden playing his cornet. *Canadian author Christine Welldon wrote the novel ''Kid Sterling'' (2021), which centers on the character of Buddy Bolden and his life, based on the author's archival research. *Nicholas Christopher's historical fiction novel ''Tiger Rag'' (2013) centers on the legend and repercussions of a wax cylinder recording by Bolden's band, as well as Bolden's later life.


Plays and films

*Bolden is featured in August Wilson's 1995 play '' Seven Guitars''. Wilson's drama includes the character King Hedley, whose father named him after King Buddy Bolden. King Hedley constantly sings, "I thought I heard Buddy Bolden say..." and believes that Bolden will come down and bring him money to buy a plantation. *A biopic about Bolden with mythical elements, titled '' Bolden!'', was released in 2019. It was written and directed by Dan Pritzker. Gary Carr portrays Bolden. *During the 1980s, an adaptation of
Michael Ondaatje Philip Michael Ondaatje (; born 12 September 1943) is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian poet, fiction writer and essayist. Ondaatje's literary career began with his poetry in 1967, publishing ''The Dainty Monsters'', and then in 1970 the critically a ...
's 1976 novel '' Coming Through Slaughter'' was staged at Harvard's Hasty Pudding Theater. The music was scored by Steven Provizer and the production was directed by Tim McDonough. *In 2011, Interact Theater in
Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
produced a new work-in-progress musical entitled ''Hot Jazz at da Funky Butt'' in which Buddy Bolden was the feature character. The music and lyrics were by Aaron Gabriel and featured New Orleans musicians and collaborators Zena Moses, Eugene Harding and Jeremy Phipps. In 2018, Interact Theater premiered the production renamed ''Hot Funky Butt Jazz'' at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, MN. The song "Dat's How Da Music Do Ya" quoted the "Buddy Bolden Blues". *A three-channel video installation
"Precarity"
was created by the British experimental filmmaker John Akomfrah in 2017 as a commissioned piece for the Ogden Museum and the Nasher Museum, exploring themes related to the life of Buddy Bolden.


References


Further reading

* Barker, Danny, 1998, ''Buddy Bolden and the Last Days of Storyville''. New York: Continuum. p. 31.


External links

* *
The Real Buddy Bolden
The Syncopated Times


"Charles "Buddy" Bolden (1877–1931)
Red Hot Jazz Archive

PBS, '' Jazz, A Film by Ken Burns'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolden, Buddy 1877 births 1931 deaths 20th-century African-American musicians African-American jazz musicians American jazz bandleaders American jazz cornetists American ragtime musicians Jazz musicians from New Orleans People from Jackson, Louisiana People with schizophrenia The Eagle Band members