"The Charleston" is a jazz composition that was written to accompany the Charleston dance. It was composed in 1923, with lyrics by

Cecil Mack Cecil Mack (November 6, 1873 – August 1, 1944) was an American composer, lyricist and music publisher. Biography Born as Richard Cecil McPherson in Portsmouth, Virginia, he attended the Norfolk Mission College and Lincoln University in Pennsy ...

and music by

James P. Johnson James Price Johnson (February 1, 1894 – November 17, 1955) was an American pianist and composer. A pioneer of stride piano, he was one of the most important pianists in the early era of recording, and like Jelly Roll Morton, one of the key ...

, a composer and early leader of the

stride piano Stride jazz piano, often shortened to stride, is a jazz piano style that arose from ragtime players. Prominent stride pianists include James P. Johnson, Willie "the Lion" Smith, Fats Waller, Luckey Roberts, and Mary Lou Williams. Techn ...

school of jazz piano. The song was featured in the American black

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

musical comedy show ''Runnin' Wild'', which had its premiere at the New Colonial Theatre in New York on October 29, 1923. The music of the dockworkers from

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

inspired Johnson to compose the music. The dance known as the Charleston came to characterize the times. Lyrics, though rarely sung (an exception is

Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including the Twist, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighters' R&B song " The Twis ...

's 1961 recording), were penned by

, himself one of the most accomplished songwriters of the early 1900s. The song's driving rhythm, basically the first bar of a 3 2 clave, came to have widespread use in

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 ...

comping and musicians still reference it by name. Harmonically, the song features a five-chord

ragtime progression The ragtime progression is a chord progression characterized by a chain of secondary dominants following the circle of fifths, named for its popularity in the ragtime genre, despite being much older. Also typical of parlour music, its use origina ...

(I-III7-VI7-II7-V7-I). Recordings of ''The Charleston'' from 1923 entered the

public domain in the United States Works are in the public domain if they are not covered by the intellectual property right known as copyright, or if the intellectual property rights to the works have expired. Works automatically enter the public domain when their copyright has ...

in 2024.

In popular culture

The song has been used in a number of films set in the 1920s.

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

dances to the music in the film ''

Roxie Hart Roxanne "Roxie" Hart is a fictional character. She is the main character of the 1926 play ''Chicago'' and its various remakes and derivatives. Development The playwright, reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, was inspired by the trials, both of which ...

'' (1942). In the movies ''

Margie Margie is a feminine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of the related names Margaret, Marjorie, or Margarita, all of which mean "pearl". Margie may refer to: People * Margie Abbott (born 1958), Australian businesswoman * Margie Ac ...

'' (1946) and '' It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946), the song is played during school dance scenes. In the movie '' Tea for Two'' (1950), with

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She began her career as a big band singer in 1937, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, "Sentimental Journey ...

and

Gordon MacRae Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer, and television and radio host. He appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, ''Oklahoma!'' (1955) and ''Carousel'' (1956), and ...

, the song is a featured production number. A version performed by Enoch Light and the Charleston City All Stars is used in Woody Allen's 2011 film ''

Midnight in Paris ''Midnight in Paris'' is a 2011 fantasy comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen. Set in Paris, the film follows Gil Pender (Owen Wilson), a screenwriter and aspiring novelist, who is forced to confront the shortcomings of his relationsh ...

'', which largely takes place in the 1920s. The track " Bang Bang" from the 2013 film ''

The Great Gatsby ''The Great Gatsby'' () is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with Jay Gatsby, a mysterious mi ...

'', performed by

Will.I.Am William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "will I am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is the frontman of the musical group Black Eyed Peas, which he ...

, samples the song. One of the most famous recordings of the song was by The Golden Gate Orchestra in 1925, which has been inducted into the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

Footnotes

{{authority control 1923 songs Jazz songs Songs with lyrics by Cecil Mack Songs with music by James P. Johnson 1920s jazz standards Songs about dancing Songs about South Carolina United States National Recording Registry recordings

In popular culture

See also

Footnotes