James Louis Blythe (May 20, 1901 – June 14, 1931) 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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, but already developed in African-American communities since the 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually ex ...

pianist and composer. Blythe is known to have recorded as many as 300

piano rolls A piano roll is a music storage medium used to operate a player piano, piano player or reproducing piano. Piano rolls, like other music rolls, are continuous rolls of paper with holes punched into them. These perforations represent note control d ...

, and his song "Chicago Stomp" is considered one of the earliest examples of boogie-woogie music to be recorded.

Biography

Blythe was born in South Keene, Kentucky, to former slaves turned-

sharecroppers Sharecropping is a legal arrangement in which a landowner allows a tenant (sharecropper) to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land. Sharecropping is not to be conflated with tenant farming, providing the tenant a ...

Richard and Rena Blythe. He was the youngest of five children to survive birth and became interested in the piano after observing local

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 ...

players. In 1917, he moved to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, where he worked in the Mavis Talcum Powder Company and studied the rudiments of piano, playing under the tutelage of orchestra leader Clarence M. Jones, who found some success as an arranger. Although Blythe's life between 1919 and 1922 is obscured, it is speculated that he began preparing compositions in Jones's recording studio and performed at nearby music clubs. In early 1922, Blythe was hired by the Columbia Music Roll Company to record

that were accessible at home and early

nickelodeons The nickelodeon was the first type of indoor exhibition space dedicated to showing projected film, motion pictures in the United States and Canada. Usually set up in converted storefronts, these small, simple theaters charged five cents for a ...

. Modeling some of his style after the teachings of Jones, he applied an increasingly popular

octave In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...

and

boogie Boogie is a repetition (music), repetitive, swung note, swung note or shuffle rhythm,Burrows, Terry (1995). ''Play Country Guitar'', p.42. Dorling Kindersley Limited, London. . groove (music), "groove" or pattern used in blues which was origina ...

bass, with signature rhythmic

breaks Break or Breaks or The Break may refer to: Time off from duties * Recess (break), time in which a group of people is temporarily dismissed from its duties * Break (work), time off during a shift/recess ** Coffee break, a short mid-morning rest ...

, to credited recordings for Columbia and, later the Capitol Music Roll Company of Chicago. Writer Bill Edwards remarks that, despite the limitations of piano rolls, Blythe "was able to take simple popular songs and create an engaging performance from them in short order. Many of these were taken from the simple sheet music and expanded to include blues riffs, stride or boogie-woogie bass, and even pseudo-novelty figures. Musicians around Chicago and beyond worked to emulate his engaging style as his fame grew". In April 1924, Blythe entered the recording studio with co-writer Alex J. Robinson to record for

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson (guitarist), Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramoun ...

. One of the songs, "Chicago Stomp", became Blythe's most popular recording and made him the earliest boogie-woogie pianist to be recorded. It has also been suggested that his 1925 recording of "Jimmie Blues" influenced the work of Clarence "Pine Top" Smith and

Albert Ammons Albert Clifton Ammons (March 1, 1907 – December 2, 1949) was an American pianist and player of boogie-woogie, a blues style popular from the late 1930s to the mid-1940s. Life and career Ammons was born in Chicago, Illinois. His parents were ...

. Blythe recorded with his own studio groups, including Blythe's Sinful Five, Jimmy Blythe and his Ragamuffins, and Blythe's Washboard Band, which usually featured clarinetist

Jimmy O'Bryant J. A. "Jimmy" O'Bryant (c. 1896 – June 24, 1928) was an American jazz clarinetist. Career O'Bryant played with the Tennessee Ten in 1920 and 1921, then in a group with Jelly Roll Morton and W. C. Handy in 1923. In 1924, he played with Kin ...

. He accompanied recording sessions by

Johnny Dodds Johnny Dodds (; April 12, 1892 – August 8, 1940) was an American jazz clarinetist and alto saxophonist based in New Orleans, best known for his recordings under his own name and with bands such as those of Joe "King" Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton, ...

Ma Rainey Gertrude "Ma" Rainey ( Pridgett; April 26, 1886 – December 22, 1939) was an American blues singer and influential early-blues recording artist. Dubbed the " Mother of the Blues", she bridged earlier vaudeville and the authentic expression of ...

, and Jimmy Bertrand, and made duets with Buddy Burton and Charlie Clark. In some instances when he penned songs with Robinson and other musicians such as

Trixie Smith Trixie Smith (c.1885/1895 – September 21, 1943), was an American blues singer and film actress. She made four dozen recordings and appeared in five films. Biography Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Smith came from a middle-class backgroun ...

, he used the pseudonyms "Duke Owens" and "George Jefferson". In 1930, Blythe substantially decreased his recording activity, appearing on two sides of Robinson's group, Knights of Rest. He was living with his sister and her husband when Blythe contracted

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasion ...

. Blythe died on June 14, 1931, aged 30. In November 2021, the Killer Blues Headstone Project placed a headstone for him in Beverly Cemetery in Chicago.

References

External links

*
Jimmy Blythe (1901-1931)
at the Red Hot Jazz Archive {{DEFAULTSORT:Blythe, Jimmy 1901 births 1931 deaths American jazz pianists American male jazz pianists Boogie-woogie pianists Deaths from meningitis Neurological disease deaths in Illinois Infectious disease deaths in Illinois Jazz musicians from Kentucky People from Jessamine County, Kentucky 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians