Outside the bright lights of Harlem, where Ellington and Armstrong reigned supreme, hard-working, lesser-known orchestras brought jazz to the masses. Like the barnstormer leagues of baseball, these “territory bands” of hungry newcomers played small-town dance halls, ice cream socials, and Elks Lodges, and introduced rural America to its native music. 

Based in smaller cities and touring a general geographic region, these territory bands played most every night. Young musicians saw them as training to break onto the national scene. Count Basie and Lester Young, for example, got their starts in Walter Page’s Blue Devils, touring a circuit from the upper Midwest to Oklahoma City.  

Heartland circuits were fertile ground for the primarily all-Black territory bands. But they were not without pitfalls. Small-town Midwest, especially, fell under the withering gaze of Jim Crow. Segregation and intimidation were commonplace. Lynchings were not unheard of. Bands were careful not to book gigs in “sundown towns.”

Despite the dangers, as Village Voice jazz critic Francis Davis wrote, “Territory bands disseminated swing and jazz to an ignored audience where radios and record players were still rare.” Culturally, territory bands were often an audience’s first encounter with the Black community. Black musicians took the stage in the face of prejudice, but in so doing, opened ears to the art of Jazz and, through that art, opened minds against preconceived notions.

“Soundtrack to the Struggle” is hosted by Hollis Monroe. Produced by Ron Adkins. Executive Producer is Dennis Green.

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Johnny Otis, son of Greek immigrants, eloped at age 19 with his childhood sweetheart of African American descent to Reno, Nevada. Interracial marriage was more accepted there. Otis later wrote, ^“As a kid, I decided that if our society dictated that one had to be black or white, I would be Black.”

UNSPECIFIED – JANUARY 01: Photo of Johnny OTIS; Posed. Sitting down, wearing suit and bow tie (Photo by Charlie Gillett/Redferns)

Young Johnny forged his father’s signature on a credit slip to buy his first drum kit. He played in local swing orchestras by the early 1940’s. He founded his own band in 1945, which included Charles Brown and Illinois Jacquet, and scored a hit with “Harlem Nocturne.” He opened the Barrelhouse Club in the Watts district of Los Angeles in 1947. Like its namesake club in Omaha, Nebraska, the Barrelhouse welcomed Black and white patrons as equals.

As much for his music, Otis gained fame as an advocate for Black musicians. He hustled gigs, arranged recording sessions, hosted a television show, worked as a disc jockey, and formed his own label – Ultra Records – to give Black artists a greater audience. He also had a sharp ear for discovering new talent. Etta James, “Big Mama” Thornton, and Jackie Wilson all thank Otis for their big break.  

By the end of his career, Otis’s attention shifted to journalism and politics. He served as deputy chief of staff to Congressman Mervyn Dymally. His autobiography, “Upside Your Head,” was hailed as a brutally honest account of the toxic racism in the entertainment industry.

“Soundtrack to the Struggle” is hosted by Hollis Monroe. Produced by Ron Adkins. Executive Producer is Dennis Green.

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“Everybody has a breaking point,” says trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard, “and I feel we’re getting close to ours.” Blanchard refers to the level of gun violence in America, and the number of violent acts committed against people of color.

With his band E-Collective, Blanchard has recorded two albums considered open conversations, consciousness-raising dialogues on racism, violence, and the pattern of backward movement toward racial equality. “It’s like Ralph Ellison said: We’re invisible,” Blanchard believes. “It’s frustrating. You’re just tired of this.”

Songs produced for their “Live” album were recorded in cities plagued by racial tension and violence – Dallas, Cleveland, and Minneapolis. Comparisons are made to Max Roach’s 1960 protest, “We Insist.” “We Insist” uses Oscar Brown’s words to convey its message; Blanchard continues that message using sound and a sense of place. Blue Note Records describes Blanchard’s horn playing throughout as, “the sound of a group of people standing up for their rights … like a gathering of people chanting en masse in a communal demand for justice.”

Blanchard’s previous album, “Breathless,” takes its title from Eric Garner’s death by chokehold while being arrested in New York City. Garner, a 43-year-old African-American horticulturalist, is heard saying, “I can’t breathe,” as officers held him to the pavement.

Despite the signs of an even more ominous future ahead, Blanchard remains optimistic. He praises such positive acts as the March Against Gun Violence, and the eloquence of the Parkland School students. Because people still hold out hope, says Blanchard, so will he. And so will his music.

“Soundtrack to the Struggle” is hosted by Hollis Monroe. Produced by Ron Adkins. Executive Producer is Dennis Green.

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It’s 1931 and Earl “Fatha” Hines has packed up his Orchestra for the first of his 3-month whistle-stop tours, including gigs in the Deep South. Fatha’s band was the first major black big band to tour Jim Crow country.

At the time, Hines led the house band at the famed Grand Terrace Café in Chicago. The Grand Terrace, a luxurious “black-and-tan” integrated speakeasy owned by Al Capone, was one of the most important jazz clubs in music history. Hines and Louis Armstrong, along with dozens of their protégés, were making solid reputations. Capone thought Hines was “nuts” when he announced his tour plans. Not only was he stepping outside the hot Chicago jazz scene, but he’d also be outside the protection of Capone and his boys. But, despite it all, Capone knew the tour was important. 

Such trips were never a smooth ride. “When we traveled by train through the South,” he said, “they would send a porter back to our car to let us know when the dining room was cleared. Then we would all go in together. We couldn’t eat when we wanted to. We had to eat when they were ready for us.” Later, during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s, Hines would joke, “You could call us the first Freedom Riders.” 

Finding food and lodging in stopover towns was a constant struggle, often setting off threatening encounters with local police. Hines came to call these tours “invasions,” because of the constant threat of imminent danger. Any contact with whites, even if they were fans of his music, was risky. At one gig in Alabama, a bomb exploded under their feet while they played on stage. “We didn’t none of us get hurt but we didn’t play so well after that, either.”

“Soundtrack to the Struggle” is hosted by Hollis Monroe. Produced by Ron Adkins. Executive Producer is Dennis Green.

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