Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five

Louis Jordan is another of the key figures in the development of rock and roll and R&B. He was a talented and colorful figure who was a saxophonist, songwriter, and bandleader. He has been credited with creating a style of music called “jump blues” which is the direct forerunner of R&B, the music which would later morph into rock and roll.

Jordan was born in Brinkley, Arkansas, in 1908. He studied clarinet and saxophone and while still in his teens, and in the Thirties, he was invited to join Chick Webb’s orchestra at New York’s Savoy ballroom. As Webb was physically disabled, Jordan took over the leader’s usual role of MC at shows. In 1938, Webb fired Jordan after he suspected Jordan of trying to take over control of the orchestra.

Jordan soon had a new band and a recording deal with Decca Records. The first recording session for his new band, which would later be dubbed, “The Tympany Five,” was in late 1938. His band contained an ever-changing lineup of sidemen that would accompany Jordan’s singing and saxophone on his Forties hits, “Five Guys Named More,” “Knock Me A Kiss,” “Caledonia,” and a song which some claim to be the first rock and roll recording, “Saturday Night Fish Fry.” Jordan’s recordings were raucous and often humorous, with a solid narrative structure. His songs celebrated good times, food, drinking, parties, and women.

Jordan became the most successful African-American bandleader in the country save Duke Ellington and Count Basie. He was one of the first African-American “crossover” artists as well. Unlike other African-American artists who were known only to African-American audiences, Jordan was very popular with white audiences, too.

Jordan’s best recordings can be found on the following collections: “The Best of Louis Jordan” (1975), “Louis Jordan’s Greatest Hits” (1980), and “Rock and Roll” (1989).