The Roaring 20s and all that Jazz

I wasn’t around in the roaring twenties. I wasn’t even a gleam in my daddy’s eye. In fact, he was barely a glimmer himself. But I’ve always viewed the 1920s era as fun, lively, and provocative.

And then there’s the jazz—born out of sorrow, etched in the grips of pain, and lifted by hope. The music itself cuts right to the chase and pierces my heart to the core. Sensual, soothing, and awash with tales of grief and woe; the horns wail with sexual vibrato. Black and white keys are fingered first tentatively and then raucously like a kitten at play running, pawing, tickling the ivory and the ebony.

Listeners sway in the moonlight or play the sounds as background to intimate foreplay. Clarinets wrap around them like warm steam, soaking through their flimsy cover of inhibitions and prudish pride. Raw, earthy, and wonderful, the sounds are an integral part of our culture and American history, right up there with country music and bluegrass. In some quarters, you can hardly tell the difference.

To read more about my plans to do 1920s artwork and for links to jazz on YouTube and elsewhere go to my blog: http://AnfinsenArt.blogspot.com/