YOUR DAILY DOSE OF EUBIE!!!!!
Following World War I, James Reese Europe and his band played several concerts in Paris to celebrate the recent victory. They were entranced by the city, where they could move freely, be seated in any restaurant or bar with other patrons, and find work at the same or better pay than their white counterparts. They offered something the French musicians could not equal; “authentic” African-American music performed by “real” African-Americans. One such musician was drummer Louis Mitchell, who had previously worked with various Clef Club ensembles in New York. He first toured England with composer Joe Jordan and then formed his own band.
Sometime either in late 1917/early 1918, Mitchell moved on to working in France. He found his greatest success in Paris, and formed at least one band using local white players. Then, with the end of World War I in sight, there was an increased demand for the “real thing” in Parisians night spots. The management of one popular club– the Casino de Paris—asked Mitchell to enlist a group of black musicians to play there. He sailed to New York to recruit musicians, and returned with a group of seven performers who were eventually called the Jazz Kings. The ensemble worked from written scores and played the same style of lightly syncopated dance music that the Clef Club orchestras had offered to socialites before the war back in New York.
With so much demand for musicians in Paris, however, Mitchell had trouble holding on to his men who could easily find higher paying jobs on their own. On August 21, 1918, Mitchell wrote to Eubie about the opportunities black musicians had in France. He met Blake while performing in Baltimore around 1913, and then reached out to him five years later to try to convince him to join him in Paris:
“I suppose that you have heard of the success that I have had with my bands over here, I have just formed another band of Frenchman and I am teaching them to play rags and they are getting along fine better than I thought they would. I have them at one of the best Theatres in Paris, but I am now looking for a band of coulard boys to put in there place as soon as I can get them over here, and I will shift the white band to another Theatre in Paris.
“Now I shoud like very much to get you over here with me, Jim Europe told me that you wanted to come so that is why I am writeing to find out if you would like to come as there is a great field over here for me but I am handycaped by not having enough men to put to work. …
“Eubie this is the finest Country in the world and if you once get over here you will never want to go back to N.Y. again, I intend to stay here the rest of my life, as you can go where you want too and have the time of your life just like Mr. Eddy and no one to bother you.” [Grammar and spelling as in the original]
Mitchell’s pitch was based on the good money, short working hours, and lack of racial prejudice found in Paris. Seventy-five dollars a week was unheard of for a black musician working in New York at the time, and to have steady employment guaranteed for as much as 6 months, rather than having to constantly scuffle for one nighters, was also highly attractive. As we have seen, when working in the brothels and sporting houses of Baltimore , Blake had to work long hours – often from 10 PM to sunrise—for little pay—starting as a teen at just $3.00 a week (although tips from patrons often made up for the lack of salary).
However, what is most noteworthy about this letter is that, as early as 1918, Mitchell recognized the lack of racial prejudice in Paris, noting that even the presence of the bigoted American soldiers could not change the French enthusiasm for black culture. Even working for Europe playing in New York in the finest society homes, black musicians faced prejudice, entering through the backdoor, staying with the servants until being called on to perform, and not daring to eat or drink the food that was being served to the guests.
