Jump blues was a genre of
popular music in the mid- to late-'40s.
It consisted of a small to mid-sized band with multiple
horns, a
bassist, a
drummer and a
vocalist.
The genre came about through a melding of
traditional blues forms with
Big Band jazz, placing the emphasis on driving rhythms, pounding basslines, and staccato, shouted vocals.
In short, the precursor elements to
rock and roll.
As opposed to other
blues forms, the
guitar is de-emphasized to playing mostly rhythm. The lead instrument is generally a squalling, skronking
saxophone.
The lyrics tend to be simple, with an emphasis on sexual
double entendres and braggodocio. On a good jump blues song, those lyrics are howled or screamed, throwing the dancefloor into a frenzy.
This was the
race music that frightened
white people.
Addendum: As noted to me by user
Transitional Man (and quite correctly) a lot of what we consider "
swing," or did in that last revival, was actually jump blues. Bands like the
Big Bad Voodoo Daddies and the
Brian Setzer Orchestra were much closer to jump blues than to real, honest-to-God
swing. However, these recent musicians managed to take all of the tension and passion out of a form in order to sell it to white suburban kids. Don't let the
Cherry Poppin' Daddies stand in the way of discovering
jump blues.
Some important artists include:
Johnny Otis
Floyd Dixon
Roy Milton
Big Joe Turner
Roy Brown
The best way to familiarize yourself with this genre is through compilations, especially those from the
Mercury label of the late '40s.