First of all, let's take this 'Subway'. In England, they call it 'The Underground', while it's 'Le Metro' in France. (I was living on 59th Street and Central Park West in those days, and caught the "A" Train at Columbus Circle - a huge 3-block long underground station.) Here we go, just down these steps, push a nickel into the turnstile slot, and now walk down these other stairs. In a little bit, the D, C, and A trains of the INDependent line, will come by. We'll take the "A" train, because, unlike the "D", the "A" runs as an 'express'- no stops - between the 59th and the 110th Street stations. Just one stop, and we're in Harlem. Yes... you guessed it. This is where Ellington got the inspiration for his hit song, "Take The A Train" - up to Sugar Hill and Harlem.

OK, here's our "A" train, let's get on. Now, as we zoom up track, let me tell you a little about Harlem.

Harlem was 'segregated' right up to about the early 1920s. Yes. It was an all-white, predominantly Irish neighborhood. Later on, the Irish migrated to the upper tip of Manahattan, -the Inwood Section.

Clustered between 125th Street and 135th Street, and between Lenox and Seventh avenues in Harlem, over 125 entertainment places were active during the 1920s and '30s. There were speakeasies, cellars, lounges, cafes (20+), taverns, supper clubs, rib joints, theaters, dance halls, and an uncounted number of bars and grills.

There were ten theaters around the neighborhood. All the theaters were segregated too (shamefully)- 'Whites' only admitted. Just the Alhambra (seventh avenue) and the Crescent Theaters, these two, were the only 'Black' theaters in Harlem, the others were all segregated - for whites only. These included the Douglas, the Harlem Opera House (dating to 1889, it was the oldest), the Lafayette (seventh ave.), the Lincoln (135th St.), the Odeon and the Oriental.

The Lincoln Theatre is interesting. In the 1920's Fats Waller played the organ for the Silent Motion Pictures. Milton Gusdorfer owned the Lincoln. By the way, did you know that the great Blues singer Bessie Smith played the Alhambra in 1927?

The Harlem Opera House, was purchased in 1922, by Frank Schiffman and Leo Brecher This is where Bardu Ali, a sideman in Chick Webb's orchestra 'discovered' a very young Ella Fitzgerald, - in an Amateur Night Contest. Later Schiffman was the proprietor of Harlem's most famous theater of all, the Apollo.

I'll bet you didn't know that the Apollo was originally known as 'The Hurtig And Seamon's Burlesque', -a 1750 seat theater located on 125th Street here in Harlem. On January 26, 1934, it became the Apollo Theater, and ultimately world famous - mostly for the great Amateur Night shows that helped develop the careers of many black artists. There are performances here seven days a week at 12:30, 3:30, 6:30, and 9:30 p.m., and an additional midnight show on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday. The contracts generally are for a one week appearance performing 31 shows.

Then there was the Lafayette Theater. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson - The World's greatest tap dancer - (had his Gold pistol in his left hand as he danced.) is on stage here. Friday night is the midnight show. Most negro revues begin and end here.

The Douglas Theater, on 142nd & Lenox Ave. Don't forget the Douglas because The Cotton Club is on the 2nd floor, just over the Lobby.

There are a lot of ballrooms up here, too. The Congress Casino is up on 132nd Street; the Golden Gate is on West 135th Street; Rose Danceland is on the second floor at the corner of Seventh avenue and 125th street; The Garden of Joy is a canvas-enclosed dance hall situated on top of a rock shelf on Seventh Avenue between 138th and 139th Streets. The Alhambra is on Seventh Avenue. And, let's not forget the world famous Savoy Ballroom. It uses the entire block from 141st to 142nd Streets.

Well, here we are. The train is stopping at 125th Street. Let's get off and we'll stroll up and down Lenox and Seventh Avenues and take in all the excitement.

HARLEM (~1930)
++++++++++++++
Harlem was at it's swinging-est peak from the mid-1920s to the mid-1930's. Folks from all over the world, as well as the local New Yorkers, came to Harlem for an evening of pleasure and 'Hot' entertainment. It was the hey day of Harlem night life.

The "big four" Clubs were: the Cotton Club; Connie's Inn; Smalls Paradise, and Barron Wilkin's Club. While they were the big-4, there may have been upwards of a few hundred others.

Cotton Club 142nd Street and Lenox Ave.
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(Here's a close up of the Cotton Club's Entrance.) 1923 was the year of the first Cotton Club revue. Did you know that it was Fletcher Henderson's (very first) band that opened the club. A young Coleman Hawkins and an equally young Don Redman were in the band. The Club put on two revues per year for the next 16 years. Lew Leslie -now recalled as the producer of "The Blackbirds of 192x" was the earliest producer of the club's revues, which featured 6 Lovely Tan chorines and 6 dancing chorus boys, comics, and all manner of vaudevillians. The team of Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh were greatly responsible for the great music heard in those early revues. They were later followed by another wonderful songwriting team, - Ted Koehler and Harold Arlen. Here's a photo of a 1929 Cotton Club Advertising Poster, showing some "swells" arriving for the show. And, here's a poster advertising the appearance of Cab Calloway's Band. Some of the fastest stepping 'hot' revues in New York will be found here at the Cotton Club. (Actually, Henderson was the first band. When he left, a 'house band' briefly took over. When that unit's leader died, Duke Ellington was 'persuaded' to come in. And, when the Duke left, Cab Calloway moved in -and was just wonderful.) The Cotton Club is called the "Aristocrat of Harlem". If you stand here a while, you'll see all the 'swells' getting out of their Stutz Bearcats and Roll Royces. Dapper Jimmy Walker, the mayor of NY; and movie stars like George Raft; --say, even Emily Vanderbilt comes up here. Very often, you'll see the Black locals lined up to gawk at patrons getting out of their cars or taxis.

The well known gangster Owney Madden, with Al Capone's blessing and cash, took over fighter Jack Johnson's, then failing, Club Deluxe. Back then, Owney was one of the leading Bootleggers, and he needed the club as an outlet for his illegal hooch. Re-decorated and re-opened, in 1923, as the Cotton Club, Owney ran it with a "For Whites Only" policy. The club's manager, George "Big Frenchy" Demange even turned away W.C. Handy. Madden's thugs also kept out inter-racial couples. Even the revues here were all written by white folks such as, Harold Arlen; Ted Koehler; Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh, and produced by Lew Leslie. Of course with talent of that caliber, any joint would be a smash success.

Did you know that Lena Horne started her career here as a 16 year old chorine. In 1923, Duke Ellington had been booked into the Kentucky Club, where he remained for 5 years. In 1927, the leader of the Cotton Club's house unit died. Some folks say that the management 'commanded' Duke Ellington to take over, whether he had other contracts, desires or commitments. But some other folks say that maybe Jimmy McHugh or perhaps Irving Mills, who had become the Duke's manager while Ellington was still at the Kentucky Club, may have been responsible for booking him into the Cotton Club. In any event, Ellington's band opened on Dec. 4, 1927, and here's a photo of the band as they appeared in 1927, at the Cotton Club, where they stayed until 1931, during which time, the Duke composed "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" (with his trumpeter Bubber Miley), the band's theme song; "Black and Tan Fantasy"; "The Mooch", and "Creole Love Call", a hit vocal for the band's singer, Adelaide Hall. In 1931, Cab Calloway's band was booked, replacing Ellington.

In 1933, Prohibition ended, and in 1936 The Cotton Club moved downtown to Broadway and 48th Street 'The Harlem Renaissance', fueled by Prohibition and White patronage, had also ended. Before the club's move downtown, virtually every major Black entertainer and orchestra had already appeared at the club.

There, you're greeted at the door downstairs, that's the club, and then you go up a line of stairs to the Dining Room. 'Kid' Grimlinn, the head waiter, seats you. Cab Calloway's band will be playing and many of the patrons will be dancing. Say, the 'Kid' is handing us the Menu. And, while you're looking it over, let me light your cigarette, -with a match from one of these Matchboxes, found on each table here.

After an hour or so, the floor show starts. The show has a 12 person Chorus line - 6 chorus boys, and 6 of the most luscious sepia chorus girls you've ever seen, - all 'light-skinned' "high-Yaller" girls. You will hear singers such as Aletha Hill; Ethel Waters, ("Sweet Mama Stringbean"), and May Johnson. There are acts such as Jazzroot Richardson; and dancers such as Coles and Atkinson. All in all, you will be treated to about 1-1/2 hours of some of the greatest entertainment imaginable.

Connie's Inn - 2221 Seventh Avenue
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The club was on "The Corner" of 131st Street and 7th Avenue, in this basement next to the Lafayette Theater. Hey, let's stop in and listen to the Don Redman Band. He's got a great crooner, what's his name, -- Harlan Lattimore. This is a great place, but it was even greater in 1929 when Louis Armstrong came here from Chicago. The Cotton Club is Connie's only 'real' competition. Connie's opened in November 1921 calling itself the 'Shuffle Inn', in honor of Sissle and Blakes Broadway hit show 'Shuffle Along'. Songwriter Luckey Roberts led the house band.

Connie and George Immerman had emigrated from Germany and originally ran a delicatessen up here in Harlem, where Fats Waller was the delivery boy. By and by, they purchased Connie's. The Immermans moved the entrance from the 131st Street side to Seventh Avenue. That entrance was opened on June 1923, -with the famous Tree of Hope in front.

Connie's has one of the greatest revues you'll ever see. In 1929, Louis Armstrong came, from Chicago, with Carroll Dickerson's orchestra. The floor show was Razaf & Waller's Hot Chocolates. (It later opened on Broadway with songs like "Ain't Misbehavin'" etc.) This place is one of Mark Hellinger's favorites. You'll see a lot of big names in here. (Take a look at this 1935 poster advertisement for Louis Armstrong's Orchestra, then playing at Connie's.)

The Cotton Club and Connie's are both segregated - Whites Only! Look what it says here in this newspaper, about Connie's. "Immerman's is opened to Slummers; Sports; "coke" addicts, and high rollers of the White race who come to Harlem to indulge in illicit and illegal recreations." --New York Age.
Wow! That reporter is a real 'Spoil Sport'!

But things change. Later on, Connie's opened to black musicians in the wee, small hours, - after the white patrons had gone home.

Smalls Paradise 229 1/2 -7th Ave. (135th St.)
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Ed Small runs this joint and offers big band sessions and exotic floor shows. Cafe Au Lait Chorines and Dancing Waiters that do the Charleston while busing trays of food and (bootleg) drinks. (In 1932, they built a new police station nearby.) Say, did you know that Ed Small's father was Captain Robert Small, who served during the Civil War? Between 1917 to 1925, Ed Small had a place over at 2212 Fifth Avenue that he called 'The Sugar Cane Club'. This may have been the first Harlem joint to attract the 'swells' from downtown. In October 1925, Small opened The Paradise at 2294-1/2 Seventh Avenue. Piano playing Charlie Johnson's orchestra was the house unit for near 10 years.

Barron Wilken's 134th St. and 7th Ave.
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Let's walk just two blocks up from Connie's. Here we are, - Wilken's (Originally called the "Exclusive Club"). Only "members" are allowed in. The joint opens at 11PM, but things really start hopping around 1PM. A $100 bill won't go very far in here. (In 1933, the average worker's weekly paycheck was $16.00 - assuming one could find a job during the great economic depression. A lot of folks were sleeping in "shanty towns" (called 'Hoover-villes' -named for then President Hoover) along the shores of the Hudson River.)

This place is known as "the rich mans Black and White" club. Barron caters to big spenders, gamblers, sports, and women. Back in 1923, Duke Ellington called this place the top spot in Harlem.

In 1926, Wilkens - "the night life king" - was murdered by a junkie/gambler named Yellow Charleston.

After the big four clubs, there are many other lesser, but greatly entertaining places for us to visit.

Basement Brownies - West 133rd Street
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Boy, you gotta stop here. Not only is this a stride pianists hang out, but it's a favorite of another young piano player -Art Tatum.

The Elk's Rendezvous - Lenox Ave.
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Let's go in and get a drink....er...of coffee. The regular house band is Louis Jordan and his Tympani Five, and they are really hot. Don't confuse this place with the later "The Rendezvous" over on St. Nicholas Ave. That was owned by "Luckey" Roberts. All through the 1920s, Luckey was the darling bandleader of the Millionaire crowd. His band played in New York, Newport, RI, and Palm Beach, FL. Luckey was an early Ragtime soloist who also composed original Rags including "Pork and Beans Rag", and "Junk Man Rag ". Luckey helped the Duke of Windsor to pick his record collection, and Luckey also was a big influence on Duke Ellington.

The Campus - 104th Street and Columbus Avenue
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This joint is a little below Harlem, but we got to stop in to hear the house pianist....Eubie Blake. It's called the Campus, because it's located just a little south of Columbia University.

The Barbecue
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Located directly above Connie's Inn. This joint's a popular musicians hangout. They say it had the first Juke Box in New York City.

Roane's Place - 141st & Lennox Ave.
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Ellington's drummer, Sonny Greer, once told a writer "The last show at the Cotton Club went on at 2:00 PM and the club closed at 3:30 or four. Then, everybody would go next door to Happy Roane's or to the breakfast dance at Small's Paradise, where the floor show went on at six o'clock in the morning ..... It was the complete show with 25 or 30 people, including the singing waiters and their twirling trays. Show people from all over New York, white and colored, went there Sunday mornings. It's hard to imagine now, musicians coming out from the breakfast dance at eight or nine in the morning with their tuxedos on, and showgirls with evening dresses on. Or Charlie Johnson's band there at six or seven in the morning, with maybe twenty-five musicians from the bands all over town, white and colored, playing at one time, all the top names in music business." --Stanley Dance 'The World of Duke Ellington'.

Band Box Club
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Look, right across the street from The Barbecue, - the Band Box Club, A musician - name of Addington Major - runs this joint. There's no entertainment here, but there are impromptu sessions by musician patrons.

RADIUM CLUB (Open all Night) - Jeff Blount, Headman.
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Just up this one flight of steps. (All these old tenements have 'stoops'. There's a Big Breakfast Dance here every Sunday Morning 4 - 5 AM. The crowd is 90% black and 10% whites.

The Lenox Club Anybody remember?
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Another of the places where you could go at 4 - 5AM for breakfast dancing. Keep dancing right up to the 7 o'clock whistle, then off to work. Long weekend, isn't it.

All those Joints on "Jungle Alley"
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That's what they called this strip of West 133rd Street between Lenox and 7th Avenue. It's populated with black clubs frequented by whites. Clubs are opening and closing all the time around here. But, here's a few of the better ones.

Mexico's
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Red Hot music. Furious 'cutting contest' between youngsters coming up and jazz greats like Ben Webster; Don Byas, and Coleman Hawkins. A must stop.

LOG CABIN Pod's & Jerry's - Props.
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Ask for Geo. Woods. Tell him 'Murray sent ya'. Intimate little spot. Lotsa Blues. Say, let's go in and listen to Willie "the Lion" Smith tickling the Ivories.

If there is somebody that's famous and that you want to meet, just drop in here. On any given night, you just might find Bix Beidebecke; Texas Guinan, (up from Texas for a night); Jack Teagarden; Tallullah Bankhead; Paul Whiteman; Helen Morgan; Benny Goodman; Joan Crawford; Bea Lillie; Mae West, and Jack Dempsey.

Tillie's Chicken Shack
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Specializes in Fried chicken and it's really good. Don't forget to order Tillie's sweet potato pie for dessert. There's a female singer here, "Elmira". You just have to hear her sing her torch song, "Stop it Joe".

Tillie's was so popular, they had to move first to larger quarters on 120th St, and then downtown.

The Clam House (Open all Night)
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Hey, let's stop in here. The owner, Gladys Bentley, (b. August 12, 1907, Philadelphia, PA, USA, d. January 18, 1960, influenza) wears a Tuxedo and Top Hat, and tickles the ivories. Popular with Whites who like to listen to Gladys, the "Brown Bomber of Sophisticated Songs", singing songs with double-entendre lyrics. This joint also has a female impersonator called Gloria Swanson. I gotta tell ya, 1920s Harlem (now known as the 'Harlem Renaissance') was experiencing a dazzling outpouring of African-American cultural achievement. Interestingly, a few of the Black Artists, --intellectuals, writers and musicians, living in Harlem, were gay or bisexual, including Gladys Bentley, writer Langston Hughes, Bessie Smith and Ethel Waters (Yes, Ethel, "sweet mama stringbean", was bi-sexual). Bentley was openly lesbian, -a "butch dyke" (who was tagged: "The Bulldagger of the Blues"). Her 'marriage' to a white woman from New Jersey was widely publicized and often the subject of gossip columnists. In the 1920s, Gladys appeared at Harry Hansberry's "Clam House" on 133rd Street, one of New York City's most notorious "gay" speakeasies. In the early 1930s, she headlined at Harlem's Ubangi Club, where she was backed up by a chorus line of 'drag queens'. Gladys, a 250 pound "bull dyke", dressed in a man's white tuxedo and top hat, would play a mean piano, and in her deep, growling voice, sing her own obscene lyrics to popular tunes of the day, - all the while outrageously flirting with women in the audience. The crash of the stock market and the ensuing 'Great Depression' had it's impact on Harlem. In 1937, with club dates waning, Bentley moved to Los Angeles to live with her mother. She appeared in Los Angeles clubs catering to a gay clientele, such as 'Joquins' El Rancho', and also appeared in San Francisco's Mona's Club (Mona's Club 440 later became Anne's 440, and featured San Francisco singer Johnny Mathis. Today it is the Club Chi-Chi.). Here's another Mona's 440 Club advertisement

Well, let's leave Jungle Alley. There are still a lot more clubs for us to visit tonight. A whole lot more.

CLUB HOT CHA (Open all Night) (134th ST.??)
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Nothing happens here before 2AM. Ask for Clarence. Mention my name.

The THEATRICAL GRILL (Open all Night) near 134th St.
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Dickie Wells and Gene - Props. Jimmy Mordecai, manager. A cellar club. Just walk down this flight of stairs. You've never heard a piano played until you've heard Garland Wilson tickling the Ivories.

131st St & Lenox Ave.
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In this section of Harlem, there are clubs opening and closing at all times -- There are just too many to list here.

Bamboo Inn
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They are over on 7th ave at 139th Street. The Inn advertised itself (Amsterdam News, Feb. 1, 1928, p9) as the "largest and finest Chinese and American restaurant in Harlem" with "good food" at "popular prices" and "no cover charge". The "Special Sunday Dinner" at the Bamboo Inn was just One Dollar. (Back in 1928, very few folks could afford to pay One Dollar for a dinner!) "Henri Saparo and his Bamboo Inn Orchestra" were resident here, and in the three months before the joint burned down in 1928, a very young Harry Carney (age 17), was a member of the orchestra. (Harry then became a mainstay with Duke Ellington's Orchestra, which was playing at the Kentucky Club.) An article written by Stanley dance in the 'The Jazz Journal" (June 1961, p5) quoted Harry Carney: "Duke was working at the Kentucky Club and on his night off he would come to the Bamboo Inn to dine and listen to the band.

Mom Young's - on 131st St.
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Mom is an ex "Sporting Lady". Bring a 1 pound (1/2 Kilo) empty Coffee can, and Mom will fill it with Beer for a 25 cents. Each night "Mom's" cooks up something different; Gumbo, Chili, --good stuff.
Late at night, say 12 -1PM, The Chorus girls come out and start dancing. (More 'good stuff')

Monette Moore's Place 133rd st.
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You know, one night back in 1933, Monette was ill and couldn't sing. So, the patrons heard a substitute vocalist, name of Billie Holiday. Billie was the daughter of Clarence Holiday, guitarist in the Fletcher Henderson Orch. (Here's a photo of an advertising poster for Billie's 1948 performance at New York's Town Hall. It show's Billie with her 'trademark' gardenia behind her left ear.

Plantation Club - 126th St near Lenox Ave.
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About 1930, this club was opened as a Cotton Club 'opposition'. They even hired Cab Calloway's band away from the Cotton Club. Alas, Owney Madden, or perhaps a few of his (ahem) "friends", didn't think too highly of the idea. Two nights after the opening, owner Harry Block was found dead, and the various bits and pieces of the club's bar and other fixtures were found in the gutter out front.

Say, look over there. It's the
Savoy Ballroom - entire block from 140th to 141st St., Lenox Avenue
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"The Home of Happy Feet". Lots of folks doin' the Lindy Hop. Charlie Buchanan is the manager. Tell Charlie, I sent ya. Look! Here's a poster advertising the Chick Webb Orchestra's, appearance at the Savoy in 1935. Notice how vocalist Ella Fitzgerald was already being featured.

The Yeah Man Club - Near 138th St. & 7th Avenue.
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A Cellar Club. Just down this flight of stairs. A small band plays here. Listen or dance. Sip a cup of good, ..ahem..cough..gag,... Coffee, -about three fingers full. Lots of "scandal" associated with this dive, - not only is it a prohibition speakeasy, but at times also a Gay/Lesbian club, much like 'The Clam House' (see above).

Gee, we won't have time to visit every club tonight, we'll have to pass up Brownies Basement, The Hoofer's Club (a 'tap' dancers spot), The Sugar Cane Club ( 2212 135th St. at Lenox Avnue, opened 1929 by Ed Small), The Little Savoy, Bamville (originally owned by Noble Sissle & Eubie Blake) and the Bamboo Club on 7th Ave, opened 1930

And, let's wander up and down Seventh and Lenox Avenues.
=======================================================
You can see lots of street vendors selling all manner of things.

Here's the:
Hot Peanuts man, with his charcoal fired, converted Baby Carriage cart.

The Crab Man. Dressed in a white apron, with a crushed Chef's toque, and carrying a basket, covered with a white towel, of Hot Fried Crabs.

Psst. I'm the Reefer Man. Marahuana Cigarettes, 2 for $25

"Hey, buddy, you know the 'number' fo' the policy?" It was called the "Policy Racket", when the mob was running it. But now that the 'legitimate' politicians run it, it's called "Lotto or Pick 3, etc.)

Doing the Bump-a-dance.

Say, ain't that "Snakehips" Earl Tucker, originator of that weird dance called the "Snakehips"

And.... HEY... here's Fats Waller, buying a little snack from one of the street vendors. Let's yell out --"Say Fats, Love Ya man!" That's a "Hot Dog" Pushcart on the left, and (I think) a "Watermelon Man" on the right (selling slices).

"Psst. Buddy, - A Shorty ?? - $35.00" (Harlem's "National" drink!) During prohibition: In Harlem, a "shorty" was a bottle whose length would fit between the outstretched thumb and pinky fingers.
Of course, it's filled with the finest of Gins, not that cheap "Bathtub" variety. This stuff is sent down to us from the boys up in Chicago. They import it from some Canadian friends of theirs.

Maybe 500 or more speakeasies were open in Harlem during prohibition. They stayed open all night. SEVENTH AVENUE, aka Heaven.

Over here on 125th Street, some nice little shops will be opening when the sun comes up. There's
     Frank's Luncheonette,    and look over there,
     Childs.                           is just across street from Frank's
     Loft's Candy Shop,          is next door to Childs. While
     Fabian's Seafood Shop.   is just down the street from Loft's

Hey! Look! The sky is beginning to brighten. Well, I guess we should step down these Subway stairs and take the good old "A" Train back downtown, and home. We have to "get up" in an hour, and get ready to go to work. Hope you enjoyed your visit to Harlem, - let's do it again some night.      signed, "Mainframe" Murray Pfeffer

Epilog:
Well, my friend and I did go back uptown a week or so later, and we first took in the
  Apollo Theatre Revue   With Lionel Hampton, -both on vibes and drums, Count Basie, Cab Calloway, Herb Jeffries, Sarah Vaughn, Big Joe Turner, Nat "King" Cole, Delta Rhythm Boys, Faye Adams, and much more. Then... we visited all the clubs. There's just no place as great as Harlem!