Beats Exotiques,
Fascinating dance film footage of swing dancers in a black
club in the US in 1914. I found a silent version and overdubbed it with
"Ballin 'the Jack" by Kid Ory, a jazz hit from 1913 which seems to
work with the routine!
Jazz routines like the 'Big Apple' are still danced in circles in swing clubs today. Everyone is clearly having a great time. Love the men fanning their coat tails to the ladies!
Check out the snare played side drum style in this rare
footage. Ory's band in New Orleans in the 1910s was hiring many of the great
jazz musicians of the city including "King" Oliver and Louis
Armstrong.
-snip-
I think that the portion of this film clip that begins at 1:32 to the end of the clip is the portion that features the "balling the Jack" dance and the early portion features the "Big Apple" dance.
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Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest Revision- April 15, 2022
This pancocojams post presents information about "Ballin' the Jack".
This post also showcases two film clips of "Ballin' the Jack" from the early 1900s as well as one film clip of that dance from 1986.
The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the unknown creators of this dance. Thanks also to the film makers, all those who are featured in these film clips, and the publisher of these film clips on YouTube. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
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INFORMATION ABOUT AND DESCRIPTIONS OF THE "BALLIN THE JACK" DANCE
Excerpt #1
from Black Dance, by Lynne Fauley Emery (1973; second, revised edition, Princeton Horizons Book) This excerpt is from the chapter titled "From Minstrelsy to "Darktown Follies". (This excerpt is given as is, including ellipses "...", except for source citations.
[page] 213
"It was Darktown Follies, produced in Harlem's Lafayette Theatre in 1913 , which began the nightly procession of whites to Harlem for entertainment. It was also the Darktown Follies which introduced the second Negro dance to sweep the country. The dance was Ballin' the Jack, which appeared in the finale of the first act. Johnson siad this finale was
[page] 214
...'one of those miraacles of originality which occasionally come to pass in the world of musical comedy...The whole company formed an endless chain that passed before the footlights and behind he scenes, round andround, singing and executing a movement from a dance called "ballin the jack", one of those Negro dances which periodically come along and sweep the country.'
This serpentine,circular, shuffling dance could certainly have been related to the plantation Ring-Shout; undoubtedly it was of Negro origin. Parrish saw "Ball the Jack" in the Georgia Sea Islands and stated that "Snake Hip" would be a more appropriate name for the dance which kept the "head and shoulders stationary... but there [was] a flow of undulating rhythm from chest to heels, with afew rotations in the hip region... The Dictionary of Folklore described "Ball the Jack" as a dance accompanied by handclapping...the head and feet remaining still and the rest of the body undulating, with a rotation of the hips called 'snake hips".
Van Vechten was impressed with this circular dance of the Darktown Follies and wrote that it was done with spontaneity and joy in the doing. A ballet in ebony and ivory and rose....
They stepped about and clapped their hand and 'gre mad with their bodies'...
Besides Ballin' the Jack, Downtown Follies had a wide variety of dancing. There was some tap dance done by Toots Davis and Eddie Rector, a Cake-Walk finale, and a dance called the Texas Tommy/ Ethel Williams, one of the stars of Darktown, told Marshall Stearns that the Texas Tommy
...'was like the Lindy but there were two basic steps- a kick and hop three times on each foot, and then add whatever you want, turning, pulling, sliding. Your partner had to keep you from falling-I've slid into the orchestra pit more than once.' "
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Excerpt #2
From https://www.streetswing.com/histmain/z3balin.htm
"Ballin the Jack
Ballin' the Jack is basically just a sensual, gyration dance with bumps and grinds. Notorious in its day, it was done as a solo dance or along with swing dancing. It's first public appearance was in 1913 at the Lafayette Theater in Harlem, the play was called "The Darktown Follies" produced by Leubrie Hill in the first act called "At The Ball, That's All." Florence Ziegfeld loved it so much he purchased the rights and used it in his Follies of 1913.
In 1913 dancer and composer Chris Smith wrote the song titled "Ballin' The Jack," based on a Negro song that was becoming a dance fad across the nation with white America. Most people think of Ballin' the Jack as a swing variant such as the Big Apple and Truckin'. However in the early 1900's, it was a dance all in its own. When it merged with the Lindy Hop, it lost most of its original form and became just a sidekick to swing dance…
There are stories that 'Ballin' the Jack' was sung by the African-Americans while laying rail for the rail road companies in the 1890's. The "Jack" was a common name for a locomotive (the jackass carrying the load), and Ballin' was the trainmen's hand gestures to 'Highball it' or "High Balling" which means, "faster or to have fun."
a side note: The vintage 'Little Wonder Records' had the title of 'Ballin' The Jack' in 1909. The last patent date listed on the record is 11/30/1909.
Birth Place: USA
Creation Date: (song: 1909/1913) | (dance: c.1899)
Creator: African-Americans
Dance Type: Swing”….
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Excerpt #3
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballin%27_the_Jack
" "Ballin' the Jack" (or sometimes "Balling the
Jack") is a popular song from 1913 written by Jim Burris with music by
Chris Smith. It introduced a popular dance of the same name with "Folks in
Georgia's 'bout to go insane." It became a ragtime, pop, and trad jazz
standard, and has been recorded hundreds of times.[1]
Origin
The origins of the term are obscure. Around the same time
the song came out, the expression "ballin' the jack" was used by
railroad workers to mean "going at full speed." 'The 'Jack' was the
slang name for a railroad locomotive, and balling meant going at high speed,
itself derived from the ball type of railroad signal in which a high ball meant
a clear line.[2]
The composer and entertainer Perry Bradford claimed to have seen the dance steps performed around 1909 [3][4] and they are similar to the shimmy which has black African origins.[5][6]
The dance moves were standardized in the Savoy Ballroom, and put to music by Smith and Burris in 1913. The tune became popular in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1913.[3]”…
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LYRICS: BALLIN THE JACK
Ballin’ the Jack (1913)
(w) Jim Burris (m) Chris Smith (I) Musical: The Passing Show
of 1915 (P) Prince’s Orchestra (CR) Judy Garland and Gene Kelly
http://www.exelana.com/lyrics/BallinTheJack.html
Verse 1: Folks in Georgia’s ’bout to go insane
Since that new dance down in Georgia came.
I’m the only person who’s to blame.
I’m the party introduced it there. So!
Give me credit to know a thing or two.
Give me credit for springing something new.
I will show this little dance to you.
When I do, you’ll say that it’s a bear
Chorus: First you put your two knees close up tight.
Then you sway ’em to the left
Then you sway ’em to the right.
Step around the floor kind of nice and light.
Then you twis’ around and twis’ around with all your might.
Stretch your lovin’ arms straight out in space.
Then you do the Eagle Rock with style and grace.
Swing your foot way ’round then bring it back.
Now that’s what I call “Ballin’ the Jack.”
Verse 1: It’s being done at all the Cabarets.
All society now has got the craze.
It’s the best dance done in modern days.
That is why I rave about it so.
Play some good rag that will make you prance.
Old folks, young folks all try to do the dance.
Join right in now while you got the chance.
Once again the steps to you I’ll show.
-snip-
Here's another verse that was posted in the discussion thread for https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChOfnmsROCE&ab_channel=Yatanis "Ballin' The Jack" published by Yatanis, Mar 8, 2011
"M Tl, 2013
"2nd verse
Knees together knees together, Hold 'em tight
Spread out, Man ain't you a sight
Let's go struttin' for some barbeque
Twist it, Turn it,
Careful or you'll burn it
Dig it, Shake it, Careful not to break it
Bake it, Boil it, Yeah that aught to make it
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Yeah
That's what I call
Ballin the Jack
-snip-
This verse may have been added to this song by another writer or writers. Please add information if you know more about this verse.
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2:
Ohujapaksu,
This song & dance number is a great period piece from the golden age of Vaudeville just before World War I. The footage comes from For Me and My Gal (MGM, 1942), the first film Judy and Gene made together. The song was originally written in 1913 by Jim Burris (words) and Chris Smith (music).
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SHOWCASE VIDEO #3: BALLIN' THE JACK
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SHOWCASE VIDEO #4: :
zerosomeone, June 10, 2015
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