What style of music do you play?

We play Chicago-style music, modelling ourselves on the outfits which Eddie Condon fronted in 1950's New York.

In the early 1920's Eddie Condon, a self-taught banjo player, moved to the bustling city of Chicago to find work. It was here that Eddie met and played with his contemporaries and heard King Oliver's famous Creole Jazzband, which included a young Louis Armstrong on cornet. Eddie and his fellow young white musicians, which included Bix Beiderbecke, fell under the spell of this and other New Orleans bands which made the trip up the Mississippi to Chicago. Learning all they could from the New Orleans creators of jazz, these young musicians recorded extensively during the latter half of the decade.

However, a chronic shortage of work forced many musicians to look further afield. One by one the majority moved to New York. Eddie Condon was no exception, making the trip in early 1928. By the mid 1940's Eddie was running his own club in Greenwch Village. The music which his bands played epitomised the hard swinging, no holds barred approach to traditional jazz which the Bright Stars of Jazz aspire to play.

How can I find out more?

For contact details for the Bright Stars of Jazz, please click here.

For links to other jazz sites, see our links page.