Chess Records Monologue by Adán Bean
Performed at Venkmans on March 15, 2019 as part of AJMF Presents: ATL Collective Relives The Sounds of Chess Records
OPENING MONOLOGUE
Welcome to ATL Collective partnership w/ AJMF, thank you for taking this ride with us, this ride with me,
My name is Adán Bean and
In case you haven’t realized by now, this is no longer Venkman’s
You have found yourself in Chicago 1950s.
Whether it be South Cottage Grove or South Michigan Avenue,
This is the house that Leonard and Phil built, and for this evening - it will be our pleasure having you. Emigrating from Poland, 2 brothers would discover in the seedy, dark places, what would be America’s sounds
By hearing the bebop jazz and the pizzazz of jump blues in the Macomba Lounge
And this would have a profound resonance with them - this unmistakable Black american music Songs born out longing and pain felt congruent with jewish suffering, struggle and influence
The Chess brothers were so into it, in this music, they found a home
The Synagogue prayers had traces there in Andrew Tibbs’ moans
The Old World met the cotton fields, the Warsaw ghetto shook hands w/ the Mississippi Delta
That suffering in Poland didn’t sound that different than the suffering in Selma,
And this is where it helps us - to not run from but rather run to the tension,
In the context of this great label, Chess Records, we get to ask the big questions, like:
What does it mean to be American?
To be Jewish?
To be human?
To be more precise, what does it mean to be a musician?
What does it mean to sing blues music?
Can you copyright pain and experience?
Can you trademark trauma? Can you conduct yourself in the capitalist business of music but maintain honor?
The Jewish contribution to music goes beyond any simple genre And it is my prayer that we can begin to peel back those layers during this concert,
You’ve already heard the R&B doowop of The Moonglows and Chuck Berry’s Rock & Roll Throughout tonight, you’ll hear the tunes that touched and defined America’s soul
The Howlin’ Wolf and Bo Diddley, The Minnie Riperton and Etta James, The Flamingos and Gene Ammons,
All of these incredible names…
But the place where it all began is with these two men of vision
...who believed that these voices needed to be heard and fought to provide a platform to give it to them.
These were record men who would set the trend betting on men and women’s careers
Often time going into debt, but yet - what is American idealism and entrepreneurship w/o a little fear?
So what we have here is the enterprising, the risk-takers who, as a matter of fact,
Would travel the country, functionally, selling records out the trunk of a cadillac
Add to that independent ethos, they believe that marginalized voices could have a general fanbase a label that would reshape the musical landscape w/ songs that were pretty damn great.
And tonight, we get to celebrate - this complicated tale.
This foundational label that set so many careers a sail,
This home for soul, for gospel, for rock and roll, for jazz and blues,
They set the stage for the 60s, the Rolling Stones, Beatles and the Who,
We can examine business practices, but the remarkable legacy cannot be questioned
So lose yourself in this audio odyssey - as with continue on with the Sounds of Chess Records.
HALFWAY MONOLOGUE
This is a tale of preservation.
A story of triumph and struggle.
A narrative creating art out of loss, crafting tunes from one’s trouble.
There’s no way to speak on Chess and all that it did at the very best,
Without also speaking of how they’d blur the line between exploitation and finesse
Yes, to get records spun, they’d play loose with the proper attribution of efforts,
In exchange for plays, they’d give deejays unearned writing credits Instead of paying artists proper royalties, they’d gift cars or cover bills,
They’d even go as far as to get artists drunk at the time they were to review and sign their record deals,
So was it all wrong?
Was it alright?
Were all the dealings underhand?
Wading in those waters can get as muddy as any hoochie coochie man.
See Leonard looked where others didn’t to uplift those who others wouldn’t.
He believed in cultural equality and took chances when others would advise he shouldn’t
He put in sweat equity, believing this music should be celebrated
That even if the musicians were black, and the label was jewish, the audience didn’t have to have that designation,
Society was segregated, but that wasn’t the experience with our ears,
Good music is good music and it is something that everyone would want to hear.
Chess launched and fostered so many careers, not just the vocalists but also the musicians in sessions,
Guitarist like Phil Cosey, Gerald Sims and Phil Upchurch, not to mention
Pianist Leonard Caston who would later produce for Motown doing incredible work
The organist Sonny Thompson could take ya’ll to church,
Drummer Maurice White and bassist Louis Satterfield would continually inspire
And later on go on to form a little band by the name of Earth, Wind and Fire.
And tonight we pay homage, so this evening let go of your cares, worries and bothers,
As the incredibly gifted jazz pianist and director of AJMF, Joe Alterman leads us in Ramsey Lewis’ Wade in the Water.
CLOSING MONOLOGUE
And we are now, rounding 3rd base and heading home,
These artists and musicians have put their blood, sweat and tears into these songs
Chess Records is tale of two communities, African Americans and Jews,
That found commanility in the reality of this country, with a soundtrack that is honest and true It’s a story that shows strength in our diversity; the value and uniqueness that we bring
If Black folks provide the rhythm to this music than the Jews give it the lyrical swing
This musical marriage.
This horse and carriage romance where we slow dance with the tunes
This courting of the colloquial in the text
The power inherent in the blues Whether Gershwin or Irving Berlin, Leonard Cohen or Carly Simon It’s not just the emotive power in the performance, it’s the remarkable signature timing Leonard and Phil went mining for Black Gold and you’ll hear it in this next song,
Threading the needle between the personal and universal, made it palatable but potent and strong Psychedelic, but grounded - haunting, but beautiful.
Minnie Ripperton’s vocals and the complex arrangements, the soaring composition form a combination that’s irrefutable
So the indisputable legacy of Chess Records was put on full display tonight
This unmistakably Jewish story is an inextricably Black american story which is also a story of this country’s past and present plight
This is blended music in all of it’s murky, magical and miraculous hybrids And we will close out the night right, Chess Records - the sound of an American music that is timeless.
For more information on Adán, please visit: www.iamadanbean.com
And here are a couple of Adán’s recommended timely resources: