Memphis Jug Band - Biography
By J Poet
Jug band music was an offshoot of the blues that concentrated heavily on the rhythms generated by jug, washboard, kazoo, and guitar. The Memphis Jug Band was wildly popular in its day, the most recorded jug band ever, with over 100 singles cut for Victor and other labels. Their only competition was Gus Cannon's Jug Stompers, although there were many other jug bands popular throughout the south in the 1920s and early 30s.
Bandleader Will Shade was born in Memphis in 1898. He learned guitar by befriending street musician Tee-Wee Blackman and taking lessons from him. Shade joined a medicine show and toured the south picking up harmonica, washtub bass and washboard along the way. Seeing Clifford Haye's Jug Blowers inspired Shade to start the Memphis Jug Band, a group with an ever-changing line up. They started by playing on Beale Street for spare change and got “discovered” by Ralph Peer, the Victor A&R man who was responsible for the first commercial blues and country music records including the Bristol Barn Sessions with The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers.
Peer recorded their first singles in 1927, and they were popular enough to get them more sessions and a slot opening for Ma Rainey in Chicago. Later in 1927, guitarist Charlie Burse joined up and the interplay between his guitar and Shade’s harmonica, and their vocal harmonies, became the band’s trademark sound. Shade led the band, selected their tunes, wrote and arranged music, and picked the players for each gig and recording session. Peer eventually gave Shade a $25.00 a week salary (against future royalties), which allowed him to buy a house. The band’s popularity touched off a jug band craze and Shade often had two different versions of the band on the road at the same time to play all the gigs they were getting. They were so prolific that they also recorded as the Carolina Peanut Boys, The Picaninny Jug Band and The Memphis Sheiks. The Best of the Memphis Jug Band (2001 Yazoo) collects 23 of their Victor hits including the classics “Stealin,’” “K.C. Moan,” “Insane Crazy Blues,” and “Cocaine Habit Blues.” Their Victor singles are compiled on Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 1 (1927-1928) (1990 Document UK), Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 2 (1928-1929) (1994 Document UK), Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 3 (1930) (1995 Document UK), Memphis Jug Band, Vol. 2 (1998 Frog UK), Memphis Jug Band, Vol. 3 (1998 Frog UK), and State of Tennessee Blues (1995 Memphis Archives.)
When Victor closed their Memphis operation, the band recorded briefly for Champion, Vocalion, and Okeh. Those sides can be found on Complete Vocalion and Okeh Recordings Plus Unissued Victor Tests (2007 Frog UK.) As the Great Depression deepened, the band’s work at parties and clubs vanished. By 1956 Shade was living in poverty and Burse was just scraping by. Folklorist Sam Charters tracked them down and they made an album for Folkways that year. They tried to take advantage of the folk and blues revival when they cut Walk Right In (1963 Sax) with their old rival Gus Cannon to capitalize on The Rooftop Singers #1 single of “Walk Right In” but the album fared poorly. Burse died in 1965, Shade in 1966.
