Blacks of the Chesapeake

March 12, 2024 by admin

WHAT IS BLACKS OF THE CHESAPEAKE?

African-Americans who have worked and continue to work in the maritime and seafood processing industries in the Chesapeake Bay region are an integral part of this area’s rich culture and heritage. In 1994, the Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation began to document this aspect of Americana. The foundation serves the community with a broad range of historical, cultural and educational activities.

Documentation includes the book, The Chesapeake Bay Through Ebony Eyes, which provides a history of African-American contributions in the Chesapeake’s maritime industries, and includes a collection of seafood recipes, poetry, photographs and sketches; and the book, Blacks of the Chesapeake, An Integral Part of Maritime History, which provides a pictorial history of African-Americans at work as ship captains, sail makers, watermen, and seafood processing plant employees.

www.blacksofthechesapeake.com

Carr’s Beach Music Legacy

March 12, 2024 by admin

“When Anne Arundel County in Maryland was segregated, there was a place called Carr’s Beach (now Chesapeake Harbor), a summer haven for African Americans where the coolest people on the planet in music came: soul musicians Little Richard and James Brown, jazz legend Billie Holiday. Carr’s Beach was a major stop for these legendary artists.” – Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley.

THE BEACH

Carr’s Beach, at one time one of the leading beaches for east coast African Americans, was known affectionately called, “The Beach.” Although “The Beach” no longer exists as a vacation getaway spot, Carr’s Beach and its neighboring Sparrow’s Beach were two major Chesapeake Bay resorts that catered exclusively to African Americans between the 1930s and the 1960s. Owned by sisters, Elizabeth Carr Smith and Florence Carr Sparrow, the beaches were a vacation retreat for black families in the Mid-Atlantic region.

ORIGINS OF CARR’S BEACH

The origins of Carr’s Beach can be traced back to 1902, when Frederick and Mary Wells Carr purchased 180 acres of farmland on the Annapolis Neck Peninsula. While the family farmed the land as early as 1909, they hosted picnics and church outings and took in boarders. In 1926, two years before Frederick Carr’s death, the family founded Carr’s Beach.

In 1931, Florence Carr Sparrow, one of the daughters who inherited the family’s land, established Sparrow’s Beach just north of Carr’s Beach. The two resorts operated alongside each other, yet remained separate businesses. Both Carr’s and Sparrow Beaches drew large crowds from cities like Philadelphia, New York, Baltimore, Wilmington, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C., who visited primarily to enjoy swimming. During the weekdays, the beach hosted summer day camps, church picnics, and various family and community gatherings. By 3 p.m., many visitors would head to Carr’s Beach Pavilion to dance to the latest hits performed by local or regional entertainers.

After Elizabeth Carr’s death in 1948, Carr’s Beach came under the ownership of William L. “Little Willie” Adams, a businessman and numbers operator. Adams established the Carr’s Beach Amusement Company and injected much-needed capital into the resort, revitalizing its operations. With his investment, Adams expanded both the entertainment and recreational offerings, catering to visitors of all ages. By the 1950s, Carr’s Beach had become a prominent stop for major African American artists and musicians on the Chitlin’ Circuit, a network of venues across the East and South that served black audiences.

Notable performers who graced the stage during the summer weekends included jazz legends like Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, and Lionel Hampton, as well as soul icons such as Ray Charles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, Little Richard, Otis Redding, The Supremes, the Commodores, Cab Calloway, The Temptations, Ike and Tina Turner, The Shirelles, and Wilson Pickett. Rock ‘n’ roll pioneers Fats Domino and Buddy Holly also performed at Carr’s Beach. One memorable event took place on July 21, 1956, when an estimated 70,000 people flocked to the beach to see Chuck Berry perform, though only about 8,000 made it past the gates due to overcrowding. By the early 1960s, the venue hosted even more iconic artists, including Little Richard, Lloyd Price, Etta James, Aretha Franklin, The Shirelles, The Coasters, and The Drifters.

In addition to the annual rival dance contests held between African American beachgoers from Washington, D.C. and Annapolis, local residents recalled that whites also visited the beaches, making them two of the first venues in Maryland which developed a sizeable interracial clientele. Because of the crowds, the beaches organized their own special police force. As a safe and welcoming vacation destination, Carr-Sparrow Beach attracted the attention of people from diverse racial backgrounds who enjoyed good black music. Carr’s Beach was often the last stop for the entertainers who played the Howard Theatre in D.C. and/or the Baltimore Royal Theatre before they headed Down South to perform.

By the early 1960s, the black freedom movement ended Jim Crow and the popularity of Carr-Sparrow Beaches. A 1962 performance by James Brown drew 11,000 fans, but it marked the last of the major crowds drawn to the area. In the late 1960s, new owners attempted to revive the heyday of the resort (and appeal to a new audience) by inviting groups like Led Zeppelin or Rare Earth. In 1973, the beaches hosted their last show, a performance by Frank Zappa.

CARR’S BEACH / ELKTONIA BEACH

Elktonia Beach, a 5-acre waterfront parcel on the Chesapeake Bay, is the last remnant of the original 180-acre property purchased by freedman, Frederick Carr, in 1902. Carr’s and Sparrow’s Beaches were privately owned and operated by Frederick Carr’s daughters, Elizabeth Carr Smith and Florence Carr Sparrow. Carr’s Beach (1930s-1970s), represented the heart of entertainment throughout the mid-Atlantic region and welcomed Blacks during a time of segregation. It has been a nearly 20-year goal of Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation (BOCF) to preserve the remaining 5 acres of The Beaches.

PRESERVING THE LEGACY

After years of advocacy and fundraising, in 2022, the City of Annapolis, Vincent Leggett, founder of the Blacks of the Chesapeake, Chesapeake Conservancy and the state of Maryland entered into an agreement with The Conservation Fund to acquire the property through a patchwork of funding including federal, state and city Program Open Space funds. Additional support was provided by Governor Larry Hogan and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and federal appropriations were secured by U.S. Senator Ben Cardin. BOCF also received a Parks & Playgrounds Infrastructure Grant through the efforts of State Senator Sarah Elfreth. In August 2022, a signing ceremony took place, transferring the property to the City of Annapolis and creating a new city park with beach access, Elktonia-Carr’s Beach Heritage Park.

Elktonia-Carr’s Beach Heritage Park is the last remaining vestige of the original iconic property. Preservation of Elktonia Beach as a heritage park and interpreting its history for the public will ensure its legacy is fully recognized. As a public park, now all people can visit, experience and enjoy the natural and cultural resources of the Chesapeake Bay

Other notable performers at Carr’s Beach included: Billie Holiday, Count Basie, James Brown, Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding and Little Richard.

Parlor Series Vol. 3 Family Tree

March 11, 2024 by admin

Music is a tree and musicians are a family.

On this journey, we meet many people who help us shape our own personal musical family tree and every one plays an important role. It could be someone early on who turns you on to music that changes your life, a fellow musician whom you perform with every night or even sometimes, if you’re lucky, one of your musical idols. Once that connection happens, that person is forever considered “family.”

Learn more about John Clayton and Houston Person’s music project: Parlor Series Vol. 3 – Family Tree by visiting www.johnclaytonjazz.com

CHJO: And So It Goes

March 11, 2024 by admin

The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra
AND SO IT GOES

This album was years in the making and it’s a pleasure to present it to you, our listeners. It represents the laughter, thoughts, hours of discussion and experimenting, choking back of tears and just swinging hard for the sake of it, that exists in our band. I think you’ll hear some of the most intensely raw playing that this ensemble has ever done. The music covers the spectrum of colors and emotions from “letting it all hang out” (ok—I’m dating myself) to the more personal and introvertive perspective on the music.

Jeff Hamilton shines—he always does—as a player and composer. But this time he has brought some of his magical “red sparkle,” evidently left over from his pre-teen drum set.

One of my favorite tunes, BUHAINA, BUHAINA, was written by Ray Brown to feature Jeff in Ray’s trio. This definitely has that red sparkle all over it.

One could take a page out of Milt Jackson’s philosophy that if you want to be featured, contribute a tune that let’s you strut your stuff. Our bassist, Jon Hamar, did just that and the result is a wonderfully bass-centric song, THE BARN.

Our treatment of WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD is inspired by the inner conflict that Louis Armstrong had with his hit version. He was called an “Uncle Tom,” a traitor to the black community by singing a song that seemed to ignore the wars, civil rights movement, air pollution and more. His second version of the song included a spoken rebuttal that allowed him to explain what he meant; that was my head-space when I wrote this arrangement.

We dedicate this recording to the memory of my brother, Jeff. It’s our first recording without him. His spirit and musical concepts affect our approach and interpretation of everything we play. It is beautiful and uncanny how his soul remains a loving and permanent dye that colors all that we do.
AND SO IT GOES, originally arranged to feature Jeff, gets a heart-wrenching reading by our lead alto saxophonist, Keith Fiddmont.

Brother Jeff’s composition, THE JONES BROTHERS, features our newest member, alto saxophonist, Jacob Scesney and is full of the kind of fire that my late sibling would embrace.

There’s more. Lots more. I’m proud of each of these musicians and honored to grow and swing with them.

Thanks from your fan,

John
September 2023

The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra
AND SO IT GOES

Jeff Hamilton shines—he always does—as a player and composer. But this time he has brought some of his magical “red sparkle,” evidently left over from his pre-teen drum set.

One of my favorite tunes, BUHAINA, BUHAINA, was written by Ray Brown to feature Jeff in Ray’s trio. This definitely has that red sparkle all over it.

Brother Jeff’s composition, THE JONES BROTHERS, features our newest member, alto saxophonist, Jacob Scesney and is full of the kind of fire that my late sibling would embrace.

There’s more. Lots more. I’m proud of each of these musicians and honored to grow and swing with them.

Thanks from your fan,

John
September 2023

THE TUNES

1. See See Rider – Ma Rainey, Universal Music Corp/ASCAP Lena Arant/ASCAP 5:21

2. Thelonious – Thelonious Monk, Thelonious Music Corp/BMI 5:31

3. The Jones Brothers – Jeff Clayton, Claytonomics/ASCAP 7:33

4. And So It Goes – Billy Joel, Joelsongs/ASCAP 6:03

5. The Barn – Jon Hamer, Jon Hamer/BMI – 10:02

6. Haitian Fight Song – Charles Mingus, Flying Red Rhino/BMI 6:23

7. Buhaina, Buhaina – Ray Brown, Ray Brown Music/BMI 6:47

8. What a Wonderful World – Bob Thiele, George David Weiss, Abilene Music Inc./ASCAP, Bienstock Empire Music/ASCAP, Round Hill Songs II/ASCAP 3:17

9. Sybille’s Day – Jeff Hamilton – Hammertone Music/ASCAP 7:44

THANK YOUS

This album is dedicated to the memory of Jeff Clayton.

A ginormous thanks to the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra members for giving beyond the notes. Thank you, oh wonderful team: Terri & David Harper, Gail Boyd, Njari Sharif, and Shelley Hubbard. Russ Miller, none of this would have happened without you. Your friendship and devotion to us is invaluable. Thank you, Cathy Stone, for graciously continuing the loving support we’ve always received from you and Howard. Heartfelt thanks go out to Frank and Sue Malvezzi for your contribution to help give life to this album.

Produced by John Clayton, Jeff Hamilton

Recorded at Hitkor, LosAngeles, CA June12th and 13th, 2023
Engineered and Mixed by Russ Miller

Mastered by David Donnelly at DNA Mastering
Assistant Engineer – Michael Gorecki
Project coordination – J4U Entertainment, LLC,
Terri L. Harper, David A. Harper
Management – Gail Boyd Artist Management
Equipment manager, librarian -Jessica Ragsdale
Photo credit – Shane O’Donnell Photography
Album Art – Cassidy Douglas for RMI Music Productions Inc.
John Clayton uses Evah Pirastro strings

Jeff Hamilton plays: Mapex drums, Sabian Hammertone Series cymbals,

Innovative Percussion signature sticks and signature brushes, Remo drumheads. Canopus “Jeff Hamilton” cymbal stands,X-Percussion, Jeff Hamilton Signature X – Click accessories.

ProjectWET

March 11, 2024 by admin

Project WET: Water Education Today is dedicated to solving critical environmental challenges by teaching the world about water. We do this by providing hands-on, science-based water education resources to formal and non-formal educators around the world. These resources encourage responsible environmental stewardship and promote meaningful action to address environmental challenges, climate change, social justice, and sustainability.

We believe that creating a water literate society will allow our communities to value precious resources and make informed decisions. Our conceptual framework of Water Literacy Principles is the foundational element of our water education curriculum and serves as the basis to creating a water literate society. Learn more about how our methodology creates materials that are hands-on, interactive and encourage critical thinking on water and science topics.

www.projectwet.org