Strange Fruit: Repercussions Of The Civil Rights Movement

Jazz and Civil Rights “Southern trees bear a strange fruit, Blood on the leaves and blood at the root, Black bodies swingin ' in the Southern breeze, Strange fruit hangin ' from the poplar trees. “Strange Fruit” initially performed by Billie Holiday depicts one of the inceptive repercussions of the civil rights movement‒ a lynching. Holiday’s expression of the event delivers an overall timbre and mood for jazz in the coming era. The development of the Civil Rights movement and opposing factions had lasting aftereffects on jazz music and its performers. The Civil Rights movement sparked an influx of songs that used a mournful sound to express their message.

“[Written by] Abel Meeropol, Strange Fruit was not by any means the first protest

Jazz as a music came to be use for protest of government action by lyrics and tones that expressed anger. In his song “Fables of Faubus” bassist Charles Mingus protests the governor of Arkansas, Orval E. Faubus, and his attempts to stop the nine African American students who chose to attend Little Rock Central High, the lyrics read,“Name someone who’s ridiculous, Dannie. Governor Faubus! Why is he so sick and ridiculous? He won 't permit integrated schools.”(Mingus). When it is said that Faubus would not permit integrated schools the lyrics are making reference to the incident at Little Rock Central High. Mingus sings in a very rough tone that is similar to yelling, making the song sound like a protest. He calls back to the drummer Dannie Richmond who responds in a similar yelling style that gives off a feeling of discussed providing more to the feeling of protest. By using the names of public officers Mingus is actively voicing his dissatisfaction with the government, allowing his listeners to hear his opinion through means comfortable to Mingus. During saxophonist Eric Dolphy’s solo, Mingus and Richmond interject by calling out the Klu Klux Klan. In his solo Dolphy plays with a very distorted sound that sounds very similar to moaning or wailing. Dolphy created this sound by bending the notes that he played, bending is caused by moving the tongue creating the distortion that changes the

Brubeck was a major influence on the public being one of the most famous jazz musicians of his style. He used his publicity to give the public a view of what could be if the African American community was allowed to integrate with the rest of the American society. Brubeck uses the term color blind to describe jazz meaning that jazz has no racial prejudice. He expresses that jazz musicians working in harmony could wash away the tasted of Little Rock, referring to the Little Rock nine. Brubeck noticed that the incident in Little Rock had received global attention and was trying to remove the image of a racist America from the international eye. His goal resembled that of the Civil Rights movement, one of equality and a better