A jazz trance on the lawn

A Midsummer Night’s Swing at South Jackson

BRADY FLANIGAN, Staff Writer

Sep 25, 2024

The night after the Harvest Moon at South Jackson Performing Arts Center. Fall closing in and a full brass band. Jazz singers and the moon high overhead like a cigarette burn in a black ashtray. Cool air and cold ice cream. This was 2024’s annual A Midsummer Night’s Swing Ice Cream Social–a hobby of JSPAC’s for more than ten years. What’s it about jazz under the firmament that keeps bringing Tullahoma back year after year? What’s it about brass? If a great Woodstock guitar flows in and out with a sound like the tide, then a truly great jazz band is like a house fire–smoke fuming from everywhere–filling up lungs and guts until there’s hardly anything to breathe. It’s a burning sensation, and the singer is the only person with a firehose. The pipes open up just before the house is consumed with flames–a singer’s wild rising sound–the water turns on, the song ends, and the fire goes out. The crowds on the lawn outside South Jackson cheer. The band turns the pages on their sheet music, and everyone readies for the next spit of flames. 

When the band took a break even the loudest sounds became silent. The crowd went back to laughing and murmuring. The cars on South Jackson Street were probably rushing by with the sound of a railroad, but it was all invisible. After hearing the South Jackson Street Band wailing Nat King Cole’s “Orange Colored Sky”, there was nothing left happening in the world but the last drops of music metabolizing in the brain and the liver. Kids were playing football in the grass while mom and dad danced on a concrete stage between the band and the lawn. Peggy Burton and Samantha Watters, the evening’s vocalists, cradled the crowd in their hand with every note. It doesn’t seem impossible these songbirds are sirens–millennia old, the same kind Homer spoke of in The Odyssey, but sirens that over the years became bored of crashing ships into the shore. Nowadays they get their kicks dancing couples to death. Because many of those who stepped onto the dance floor didn’t seem to quit until the show was over. 

It was Karen and Kenny Cobb’s first experience with A Midsummer Night’s Swing. “I’m ashamed to say it; because I’ve lived here a long time, but this is the first time we’ve been. It’s shockingly fun listening to them. They’re amazing. And Samantha, we’ve watched her grow up to be a beautiful voice. And Peggy is like an icon nowadays. She’s been doing this, among 50,000 other things, bringing opportunities like this to all of us in Tullahoma for 50 or 60 years. Have you stood next to her? I’m always surprised that she’s a tiny little creature. Because I’m always thinking of her as this greater than life thing,” said Karen. Kenny and Karen barely paused all evening. When the band hit intermission at 8 p.m., they were sweatier than a marathon through the jungle, but it was obvious they weren’t finished dancing. The jazz trance was still in their blood. It was personal. The performers would collapse before they would. 

The band was set up on the front steps of SJPAC, hidden from the road by the trees. High above them at the top of the building there were three stained glass windows throwing red, yellow, green lights out over the crowd. Inside the theater actors were practicing for November’s Grease the Musical. There was something happening in every direction. SJPAC Executive Director Greg Gressel and his team were set up selling tickets and solo cups of wine. Kids were lined up buying scoops of ice cream. At the edge of the crowd Tullahoma Mayor Lynn Sebourn sat with his daughter watching the scene unfold. “I love it. I come every year if I can. I’ve been involved in a lot of South Jackson stuff over the years. Peggy taught all my girls to sing.” he said. All around him couples still danced. The night wasn’t over yet. The crowd was clinging to their last cups of wine and ice cream. Everyone was holding their breath until that last fantastic note. 

By the time the sound faded and the band was packing, the crowd was still hanging around. The wind was blowing the last whiffs of music. People spoke in low voices as they gathered their chairs and prepared for a disappointing drive home listening to FM radio. When the lawn was cleared it felt like just another night on the calendar. It’s a kind of rhythm Tullahoma has come to expect–dependable and as regular as the seasons, pulling everyone back together again under the stars.

 

South Jackson Street Band: Sentimental Symphonic Sound

ANNA COBURN Staff Writer
17 September 2023

A longstanding traditional sound in Tullahoma, South Jackson Street (SJS) Band has livened community gatherings since 1970.

According to the band’s Director, Allen Johnson, “the band was established in December of 1970 as the Tullahoma Kiwanis Community Band and was directed by Ralph James. The first documented performance (per longtime member Grady Saunder’s records) was March 23, 1971. The band at that time played mostly marches and concert style music,” he said. “They were the featured band at every Fourth of July Kiwanis Celebration from 1971 through 1988.”

“The first mention of the creation of The South Jackson Street Band,” according to Johnson, “was in 1987 and was directed by Bob Carter. Bob continued as director for quite a few years and continued playing with the band as others stepped into the leadership role.”

Johnson also mentioned “there have been several directors [or] leaders of the SJS band through the years, but most recent leaders include Brian Guess, Mike Chilcutt and Tom Breese.”

Johnson began leading the band in the winter of 2018, though he has been a member of the band since 2015.

“In the early spring of this year, we were given a treasure trove of information and documentation from Colleen Saunders, a member of the South Jackson Civic Center and wife of the former Grady Saunders,” he said. “Grady was an engineer and kept meticulous notes and documentation about the history of the band. We are still going through all the information.”

“Our current members come from all walks of life,” said Johnson. “Former and current band directors, engineers, physical therapists, store managers, retirees, etc. but all have a love of the Big Band style of music. All are dedicated volunteers and we rehearse twice a month. The band plays between four to six gigs a year.”

Johnson said the band’s “standard setup consists of 17 instrumentalists and two primary vocalists (male or female). The instrumentals are broken down into four sections: five saxophones, four trombones, four trumpets and a rhythm section which includes piano, guitar, bass and drums.”

“We also have a very extensive list of substitute instrumentalists and vocalists that we can draw from if one of our primary personnel is unable to play or sing,” he said.

“The band plays the hits of yesterday, as well as the popular hits of today,” according to Johnson. “Their repertoire of over 400 songs ranges from the sound of the Glen Miller and Artie Shaw orchestras of the 1930s and 40s to the contemporary artistry of Gillespie, Elton John, The Beatles and Billy Joel. The band also handles most styles of music including Swing, Latin, Waltz, Polka, Fox Trot and yes, even some Rock and Pop numbers.”

“The list of former members is extensive and too many to name,” said Johnson. “However we do have a pretty comprehensive list of former members, again thanks to Grady, as well as our own current records.”

“Currently, the SJS Band has our own website (SJSBAND.COM), our own FaceBook page and our own YouTube Channel. All of those can be accessed through our website. Our Webmaster Ron Hackett, who is also our guitarist, has done an excellent job of updating our website,” said Johnson. “There you can find out more about the band, access videos of our previous performances, meet our current members and even read some biographies of them. A new feature that Ron has recently put into action is the ability to scan a QR Code available at any performance that will give any individual our complete set list for the evening, including arranger and music style. That has been a hit with those who like to dance, so that they know what type of song is next on the list. We encourage anyone to "like" and "friend" us on our social media sites, and request to get on our mailing list. They will be the first to find out about our next performances, as well as when we post new videos.”

SJS Band’s next performance, according to Johnson, will be at the Events Center in Bell Buckle on New Year’s Eve.

“This will be our second annual event there and is sure to be a wonderful evening,” said Johnson.