St. Louis has deep roots in American musical history. It was the cradle of classic ragtime and a destination city for jazz age riverboats. During the swing era, it had its own local style of dance, and during the jazz revival you could hear trad bands all over Gaslight Square. The revival of ragtime had reached St. Louis years before the Scott Joplin craze inspired by The Sting, and the revival never faded here.
A generation of artists including Jean Kittrell and Trebor Tichenor kept the Goldenrod Showboat swinging and the St. Louis Jazz Club still boasts the nationally known bands Cornet Chop Suey and the St. Louis Rivermen.
St. Louis is also home to a young blooded local jazz scene rivaling those in much larger cities. Miss Jubilee has appeared at the Davenport Bix Festival several times, The Gaslight Squares, led by British transplant T.J Müller was featured in our pages in February. An active swing dance scene is exploring the local history and hosts a summer swing weekend and the Nevermore Jazz Ball each fall. Now in its ninth year, Nevermore 2019 will featuring headline bands from out of town including the Chicago Cellar Boys, Michael Gamble's Rhythm Serenaders, and Jonathon Stout's Campus Six.
St. Louis traditional jazz has its own up the river sound, and no one captures it more fully than the superbly bluesy Annie and the Furtrappers. When I told a friend who asked
