The 40s were the twilight of the big bands.

There were a few reasons for this.

Two of them are two crucial music industry strikes.

Or were they a strike and a boycott?

Welcome to the history of the 20th century.

...the 20th century. Episode 421. Two strikes, and you're out.

In the United States, in the last third of the 19th century, following the abolition of slavery,

there emerged in the African American community in the South what were known as

juke joints. The origin of the term is uncertain. A juke joint was, in a nutshell, a poor man's

nightclub. African-American sharecroppers and field hands spent all week doing back-breaking

work for next-to-no-pay.

When the weekend came, they naturally wanted a place to unwind and have some fun.

African-Americans in the segregated South would not have been welcome at clubs that catered to white people,

even if they could afford them, which they mostly couldn't. Besides, nightclubs

are usually found in cities, and we are speaking here of rural people living in small communities.

Hence, the juke joint. It might be in some old abandoned shack, or maybe someone's house.

It was only open on the weekends,

but there you could get together with your buddies in a public space that had food and drink,

music, and dancing, along with gambling and other unsavory activities, which is why juke joints

had a bad reputation. During prohibition, juke joints had a bad reputation.

During prohibition, juke joints also served as speak-easies.

The music in a juke joint would be provided by one or two musicians performing the blues,

...