Episode 16: Centr-All That Jazz ( Central Avenue Jazz)

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Lional Hampton, at far left, rides in a Cadillac convertible in front of Club Alabam on Central Avenue, a busy thoroughfare of businesses, nightclubs, and homes in Los Angeles, ca 1953. Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection.

We're gonna jazz on down to Central Avenue to go over the story of LA's local Jazz scene of the early 20th century and the history of the people and culture that made it all possible. Feel free to scat along with us. We'll cover the trailblazing Black community of the city from the Central Avenue neighborhood to Bronzeville, the rich Central Avenue jazz scene and the eventual downfall of the Central Avenue neighborhood.