There was a time when countless young people in the Midwest, South, and Southwest went to dances and stage shows to hear a Territory Band play.
Going Back to T-Town is a priceless source of information for historians of American popular music and African American history..
The book includes a Roll Call of his organization\'s members, based on notes he kept about them.
A devoted husBand and family man, Ernie Fields also respected and appreciated his fellow musicians.
At a time when most other Territory bands had faded, the Ernie Fields Orchestra continued to perform.
Ernie finally scored a top-ten hit in 1959 with his rock-and-roll rendition of In the Mood.
In 1939, Hammond arranged for recording sessions and bookings that included performances in the famed Apollo Theater in New York.
After traveling with his Band all over the United States, Fields eventually caught the attention of renowned music producer John Hammond.
As much as possible, Carmen Fields tells her father\'s story in his own voice: how he weathered the ups and downs of the music industry and maintained his optimism even while he faced entrenched racial prejudice and threats of violence.
He shared his tales from the road with his daughter, a well-known Boston journalist, and his son, Ernie Fields Jr., who has carried on his legacy as a successful musician and music contractor.
Fortunately, Ernie Fields not only recorded music but also loved telling stories.
Because few Territory bands made recordings, their contributions to the development of jazz music are often overlooked.
This is an enlightening account of how this talented musician and businessman navigated the hurdles of racial segregation during the Jim Crow era.
In Going Back to T-Town , Ernie\'s daughter, Carmen Fields, tells a story of success, disappointment, and perseverance extending from the early jazz era to the 1960s.
Territory bands traveled from town to town, performing jazz and swing music, and Tulsa-based musician Ernie Fields (1904-97) led one of the best.
There was a time when countless young people in the Midwest, South, and Southwest went to dances and stage shows to hear a Territory Band play
