Unknown to most, the city of Wichita has a unique jazz history. Homer Osborne once toured with the King Oliver Band, and jazz legend Charlie Parker recorded there in 1940 while on tour with the Jay McShann Orchestra. While these may be just footnotes in the overall history of jazz, they do offer insight into the city’s unique jazz history.
This study provides a narrative of known jazz activity in Wichita prior to the Second World War. It also discusses Wichita as a “jazz city” within the constraints of the thesis established in jazz historian Leroy Ostransky’s book Jazz City, by recording Wichita vice patterns. Josh Yearout was an archivist in Special Collections, Wichita State University Library. For his master’s degree in Public History (cum laude 2005) he wrote a study on pre-World War Two Wichita jazz. Wichita bootlegging is a key area of research in the book. Josh’s unique position in Special Collections at the library gave him access to many, many records. The book is a 96-page, perfect bound paperback with illustrations. Readers will be impressed with Josh’s research hours and writing style—and the antics of Wichitans in the Jazz Age.