The Winner of our $100 Jazz Contest Is…
In 1958, 57 notable jazz musicians gathered for a legendary photograph entitled A Great Day in Harlem on the steps of an unassuming brownstone at 17 East 126th Street.
The building hasn’t changed much since then, and of the hundreds of correct responses, I was thrilled to see how many went the distance and either took a picture of themselves in front, or photoshopped themselves in. Just a handful of the entries…
The idea behind this was simply to make the location become more than just a forgettable address found via a Google search. Hopefully those who made the trek felt the weight of history when standing on the doorstep, and maybe those that Photoshopped will decide to check it out someday when traveling through Harlem.
As for the $100 gift certificate to New York’s The Jazz Standard?
The prize goes to Jeremy H. of LIC, New York, who actually made the trip to E 126th:
Thank to everyone for entering! Definitely check out the Jazz Standard for some great music AND killer BBQ from the Blue Smoke downstairs.
Finally, be sure to check out The Jazz Session, where Jason Crane hosts a podcast with in-depth interviews of jazz musicians, producers, and others in the field. To date, that’s hundreds of interviews and over one million downloads! Find them all online for free and subscribe via iTunes here!
-SCOUT
Another way to make the address memorable is to watch the terrific documentary “A Great Day in Harlem,” which talks to many of the people who were there that day, and includes film footage shot by some of the participants:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109934/combined
It’s available on DVD, and via Netflix.
I had just watched it the week before you announced the contest, so I recused myself.
Thanks for the recommendation, Karen. — It was big fun taking part, and be it only for honoring the great photograph with all the legendary jazz figures who have influenced me, and my work, and who belong to my (musical) heroes. I have the book, and I will certainly order the DVD too.
Long live jazz!
Congratulations to the winner. At least I can say my photo graced the front-page of ScoutingNY for a little while … even if it made the contest a little easier for others.
Have they added some kind of stucco-like material to the building, because you can see individual stones in the black and white picture but in the rest the front of the building looks smooth.
What a neat contest. I entered with my 2 cents worth. I was six when this was shot and living in Queens. Since then I have met some of the participants and even got a couple of autographs. Jazz rules.
Great contest. Wish I’d had time to participate.
That photograph plays an important part in the plot of Tom Hanks’ movie, THE TERMINAL. It was only after seeing that movie that I knew about the photo, and started reading up on the true story behind it. What a great moment in time.
I feel so famous… my photo appears on the Scout page!!! Whoo Hoo. You had better enjoy yourself, Jeremy! 🙂