Gigs

The story of a cultural scandal that lasted for two generations - the New York cabaret laws, a series of regulations used to control and repress popular entertainment, which were only overcome in the 1980s.

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In "Gigs" Paul Chevigny, a noted lawyer, scholar and jazz enthusiast, tells the story of a cultural scandal that lasted for two generations. Instituted in the 1920s, the New York City cabaret laws were a clutch of regulations used to control and repress popular entertainment, especially live jazz music. The cabaret laws dictated where live entertainment could be played, and until very recently established a licensing system that was used to insulate patrons from "immoral" influences. These regulations were altered, gradually at first, through intense political pressure and changing cultural attitudes. In the 1980s they were finally destroyed, with the help of Chevigny, who represented the musicians and their union in the case documented in this book. Only as a result of litigation rooted in First Ammendment were claims by the musicians to be permitted at last to express themselves as they saw fit. New York City definitively yielded to the decision as its administration changed from that of Edward Koch to David Dinkins. This book should be of interest to undergraduates and postgraduates; cultural studies, sociology, law and American studies.